More than 700,000 animals have died in Mongolia this year due to dzud, a brutal natural disaster unique to Mongolia where a summer drought combines with a harsh winter and vast numbers of livestock die from either starvation or cold.  As of March 7, snowfall covered up to 50% of the country, with 66 administrative subdivisions in 12 provinces experiencing dzud or near dzud conditions, Mongolian National Agency for Meteorology and Environmental Monitoring said in a statement,

adding that a total of 710,740 animals died so far this year.  Among the provinces, Khovd and Uvs in the west, Khuvsgul in the northwest, as well as Khentii in the east registered the highest rates of animal death.  A prolonged period of severe dry weather between mid-May and end of July 2017, intensified by extremely high temperatures in June, damaged large swatches of cropped areas and caused a severe deterioration of pastures and rangeland conditions, FAO/WFP reported on December 22, 2017.  READ MORE


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