BERLIN, Feb. 12 (Xinhua) -- About 250 experts and officials from 26 European countries and international organizations opened a three-day symposium, focusing on the impacts on water balance brought up by climate change.

    "We must learn to consistently take the impacts of climate change, especially on the water balance, into account when making long-term decisions, for example with regard to infrastructure or regional development," German Environment Minister Sigmar Gabriel said at the opening.

    That applies to shipping routes, water supply and wastewater management, coastal defense and flood control, the development of tourism centers and electricity generation, he added.

    The aim of the symposium is to formulate appropriate recommendations, especially with regard to the relevant European Union policies.

    According to the latest report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), climate change is progressing more rapidly and more intensively than was previously anticipated.

    Climate change is affecting the seasonal and regional distribution of precipitation, leading to the melting of glaciers and the rise in sea levels.

    The consequences are likely to be seen in more incidents of flooding or longer periods of drought, as well as in gradual changes in the water balance which will become apparent, for example, in regional scarcity of water resources.

    Meanwhile, changes in the water balance have fundamental impacts on animal and plant habitats which will lead to regional shifts in species composition, according to the report.

    "Even if we succeed in reducing the increase in greenhouse gas omissions to an extent that allows the global rise in temperature to be limited to an average of two degrees Celsius, we will still be faced with serious consequences," stressed Gabriel.