The Cry of the Global Environment “Through the lens of COP26”
- jigeeshabhargaviad
- Jan 6, 2023
- 6 min read
Updated: Jan 26, 2023
Image Credits : Can Stock Photo
It seems that the nation-states have finally accepted that issues like the ‘climate crisis' do not recognize borders and neither can the policies for their effective management and resolution. The Conference of the Parties 26, better known as COP26, wrapped up on 12 November 2021. Although the conference has ended, the discussion about it is still ablaze, and why not? As the issue it ponders upon is something that was relevant, is relevant and is going to be relevant in the coming years.
One of the significant concerns of the global environment is to mitigate climate change as it is a phenomenon that poses a great danger to the entire world. Climate breakdown brings what we can term as a “FAST” crisis.
Deconstructing the “FAST” crisis
Today, we all are in danger of destroying ourselves by our own ignorance and the FAST crisis very well spells out the implications of our actions towards our planet and its life.
F denotes ‘forest fires’. Forests serve as the ‘natural lungs’ for the planet. However, climate change has led to more fire-prone conditions globally. Wildfire risk depends on a number of factors, including temperature, soil moisture, and presence of trees and shrubs. Climate change enhances the drying of organic matter in forests and this has doubled the number of large scale fires. Research shows that changes in climate create warmer and drier conditions that boosts the forest fire risk. Forest fire is a disaster that is in fact an amalgamation of all crises caused by climate change.
A denotes ‘atmospheric hazard’. Climate change triggers the intensity of atmospheric hazards like tropical cyclones, tsunamis, tornadoes etc. India has witnessed ten most expensive atmospheric hazards in the last two years. Cyclone Amphan hit India in 2020 followed by cyclone Tauktae on the western coast and cyclone Yaas on the eastern coast. According to the Government of India reports 199 people died, 37 million people were affected and a loss of U.S. $4.3 billion was caused due to cyclone Tauktae and Yaas. This menace is not just limited to India but has imprints all round the world.
S denotes ‘sea level rise’. Rise in the sea level is one of the major threats posed by climate change. Some of the experts claim that sea level rise will continue even after emissions no longer increase, because oceans respond slowly to warming. It occurs mainly due to the expansion of warm ocean waters, melting of glaciers on land, and the melting of ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica. The record of the same is quite threatening as the average rate of sea level rise was 1.3 mm/year (1901-1971) and rose to 3.7 mm/year (2006-2018). Recently, Indonesia due to rising sea level was forced to shift its capital from Jakarta to a jungled area of Kalimantan on Borneo island, the new capital will be called ‘Nusantara’. The reason for this is the sinking of Jakarta. The land of Indonesia’s current capital is sinking under water at an annual average rate of 1-15 cm per year, with the rates of sinking unevenly distributed around the city’s districts, from 1 cm per year in the south to up to 15 cm in the west and 25 cm in North Jakarta. However, Jakarta is not the only example of coastal cities affected because of rising sea levels caused by climate change. Infact, there are many who are witnessing the same fate.
T denotes the ‘temperature rise’. Global warming intensified by climate change has prompted an increase in the global temperature. This rise in temperature can cause a chain of reactions around the world. This has prompted the leaders to keep global warming emissions below 2 degree celsius of pre-industrial levels by the end of this century and if possible then to limit it to 1.5 degree celsius. However, this is not possible until and unless extremely deep emission cuts are undertaken by all countries immediately.
Reflection over the ‘FAST’ crisis through the lens of COP26
The COP26 offered an immense opportunity to the world leaders to develop a plan to mitigate the environmental crisis. As a result, nations adopted the Glasgow Climate Pact, aiming to turn the 2020s into a decade of climate action and support.
The package consists of a range of agreed items, that includes strengthened efforts to build resilience to climate change, to curb greenhouse gas emissions and to provide the necessary finance for both. Nations reaffirmed their duty to fulfill the pledge of providing 100 billion dollars annually from developed to developing countries and they collectively agreed to limit the rise of global average temperature to 1.5 degrees. Furthermore, nations also came up with an amended version of their NDCs ‘Nationally Determined Contributions’.
India gave its ‘Panchamrit’ to tackle the menace of climate change that includes— (a) to increase the non-fossil fuel generation to 500 GW by 2030. (b) to increase the renewable energy by 50% (c) carbon emissions to be reduced by 1 billion tonnes. (d) 45% reduction in carbon intensity. (e) to reach the mark of net-zero emissions by 2070.
The intensity with which nation-states came up with their determined contributions towards the environment is admirable. However, what is more important is to work towards them with the same furiousness and excitement.
Turning vision into a reality
Given the intensity of the issue, we are left with less time to convert our proposed vision into a reality. Following are some of the key areas on which we can work upon to prevent the ongoing environmental breakdown. Though these solutions are not new to us, a continuous emphasis on them can help us realize their actual worth.
Firstly, forest restoration can serve as a baton in net zero race. According to the study done by Griscom in 2017, land based sinks—a natural climate solution which also includes forests -- can provide up to 37% of emission reduction and help in keeping the global temperature below 2 degree celsius. In the context of India, it is said that the forest cover has increased by 15,000 sq. kilometers in the last six years, but the degradation of existing forest continues. In such a situation the role of local institutions of gram panchayat, joint forest management committees and the tribal communities must be increased by the administration to protect the green cover.
Secondly, ‘Green-Hydrogen’ is emerging as a novel concept, it is a zero-carbon fuel made by electrolysis using renewable power from wind and solar to split water into hydrogen and oxygen. This green-hydrogen can be utilized for the generation of power from natural sources—wind or solar systems—and will be a major step forward in achieving the target of ‘net-zero’ emissions.
Thirdly, wherever possible we should try to switch to renewable sources of energy to power our homes, buildings and to generate electricity. Promoting the use of electric vehicles will also bring a fruitful change for all of us.
Lastly, we can counterbalance our annual carbon dioxide emissions by investing in commercial services that draw down an equal amount of carbon out of the atmosphere.
All the above solutions suggested above are very much based upon the proposals given by nation states in the Conference of Parties 26. But there is no doubt to say that the various environmental conferences are going to make a difference only through the honest participation of nation-states and COP26 is not an exception.
However, we shouldn't contend that the nation-states haven't achieved anything in this regard. As far as India is concerned, we are on the right track but the need is to just remain and continue walking on the same route with great pace. The Covid-19 has indeed proved to be a blessing in disguise as far as the healing of our planet is concerned. We all were in our homes during the ‘first wave' of deadly coronavirus virus but this gave time to our rivers to get visibly clearer, and the flora and fauna also managed to get a new life. Hence, for the time being we can only hope that the nation-states remain committed to their goals and ‘focus more on climate change and devise strategies and programmes to achieve the net-zero target’.
By Gunjan Yadav
Gunjan Yadav is a second year Political Science Honours student. She loves to know about the ongoing domestic and world affairs and loves to reflect her views upon various issues open-mindedely.
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