Highway to climate hell

Each year, the United Nations sponsors a climate summit to discuss how to reverse the continuous problem of global warming. Seven years ago, during the climate summit in Paris, the agreement was for the world to limit the global warming temperature to 1.5 degrees C above pre-industrial level. At this date, the world is already suffering from an increase of global warming to 1.1 degrees C above pre-industrial level. If the present trajectory is not reversed, then the world will suffer from global warming higher than the 1.5 degrees C target.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said that the planet is “fast approaching tipping points that will make climate chaos irreversible.” He told the delegates to the ongoing climate summit in Egypt that despite the challenges of rising inflation, geopolitical tensions and an energy price crisis, the world must be ready to forge a “new climate solidarity pact.” All countries must contribute their fair share of effort and funding to cutting greenhouse gas emissions. He also told the delegates that the world was facing a choice between cooperation or a “collective suicide pact” caused by rising temperatures.

In last year’s climate summit in Glasgow in the United Kingdom, the focus was on the pledges to attain net zero targets by 2050, cut methane emissions and halt deforestation. Among these problems, the Philippines must pay special attention to halting deforestation, which has been a major cause of floods and the accompanying landslides.

In our country, the main causes of deforestation have been illegal logging and mining. It is only by stopping deforestation and implementing a program of reforestation that we can alleviate the tremendous damage inflicted by typhoons.

At the Glasgow summit last year, a Forest and Climate Leaders Partnership (FCLP) was launched to protect forests around the world. Its aim is to ensure that the Glasgow Summit Pledge to halt and reverse global forest loss by 2030 is delivered. The Partnership will supposedly work on the deployment of carbon markets, community initiatives and other strategies for tackling deforestation needed to meet the 2030 goal.

There are 145 countries which represent more than 90 percent of the world’s forests. Unfortunately, only 26 nations responsible for 1/3 of the planet’s forests have joined the FCLP.

Another critical issue during this summit in Egypt was the discussion of setting up a fund for the higher-income nations to pay reparations to vulnerable nations struggling with the impact of climate change. “Loss and damage” refers to the idea that the wealthier countries are responsible for almost all the emissions. However, the poor countries who have a very small share of the global emissions must bear the burden of the negative effects of climate change.

For example, China is responsible for 34 percent of the world’s emissions. The United States and the European Union are each responsible for 18 percent or a total of 36 percent. Together, China, the US and Europe account for 70 percent of the world’s emissions. Other major sources of emissions are rich countries like Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom.

Recently, Pakistan was hit by a $30-billion loss and damage as a result of devastating floods. According to Pakistan’s Prime Minister Sharif, the provision of funding from rich countries for countries affected by climate change was a matter of “climate justice.”

So far, the reception to the concept of “loss and damage” has not been met with any enthusiasm by the rich countries. In his speech to the delegates at the climate summit in Egypt, US President Biden did not even mention the concept of “loss and damage.” Even worse, China said that it felt no obligation to give reparations to the poorer countries for the negative effects of climate change because China says it is still a developing country, not a rich one.

The Prime Minister of Barbados Mia Mottley said that it is not only the governments who should provide loss and damage funding. She argued that oil and gas companies should also contribute. She asked: “How do companies make $200 billion in profits in the last three months and not expect to contribute at least 10 cents in each dollar of profit to a loss and damage fund?”

It should be remembered that fossil fuels like oil and natural gas are among the biggest sources of greenhouse gas emissions. While the climate summit in Egypt is still ongoing, it has become obvious that even the world leaders are not ready to take all the necessary action to prevent a climate catastrophe. As UN Secretary General Guterres warned the world leaders, the world is “on a highway to climate hell with its foot on the accelerator.”

Perhaps we must be prepared for the inevitability of increased global warming before we can expect the world to wake up and take the necessary drastic action to reverse the current trend.

*      *      *

Our November writing dates: Nov. 19, 10:30 am – last class for adult writers for the year with facilitator Dinah Roma on the art of poetry. Nov. 26, 2-3 pm, Young Writers’ Hangout with returning facilitator Susan Lara. Contact [email protected].  0945.2273216