Environmental Sustainability : Climate Summit for a Living Himalayas


Climate Summit for a Living Himalayas
Realising that consequences of climate change in Himalayas can no longer be ignored, India along with Bhutan, Nepal and Bangladesh has signed a declaration for wide-ranging collaboration on energy, water, food and biodiversity issues to addresss the threat to their ecosystem. The four nations reached the pact at the two-day "Climate Summit for a Living Himalayas" against the backdrop of melting glaciers, erratic weather conditions, changing rainfall patterns and increasing temperatures impacting the people and wildlife of the region. But agreements on water security – the most contentious are of the Summit declaration – were somewhat diluted.

BASIC countries meet before Durban climate conference
The environment ministers of BASIC countries Brazil, South Africa, India and China will frame a common position ahead of the crucial Durban climate conference next week on several issues including the second commitment period of Kyoto Protocol. BASIC countries have to discuss what should be their strategy and their approach to the Durban issues. The second commitment period of Kyoto Protocol will be on the agenda. That is one of the important issues. Kyoto Protocol favours only legally binding agreement which calls for mandatory emission cuts by rich countries and voluntary cuts by developing nations. India is opposed to any legally binding cuts for developing countries. 

Global Warming is real
An independent study of global temperature records has reaffirmed previous conclusions by climate scientists that global warming is real. Researchers found "reliable evidence" of a rise in average world land temperatures of one degrees Celsius -- or 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit  since the mid-1950s. 

Climate change single most important challenge: Ban Ki-moon
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon described Climate change as the single most important challenge faced by the world and urged all countries to work together to save planet earth and human lives. Addressing the inaugural session of the Climate Vulnerable Forum Meeting in Dhaka, Mr. Ban Ki-moon warned that it is time to act as the latest report of the International Energy Agency has said that the world is close to a point of no return for staying within the globally agreed goal of limiting the temperature rise to 2 degrees. He urged the global leaders who would be meeting at the upcoming Durban Climate summit to show political leadership to find global solutions to the global problem as no country is safe from the impact of climate change. Emphasising that compromise and common sense will be crucial in resolving outstanding issues at the Durban summit, Mr. Moon hoped that the leaders will be able to make a clarification at Durban regarding the future of Kyoto protocol and also launch the Green Climate Fund. 

China urges developed nations to participate in reducing carbon emissions
China has called on developed nations to shoulder the responsibility of substantially reducing carbon emissions. China said developed nations should be accountable for their greenhouse gas emissions during the past 200 years, and that developing nations lack the resources to take the same steps to address climate change. It said the advanced countries should share technology and funding, while developing nations should pursue balanced strategies that take into account both the environment and the economic challenges they face. Delegates from 193 countries will meet next week in Durban, South Africa, to try to negotiate a successor agreement to the Kyoto Protocol on climate change. Efforts have been on hold since the failure of a climate conference in Copenhagen in 2009. 

0 comments: