Why in news?
Conference of Parties 24 (The United nations Climate summit) is to take place in Katowice Poland soon.
What is the present global situation?
- The latest Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Bulletin of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) says the level of heat-trapping greenhouse gases, notably the most potent carbon dioxide, hit a new record in 2017.
- A US Congress-mandated report too warned of dreadful consequences of continued growth in emissions.
- Global warming will undermine human health, damage infrastructure, limit water availability, alter coastlines and push up costs in industries, farming, fisheries and energy sectors.
- Under Trump Administration the US is seeking to dilute the financial obligations of the developed nations to sustain the global struggle against rapidly altering climate.
- There are no signs of reversals in this trend and that the window of opportunity for action is almost closed.
- Climate change will, thus, have increasingly destructive and irreversible impacts on life on earth.
How India is affected by climate change?
- Since 1951 the meteorological data of India shows an increasing frequency of extremely heavy rainfall and rainless days and diminishing incidence of light to moderate rainfall.
- The IMD has also attributed the recent unprecedented deluge in Kerala and similar events elsewhere earlier to climate change.
- The India Meteorological Department (IMD) also conceded that the weather-related normal has changed.
- Studies also have revealed a perceptible rise in the surface water temperature in the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal, boding ill for aquatic biodiversity.
What should be the course of action?
- Adaptation is as important as mitigation though it has received meager attention till now.
- The adaptation and mitigation should be sector and region specific rather than the one size fits all type.
- Agriculture, being the most weather-dependent sector, can thrive only if it manages to adjust to the emerging weather trends through climate resilient technologies and crop varieties.
- Water conservation as well as drainage will need to be improved to contain the impact of droughts and floods.
- Similar well-judged measures will be imperative to protect flora and fauna against various kinds of threats.
How can the adaptation and mitigation process can be financed?
- The economic cost of the adaptation strategies can be huge.
- The resource-starved countries may find hard to afford such a large sum of money without external assistance.
- The solution lies in funding the Green Climate fund.
- The Cancun 2010 climate summit decided to create a Green Climate Fund with annual donations amounting to $100 billion by 2022.
- However the money has not been forthcoming for this purpose.
- The Katowice meet will, therefore, do well to deliberate on this issue and get the Fund going to shield this planet from the wrath of the climate change.
Source: Business Standard
