Earlier this month, the IPCC’s historic climate report sounded a ‘death knell’ for the coal and fossil fuel industry…reports Asian Lite News.
Development funding for projects tackling air pollution accounts for less than one per cent of total aid spending worldwide, despite a 153 per cent rise in deaths caused by outdoor air pollution in aid recipient countries between 1990 and 2019, a new research from Clean Air Fund revealed on Tuesday.
More money and better collaboration could save countless lives and deliver a wide range of health, environmental and development benefits, the Fund said on the UN’s second International Day of Clean Air for blue skies.
The Clean Air Fund’s annual report, ‘The State of Global Air Quality Funding 2021’, provides the only global snapshot of projects tackling air pollution by donor governments and philanthropic organisations.
New Delhi: Smog engulfs the national capital as the air quality worsens.(Photo: IANS)
It identifies gaps in funding and opportunities for strategic investment and collaboration to deliver clean air for all.
Overall, governments and philanthropic foundations spent $5.72 billion between 2015 and 2020, a gradual increase over the period. However, preliminary figures suggest this funding dipped by 10 per cent from 2019 ($1.47 billion) to 2020 ($1.33 billion).
The Clean Air Fund has warned that the overall funding falls far short of what is needed to tackle a problem which causes over 4.2 million deaths every year, more than malaria, tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS combined.
Fossil-fuel combustion accounts for about two-thirds of human exposure to outdoor air pollution. It is also the main driver of climate change. The research also shows that governments have spent 21 per cent more in development assistance on projects that prolong fossil fuel usage ($1.50 billion in 2019 and 2020) than they did on projects with a primary objective of reducing air pollution (around $1.24 billion).
The International Energy Agency has called for a dramatic shift away from fossil fuels to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, the target agreed by governments in Paris in 2015.
Earlier this month, the IPCC’s historic climate report sounded a ‘death knell’ for the coal and fossil fuel industry.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres commented: “There must be no new coal plants built after 2021. OECD countries must phase out existing coal by 2030, with all others following suit by 2040. Countries should also end all new fossil fuel exploration and production, and shift fossil fuel subsidies into renewable energy.”
Jane Burston, Executive Director and Founder of the Clean Air Fund, said: “Governments are investing more aid in prolonging fossil fuel use than in protecting the nine out of 10 of us breathing harmful and dirty air right now. With public health such a huge global priority and the world waking up to the scale of the climate challenge, this makes no sense at all.
“The good news is it can quickly change. We urgently need more funding, stronger targets and better collaboration to deliver clean air, for all our sakes.”
When it comes to funding from philanthropic foundations to clean air projects — this increased by 17 per cent in 2020 to $44.7 million. However, despite over 4.2 million people dying every year as a result of outdoor air pollution, these figures amount to just 0.1 per cent of philanthropic grants worldwide.
The report also highlights that grant-making to air quality by foundations is largely restricted to climate, environment and energy funders, while the money is mainly directed to North America, Europe, India, China and global projects.
Also funding from official development sources is hugely unequal, with little reaching the hardest hit areas.
Africa and Latin America receive just five and 10 per cent of aid funding respectively, despite housing some of the world’s most polluted cities and regions.
While the Thapana has always been closely linked to the faith of the people residing along its banks, it had also fallen prey to pollution and degradation….reports Manoj Thakur
It was 2012. The monsoons were late and the Thapana, which is already a low-flow river, was drying up. It was suggested in the panchayat that farmers with fields close to the banks could pump water from their borewells into the deepest points in the river so that at least the aquatic life could be saved.
Despite the impending drought, Mehak Singh (43) from Kanyawala village readily agreed. He considered it a divine duty. It is believed that some part of the river flows underground, he said, allowing farmers to draw on it to water their fields. “That why the farmers and villagers here are very attached to it; we worship the river twice a year with a community feast,” he said.
In the neighbouring village of Mandoli, Surjit Singh (66) was also very worried about the state of the river and the dying fish, and he agreed to participate in the exercise. It was a herculean task but with the help of two dozen farmers and the other villagers covering the cost of the fuel, the river was saved that year.
Thapana abuts the 5,000-strong Kanalasi village in the Yamunanagar district of Haryana. It is one of the seven villages that the river flows through in its 15-km journey after it branches out from the Yamuna and before joining the Somb.
While the Thapana has always been closely linked to the faith of the people residing along its banks, it had also fallen prey to pollution and degradation.
It was in Kanalasi that the community-driven movement to revive and protect the river took root.
Educating the community
The beginnings of this restoration process started with the Yamuna Jiyo Campaign (YJC), started by a former IFS officer and director of Peace Charitable Trust, Manoj Mishra, in 2007. YJC sought to ascertain and improve the health of the river beyond metrics.
This meant studying the aquatic life in the river and vegetation along its banks. Could the river support the famed game fish of the Yamuna, Mahseer, which could only thrive in pollution-free waters? What were the various species of turtles, frogs, birds and other creatures that were living off the river? Were the trees around the river growing, green or dying?
For this task, the villagers along Thapana were roped in. The project was meant to run for two years from 2009 and saw the setting up of 20 ‘Nadi Mitra Mandali’ (friends of the river) along Thapana, each with 10-40 locals, who met regularly and trained together.
Close to 500 people were trained in different phases, said Bhim Singh Rawat, the convener of YJC, where they were educated about keeping the river pollution-free – from redirecting sewers from the villages and pesticide run-off from the fields to stopping littering. They were taught why greening the banks was critical in attracting and supporting wildlife like local and migratory birds like waterfowl which are naturally adept at keeping the river clean.
It was during this time that the Thames River Trust (TRT) in London bagged an international award, the mandate of which allowed it to associate with any organisation working for a river in any part of the world. The TRT began collaborating with YJC in monitoring the river health index project.
So the project was extended for two more years. Awareness about the river grew in Kanalasi and adjoining areas after this, says Kiran Pal Rana (54), resident of Kanalasi and the head of local Mandali.
Engineering the river banks
Awareness camps were organised to encourage the plantation of popular trees, neem, rosewood and fruit-bearing plants like jamoon, mangoes, on the banks of the river. Farmers who were cultivating on the river bank agreed to replace their crops with varieties of trees that would fetch them income.
Kiran Deep Singh (32), a farmer who planted saplings on the banks of the Thapana river, said that earlier some land on the banks of the river used to lie idle. There was soil erosion and if there were heavy rains, these edges would suffer a lot.
“Since we planted saplings on the banks of the river 2-3 years ago, in association with the Nadi Mitra Mandali, our problem has been solved. Besides, the trees of Safeda and Papular are been grown in the idle land and this will give us a lot of income.”
Rajesh Gulia, a former IFS officer of the Haryana Forest Department and then working in Yamunanagar, oversaw the plantation of saplings in Kanalsi and Mandoli. “We, along with Panchayat and Nadi Mitra Mandali, explained to the villagers that if we plant saplings today, then after three to four years you will get good income. They were told how planting saplings was like a fixed deposit for them. The effect of such talks was that a large number of farmers had agreed to plant saplings,” he said.
In other places, when farmers shifted their agriculture some distance from the riverbank, faster afforestation resulted. Earlier, vegetation that grew naturally along the riverbank was being destroyed due to farming being carried out almost up to the river edge. This also accelerated the pace of the river drying up during the summer. But now, natural vegetation was allowed to thrive.
Farmers were also given training on organic farming practices and local varieties of seeds were made available to them, ones that didn’t require fertilisers and pesticides. Sheeshpal, a farmer, said when farmers started getting remunerative prices for their produce, the use of pesticides along the river bank was reduced and harmful chemicals no longer found their way into the water.
The community also had to work towards changing some deep-rooted habits in order to protect the river habitat. The Thapana earlier was a dumping ground for waste of all kinds including empty pesticide bottles, plastic and polythene covers, said Sanjay Singh (65), a resident of the village. Once this waste was cleaned, villagers decided not to dump anything in the river henceforth. While it was difficult to break this habit, continuous dialogue and awareness finally had an effect. When a few people started obeying the no-dumping rule, others started following their example. Now garbage bins have been placed along the banks and in the village, and are cleared by the municipal corporation regularly.
The river as part of the family
Despite being a low-flow river, the Thapana is home to eight different varieties of fish, including mahseer, and crabs, snakes, frogs, and turtles. The river is home to 32 types of flora including those that grow on the river banks and 70 species of birds flock to its waters.
Once the river started to become healthy, Manju Devi, the sarpanch of Kanalsi continued to face several challenges, the biggest one being the rapid rise in Mahseer which started attracting hunters. Mahseer is a famous sport fish and a delicacy and the low water flow made them easy prey. Some people also hunted the birds here.
Fishing was prohibited and villagers started to patrol the banks during the night to enforce the rule. Though stray attempts to fish in these waters were not successful and were often caught, the villagers wanted to increase the reverence of the river so no one would attempt to exploit its resources.
Besides, the transformation that the river had brought about in their lives made them even more protective of it. It was then that the villagers decided to co-opt the river as a family member, Rana said.
“We started celebrating the birthday of the river and threw a grand feast. The last Sunday of September was chosen as the date of birth of the river,” he added.
The river has a life cycle. It has its health index and is determined by the purity of water flowing in it, vegetation in it, trees on its banks, the aquatic species it sustains. All these are interdependent. “We tested the health index of this river, post our efforts to rid it of pollutants, and it has passed this test in flying colours,” asserted environmentalist Bheem Singh, a member of Yamuna Mitra Mandali. “Rivers have their system (of maintenance). If one creates this system, the river maintains itself,” he added.
Haryana’s Forest and Environment Minister, Kanwar Pal Gurjar, who is MLA from Jagadhri assembly constituency to which Kanalsi village belongs, said that the government provide saplings free of cost to the villagers from time to time (though the cost of plantation is covered by the Mandali and the panchayat). He also said the government is consulting experts regarding villagers’ demand that the river is given heritage status.
(The author is a Chandigarh-based freelance journalist and a member of 101Reporters.com, a pan-India network of grassroots reporters)
The report by EPIC said that north India breathes “pollution levels that are 10 times worse than those found anywhere else in the world”…reports Asian Lite News.
A study by the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago (EPIC) has found that 480 million people in northern India face the “most extreme levels of air pollution in the world.”
Indian cities routinely dominate global pollution rankings and bad air kills more than a million people every year, the BBC reported.
The report by EPIC said that north India breathes “pollution levels that are 10 times worse than those found anywhere else in the world”.
This air pollution has spread over decades beyond the region to western and central Indian states such as Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, where the average person is now losing between two-and-a-half to three years of life expectancy as compared to early 2000, the study said.
Air pollution can reduce the life expectancy of Indians by nine years, said a report by a US research group.
The EPIC study said that 480 million people in northern India face the “most extreme levels of air pollution in the world”, and, over time, these high levels have expanded to cover other parts too.
Strong clean air policies can add up to five years to people’s lives, it added.
New data from the Air Quality Life Index report by EPIC said that residents in Delhi could see up to 10 years added to their lives if air pollution is reduced to meet the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline of 10 µg/m³, the BBC reported.
In 2019, India’s average particulate matter concentration was 70.3 µg/m³ – the highest in the world.
The report said that Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Pakistan, which together account for nearly a quarter of the global population, consistently figure in the list of top five most polluted countries on earth.
The report anticipates that the world’s cities, which receive migrants and are now home to 55 per cent of the global population, will face a rising number of “day-zero” events – when taps run dry…reports Asian Lite News.
Water deficits are linked to 10 per cent of the increase in total migration within countries between 1970 and 2000, a World Bank report has said.
Stating that by the end of this century, worsening droughts are projected to affect about 700 million people, the Report ‘Ebb and Flow’ said: “These climate shocks will have a disproportionate impact on the developing world, with more than 85 per cent of people affected living in low- or middle-income countries.”
Yet “it is often the poor who cannot afford to leave. Residents of poor countries are four times less likely to move than residents of wealthier countries”. As climate change accelerates a global water crisis, rainfall variability is expected to be one of the contributing forces in migration, the World Bank said in a release.
Globally, water shocks affect not only the number of people who move, but also the skills they bring with them. “Migrants who leave regions with lower rainfall and frequent drought usually possess lower educational levels and skills than other migrant workers, implying significantly lower wages and less access to basic services at their destination. This raises important policy implications for receiving cities,” it said.
The report anticipates that the world’s cities, which receive migrants and are now home to 55 per cent of the global population, will face a rising number of “day-zero” events – when taps run dry.
The report, released earlier this week, provides the first-ever global assessment of the impact of water on migration. It is based on analysis of the largest data set on internal migration ever assembled, covering nearly half a billion people from 189 population censuses in 64 countries, and several national and global data sets that have been combined for the first time. The report was funded in part by the Global Water Security & Sanitation Partnership, a multi-donor trust fund based at the World Bank’s Water Global Practice, the release said.
In the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), where 60 per cent of the population lives in water-stressed areas, the report notes that water is already one of the main vulnerabilities faced by people living in the region, particularly those displaced by conflicts and their host communities.
“As the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic continues, climate change is fueling water challenges around the world, which will hit developing countries hardest,” the release quoted World Bank Managing Director for Development Policy and Partnerships Mari Pangestu as saying.
“In cities receiving migrants from rural areas due to rainfall variability, it pays to prevent such crises in an integrated way, to support green, resilient and inclusive development.”
Cities are also facing an increasing number of day-zero events, where they risk running out of water. Alongside recent acute water shortages in Cape Town, South Africa, Chennai, India, Sao Paolo, Brazil, and Basra, Iraq, dozens of smaller cities contend with similar events, but do not make international headlines.
“Policies and infrastructure needed to build water resilience are expensive, but a drought is far more costly, potentially reducing a city’s economic growth by up to 12 per cent,” it said.
The report highlights ways cities can tackle these challenges, such as reducing water demand, recycling wastewater, harvesting storm water, and redesigning urban areas to resemble sponges that soak up water and store it below ground, the release added.
Activists of the River Connect Campaign lament that Agra’s lifeline stands paralysed….reports Brij Khandelwal
The holy Yamuna river in Sri Krishnas land or Braj Mandal (Agra, Mathura, Vrindavan) continues to run dry and polluted, despite the monsoon, a clear disappointment for lakhs of devotees ahead of the Janamashtmi on August 30.
“Yamuna is integral to the Sri Krishna-Radha-lore. For the Hindus, it is one of the holiest rivers. The Bhakti movement poets eulogized Kalindi (Yamuna). Even the Mughal rulers were fascinated by the majestic and resplendent Yamuna river. Almost all great monuments were sited on the banks of river Yamuna from Delhi to Agra,” said Goswami Nandan Shrotriya, priest of the 300-year-old Sri Mathuradheesh temple in Agra.
An angry green activist Devashish Bhattacharya fumed furiously at the continued callous neglect of the holy Yamuna. “Not only UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, but also Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union minister Nitin Gadkari had promised to take appropriate steps to rejuvenate and revive the ancient glory of Yamuna. Gadkari on three different occasions had assured that ferries would bring tourists from Delhi to Agra and the Yamuna would be cleaned. But the ground reality continues to remain depressing.”
In a series of interventions in the M.C. Mehta PIL on Taj Mahal pollution, the Supreme Court had stressed on not only cleaning pollution but also maintaining a regular flow of water in the Yamuna for the safety of the historical monuments. The National Green Tribunal too has on several occasions ordered uninterrupted minimum flow of water in Yamuna to cleanse pollutants and support aqua life, said Surendra Sharma, president of the Braj Mandal Heritage Conservation Society.
But successive governments have lacked the will needed to face the challenge of water pollution in the rivers. To further compound a grave situation, thousands of water bodies in the Braj Mandal have disappeared without a trace. The holy “kunds” of Braj have either vanished or grabbed by land sharks, say the locals.
A large number of these ponds had been resurrected and renovated by the Braj Foundation run by Vineet Narain but the Braj Teerth Parishad that the Yogi government set up to revive religious tourism in Mathura district, has not shown the passion to conserve these natural assets.
“The eco-degradation of the entire Braj Mandal, once known for its green pastures, mangroves, water bodies, animal life, is a pathetic tale of gross neglect and lop-sided priorities,” explains Jagan Nath Poddar, convener of the Braj-Vrindavan Heritage Alliance.
Some years ago, responding to a stern high court directive, the Uttar Pradesh government had formed a special force, the River Police, in Agra to ensure that people do not pollute Yamuna.
Restrictions were also imposed on bathing cattle in the river. Washermen were asked to shift downstream — but to no avail. The multimillion rupee Yamuna Action Plan seems to have gone haywire.
The Yamuna here lies reduced to a drain, far cry from the times when it formed an idyllic backdrop for the splendid 17th century Taj Mahal.
A barrage in nearby Mathura city has stopped water that used to flow down the river from the industrial areas of Delhi, Faridabad and Ballabhgarh, drying up the river.
According to an estimate, 70 per cent of India’s total surface water is polluted. The direct discharge of untreated sewage is one of the major culprits. Delhi alone generates more than 3 billion litres of sewage every day but is able to treat less than half of that, that too partially. The rest is dumped into the centuries-old river every day.
According to an expert, “India generates nearly 40 million tons of sewage daily of which more than 70 per cent goes untreated. More than 4,000 septage and sludge filled trucks empty in Ganga Basin alone and on average one such truck carrying 5,000 liters of fecal sludge dumped, equates to 5,000 people defecating in open.”
The sad part is that despite alarm raised from time to time, the Union government has so far not been able to draw up a comprehensive National Rivers Policy, nor constitute a Central Rivers Authority. For decades river activists have been screaming at the top of their voices, pleading with government agencies to release more fresh water in the 1,400-km long Yamuna to dilute pollution.
Green activists point out that hundreds of dirty drains opening into the Yamuna in Vrindavan, Mathura and Agra continue to pollute the river making the water unfit for human consumption. Just behind the Taj Mahal, garbage dumps have appeared. The Mantola drain, opening into the Yamuna, brings in untreated sewage and toxic waste from slaughter houses, chain industries, electroplating units. In Mathura, the Masani drain discharges huge quantities of sewage and waste water, without treatment, says activist Sunil Sharma.
Activists of the River Connect Campaign lament that Agra’s lifeline stands paralysed. Sand blasts from the dry Yamuna riverbed also deface the white marble mausoleum of the Taj Mahal eight months in a year.
Amid these dark clouds though there is a ripple of hope. Several voluntary groups including the Yamuna Mission in Mathura, are engaged in mobilising people to get involved in programmes for cleaning up of the Yamuna river. The Lok Sabha MP from Mathura, cine star Hema Malini, in a recent interaction with media persons said that Yamuna was her top priority.
BRICS is an acronym for Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, termed as emerging economies and together fighting for climate justice at global negotiations…reports Asian Lite News.
India, at the 7th meeting of the BRICS Environment Ministerial 2021, stressed on the need for taking concrete, collective global actions against global environment and climate changes, guided by equity, national priorities and circumstances, and the principles of ‘Common but Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities (CBDR-RC)’.
The Environment Ministers adopted the New Delhi Statement on Environment, which is aimed at furthering the spirit of Cooperation for Continuity, Consolidation and Consensus in Environment among the BRICS Nations.
BRICS is an acronym for Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, termed as emerging economies and together fighting for climate justice at global negotiations.
Indian Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Bhupender Yadav chaired the meeting from Sushma Swaraj Bhawan, New Delhi, as the other Environment Ministers from BRICS countries joined virtually. The meeting was preceded by the BRICS Joint Working Group on Environment meeting on August 26, a release from the Environment Ministry added.
Union Minister @nstomar chairs 11th meeting of Agriculture Ministers of BRICS countries
BRICS countries to play a leading role in achieving the 2030 sustainable development goals of eradicating hunger and poverty: @nstomar
Yadav said that 2021 is a very crucial year not only for the BRICS but for the whole world as well, as there is UN Biodiversity COP 15 in October and annual climate change meet (UNFCCC COP26) in November. He emphasised that BRICS countries can play a very significant role in addressing the contemporary global challenges of climate change, biodiversity loss, air pollution, marine plastic litter, etc.
Referring to the recent findings of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Working Group 1 contribution to the Sixth Assessment Report “Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science”, he said: “The report has given enough, may be the last signal, for taking concrete, collective global actions against global environmental and climate challenges.”
He informed the BRICS Ministerial that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India is today leading by example by taking several robust steps in the field of renewable energy, sustainable habitats, creation of carbon sinks through additional forest and tree cover, transition to sustainable transport, e-mobility, mobilising the private sector to make climate commitments, etc.
At the 7thmeeting of the BRICS Environment Ministerial 2021, India stressedon the need for taking concretecollective global actions against global environment.https://t.co/8UE9sOdgTdpic.twitter.com/z5tCJiPQib
He also stressed the importance of resource efficiency and circular economy, conservation of wildlife and marine species or biodiversity, and concrete actions taken by India on climate change and biodiversity. “BRICS countries being hotspots for biodiversity can tell the world how we have been conserving such mega diversity since time immemorial, and can also play a very significant role in combating the Covid-19 pandemic,” he said.
The key areas proposed in the BRICS Environment Ministers’ Statement 2021 are guided by the issues, which may have primacy in COP 15 and COP 26, the release added.
South Asia is amongst the main regions likely to be hit severely by the negative environmental impact of climate change…reports Asian Lite News
While China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) promises to create opportunities for the South Asian states to facilitate a more sustainable growth model, it also implies significant environmental risks, apart from economic, legal and sovereignty issues.
South Asia is amongst the main regions likely to be hit severely by the negative environmental impact of climate change. BRI announced by Beijing in 2013, will exacerbate these trends, reported European Foundation for South Asian Studies (EFSAS).
By investing in physical infrastructure throughout the world, including in South Asia, China seeks to consolidate and expand its global economic and political role, and further facilitate global economic interactions.
The Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) report said the environmental trends in South Asia generally correspond to the development trajectory, that causes pollution through growing industrialisation, which has become one of the key environmental characteristics of South Asia, says EFSAS.
Pollution has increased as a direct result of this rapid industrialisation, said the Energy and Resources Institute, 2019 report.
Air pollution is even more extreme in urban areas, with 91.2 per cent of the region’s population living in areas that register pollution rates of 35mg/m3, making South Asian air some of the most polluted in the world, reported EFSAS.
What is more is that the BRI is underpinned by a clear developmental logic of industrial growth that is likely to further intensify environmental degradation.
For China, the construction of physical infrastructure, for instance regarding transport and energy networks, has played a foundational role in the rapid economic development of the country.
The BRI exports this infrastructure-driven growth model, including to South Asia. Infrastructure investments are thus likely to exacerbate environmental issues if they are not sufficiently regulated and focused on utilising renewable forms of energy consumption, said EFSAS.
For example, in the case of Pakistan, the envisioned China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) bears several environmental hazards and climate change vulnerabilities apart from legal conflicts in terms of international law with regard to the disputed territory of Gilgit Baltistan.
Another major environmental risk stemming from CPEC is the large-scale deforestation for the purposes of constructing road networks.
Vehicle trafficking is another associated hazard of CPEC, given that road networks such as the Karakorum Highway expects to carry 7,000 trucks per day, which would release 36.5 million tonnes of CO2.
South Asian countries once again find themselves at the crossroads of having to choose between some of the short-term economic benefits potentially produced by the BRI and the long-term negative ecological and, ultimately, economic impacts this investment will likely have, reported EFSAS. (ANI)
According to her, urbanization does not affect agricultural income and in some specifications, urbanization has actually led to increased agricultural income… reports Asian Lite News.
Expressing deep concerns about the findings of The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report, climate and socio-economic experts on Thursday observed that Bengaluru city will face acute drinking water shortage in the coming years.
Participating in a webinar entitled Responding to Climate Change: What should Karnataka and India do? that was organised by the Institute for Social and Economic Change (ISEC) here, Centre of Economic Studies and Policy, ISEC, Professor Krishna Raj highlighted the issue of high carbon economy that has resulted in rise of temperature by one degree Celsius, which in turn costed around 5 per cent of the GDP.
“If the same trend continues at such alarming levels in change of temperatures, Bengaluru city will face acute drinking water shortage in the coming years with the reduction in water availability in the Cauvery River basin mainly due to variation in precipitation levels,” he said.
He also cautioned that though India wants to increase its forest cover aimed at reducing CO2 levels by 2030, deficient climate finances may limit realising the climate targets.
“As per the Climate Policy Initiative on Global Climate Finance, 2019, 44 per cent and 56 per cent respectively constitute public and private finances. And the main concern is that about 93 per cent of the total public and private finances flow to mitigation activities and adaptation activities receive less than 7 per cent. Therefore, it would be difficult to achieve the desired results,” he said and added that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) AR 6 report has concluded that the Earth’s climate is getting so warm that temperatures in about a decade will probably go past the warning level.
Centre for Ecological Economics and Natural Resources, ISEC’s Assistant Professor Balasubramaniam warned that in Karnataka, 65 per cent of the households were highly vulnerable to rising temperatures.
“Global warming’s worst affected population in Karnataka will belong to scheduled caste, scheduled tribe, elderly population, women, and children,” he said.
Centre for Research in Urban Affairs, ISEC Professor Kala S. Sridhar debunked the theory that urbanisation leads to global warming using time series data from World Development Indicators.
According to her, urbanization does not affect agricultural income and in some specifications, urbanization has actually led to increased agricultural income.
“Only way forward to reduce climate change is to increase the need to depend on renewable sources of energy and reduce vehicle emissions in cities by encouraging public transport,” she said.
Associate Professor, Centre for Research in Urban Affairs, ISEC Manasi said that over exploitation of ground water in peri urban areas given their positioning since they belong either to rural or urban areas, thus being vulnerable to climate change risks.
Drawing from a micro level study conducted on vulnerabilities in Karnataka, reference was made to land use change and groundwater overuse resulting in an increase in defunct borewells and negligence of water bodies. She also indicated the need for micro level studies for better understanding of local problems and finding innovative solutions to achieve Climate Action.
Economic Advisor to UP’s Chief Minister, who moderated the discussion Prof. K.V. Raju, in his remarks, stated that further empirical research studies are to be taken up for policy on mining, renewable resources given its importance in the current context.
He also conveyed India’s position that COP26 should ensure a balanced outcome with equal treatment to agenda items such as adaptation, finance and technology transfer.”…reports Asian Lite News.
India on Wednesday extended full support to the UK for the annual climate change summit to be held at Glasgow in November this year, but reiterated its position that COP26 should ensure a balanced outcome with equal treatment to agenda items such as adaptation, finance and technology transfer.
Ahead of the annual climate summit COP26 or the Conference of Parties (COP) under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to be held in Glasgow in November, its President-designate Alok Sharma from the UK was on a short India trip.
On the last day of his visit, Sharma met Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav apart from speaking at the Confederation of Indian Industry’s (CII) National Council Session. He also launched the GreenCellM, an e-bus.
The most vulnerable communities are at the greatest risk from climate change, and they have done the least to cause it.
Yadav and Sharma discussed issues relating to climate change, COP26, India-UK 2030 Roadmap, and other related matters.
“India believes that climate actions must be nationally determined and it strongly advocates that the differentiation and operationalisation of flexibility provided in the UNFCCC and the Paris Agreement for developing countries should be at the core of decision-making,” emphasised Yadav, reiterating Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s focus on climate justice while fighting climate change.
Yadav also informed the UK delegation about the remarkable feat India has achieved in decoupling growth from emission intensity, demonstrating ambitious actions in renewable energy, energy efficiency and rise of green cover, an official said, adding, “He also conveyed India’s position that COP26 should ensure a balanced outcome with equal treatment to agenda items such as adaptation, finance and technology transfer.”
Sharma and his team were informed about the global initiatives spearheaded by India under Modi’s leadership for tackling climate change such as Leadership Group for Industry Transition (LeadIT), Coalition on Coalition Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI) and International Solar Alliance (ISA), a government release said.
Reminding that India is among a few G20 countries on track towards UNFCCC and Paris Agreement goals and has taken decisive actions to tackle climate change, Sitharaman mentioned that India is taking concrete steps at appreciable speed to meet its commitments on the target of 450GW of renewable energy by 2030.
“Of these, 100 GW has already been achieved,” she said.
The Finance Minister also highlighted the extensive work done on the Hydrogen Energy Mission.
Sitharaman expressed hope that the commitment made by the developed countries to provide $100 billion per year to developing countries would be achieved, and sounded optimistic about a positive outcome on the new collective goals on finance in COP26.
A release from the British High Commission quoted Sharma as saying: “I leave India hopeful. I’ve had a set of very constructive discussions with ministers here and I am incredibly encouraged by the visionary speech Prime Minister Modi made on Independence Day, in particular the reference to renewables and green hydrogen.”
Claiming that countries need to be more ambitious in emission reduction targets and in accelerating the transition from coal to clean energy, Sharma said, “I’ve requested that the Indian government considers whether as part of any revised NDC, that overachievement is taken into account as well as a really ambitious plan for pushing forward on all of this.”
“When the UK took on the COP26 Presidency, less than 30 per cent of the global economy was covered by a net zero target — we’re now at 70 per cent,” he said.
Another busy day in New Delhi
Very productive discussions with Environment Minister @byadavbjp & Finance Minister @nsitharaman
COP26 is a crucial meeting in view of the Paris Agreement that India has signed along with scores of other nations.
The Paris Agreement is a global effort to cut emissions to restrict the temperature rise to 2-degree Celsius and if possible, to keep it at 1.5-degree Celsius, as compared to the pre-industrial era.
A recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report has already warned of dire consequences in terms of increasing heat waves, erratic precipitation and sea level rise among other extremities for India and other nations.
Earlier, the hottest temperature ever recorded in Europe was 48.0°C (118°F) in Athens, Greece in 1977, according to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO)…reports Asian Lite News.
Italian authorities on Wednesday (local time) said that the island of Sicily may have set an all-time heat record for Europe, with a temperature of 48.8 degrees Celsius (119.8 degrees Fahrenheit).
The record in Italy was confirmed by Sicilian authorities but needs to be officially verified by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), reported CNN.
“At the moment there are no reasons to invalidate it, but if possible we will make an ex-post evaluation on the accuracy of the measure,” said the Sicilian Agrometeorological Information Service, Sicily’s official weather station operator.
The city of Siracusa hit the record as an anticyclone — which Italian media reports are referring to as “Lucifer” — swept in and continued to move north up the country, reported CNN.
Moreover, a persistent heatwave around the Mediterranean in Europe and North Africa has contributed to some of the worst fires seen there in years.
Earlier, the hottest temperature ever recorded in Europe was 48.0°C (118°F) in Athens, Greece in 1977, according to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
As per scientists, it’s the climate crisis that is making heatwaves and fires more frequent and intense, and therefore more destructive, reported CNN.
An authoritative report by the UN’s International Panel on Climate Change published Monday said that 38 weather conditions that promote wildfires have become more probable in southern Europe over the last century. Globally, the heat waves and droughts worsening fires have increased too.
Temperatures around the Mediterranean have been 5 to 10 degrees C higher than average this week and dozens of people have died in wildfires tearing across southern Europe and North Africa, most of them in Algeria, where at least 69 people have been killed.
Deaths have been recorded in Turkey as well, which is now also experiencing flooding on the Black Sea coast, leaving at least nine people dead. Parts of Italy and Greece have also been badly hit by fires, where some villages have been largely destroyed, reported CNN. (ANI)
