Resources of this world are fixed, but consumptions have become manifold. The atmosphere has lost its freshness and become more severely polluted than it was even only 20 years back. Many species have become extinct and changes in seasons are becoming irregular day by day. The world has become plastic garbage. Flash floods, tornadoes, cyclones, wildfires, melting of arctic icebergs, the consequent rising of sea levels and many other natural disasters have become very frequent as well as unpredictable.
One of the main reasons behind the scene of severe climate change is the reckless and increasing use of cheap and dirty fossil fuels that have made our green planet warmer. As a result, we are combating a hazardous situation in the climate and atmosphere, severe environmental pollution, and very unusual and unexpected severe natural calamities all over the world.
Scientists have warned that the temperature has to be kept rising to 1.5ºC, beyond which the worst effects of climate change will be felt. It requires global emissions to be cut by 45 percent on 2010 levels by 2030, and to net zero- with any remaining pollution absorbed by measures such as planting trees- by 2050.
According to the European Space Agency, each year wildfire affects an estimated four million square kilometers (1.5 million sq miles) of Earth’s land which is about half the size of the United States, larger than India, or roughly four times the size of Nigeria. Similarly, according to the Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters, at least 470 wildfire disasters have been reported globally since 1911, causing at least $120bn in damages.
On the other hand, the number of people impacted by a sea-level rise during the 21st century is three times higher than was previously thought. By 2050, more than 150 million people will be under the water line during high tide and 300 million will live in zones with flooding every year.
According to the UK-based EJF (Environmental Justice Foundation), one in every seven people in Bangladesh will be displaced by climate change by 2050. Up to 18 million people may have to move because of sea-level rise alone. Two-thirds of Bangladesh is less than five meters above sea level. 28% of the population of Bangladesh lives on the coast, where the primary driver of displacement is tidal flooding caused by sea-level rise.
By 2050, with a projected 50 cm rise in sea level, Bangladesh may lose approximately 11% of its land, affecting an estimated 15 million people living in its low-lying coastal region. The process of salinization has been exacerbated by rising sea levels. Coastal drinking water supplies have been contaminated with salt, leaving 33 million people who rely on such resources vulnerable to health problems such as preeclampsia during pregnancy, acute respiratory infections, and skin diseases.
Recently the Glasgow Climate Pact (GCP) which is also called COP26 resulted in an official agreement along with a series of commitments to various mitigation and conservation efforts, including a deforestation pledge, a methane abatement pledge, an agreement to end overseas financing of oil and gas projects, steel and aluminum trade agreement, not to increase of coal use in power generation or reduce it to zero within 50 years, increasing forestation and stopping deforestation emphasizing renewables.
But most of the commitments are verbal, not signed agreements and if those commitments are not fulfilled, no legal action could be taken against them. However, the GCP serves as a reminder that commitments alone are insufficient to limit climate change. Without appropriate policies, investments and technologies, the growth of atmospheric temperatures may continue beyond 2 degrees Celsius.
However, finally, the United States, along with over 100 other countries, committed to reversing deforestation by 2030. In addition, a dozen wealthy nations, including the United States, committed to providing $12 billion by 2025 to address deforestation in the developing world. But ironically, despite a similar agreement in 2014, the rate of deforestation increased.
But why the world leaders and policymakers cannot reach a consensus on combating climate change? It may be that the greedy political leaders are not sure that there has been the existence of Greenhouse Gas which is making the average temperature higher or still cannot think themselves out of excessive luxury. They cannot get out of the arms race, trade war and unscrupulous greed. But if many thriving cities in the world suddenly go underwater and millions of people become homeless, become ill suddenly due to air pollution, if the White House, Kremlin, presidential palace of China, the royal palace of India and many other powerful presidential palaces of the world go underwater, only then the political leaders will come to realize.
By born, human beings have a lust for endless wealth. Being reckless with that endless greed, people are going for aggressive industrialization, rapid urbanization, and deforestation which is gradually making this planet an unfavorable place for living creatures. Since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, the consumerist attitude in human nature has continued to grow, reaching its peak in the 21st century. Multidimensional physical and sensual demand is growing with every passing day, alongside dissatisfaction. It is a typical tendency of human nature that they do not become alert until some danger is imminent.
Industrial and human waste in the form of both solid and liquid, including various types of plastic products, packages of various consumer products, machinery, electronic wastes, parts and equipment, along with chemicals are being dumped into the water bodies. Major rivers of the world are already polluted. The rivers flowing to the sea carry multiple types of waste. As such, every day thousands of tonnes of plastic, synthetic and chemical wastes flow into the oceans, harming their ecosystem and bio-diversity. Seawater, foods, fishes and other animals in the sea are under threat as a result.
Now the only way out is to ensure maximum utilization of renewable energy resources. A renewable resource is replaced naturally and can be used again and again. Examples are oxygen, fresh water, solar energy, atomic energy and so on. Renewable resources may also include goods and commodities such as wood, paper, biomass and leather. Solar energy, wind power, various food grains, oilseeds, animal waste, and plants can also be used to produce fuel through some easy processes. For example, gas can be produced from Rice hulls which are used to make biogas; solar energy can be used to charge batteries, can be collected with solar cells to make electricity or can be used passively to heat a building; soybean oil and alcohol are useful to make biodiesel and many more other sources.
Despite the economic slowdown resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic, global renewable energy capacity additions in 2020 beat earlier estimates and all previous records. According to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) the world added more than 260 gigawatts (GW) of renewable energy capacity last year, exceeding expansion in 2019 by close to 50 percent. However, 54% of the global energy mix is still being generated from fossil fuels, such as coal, oil, and gas.
To rescue human civilization from extinction as well as to keep this green planet favorable for living creatures until any other favorable planet is discovered, it is unavoidable to keep the emission of carbon and other greenhouse gases at a tolerable level. So, we should not let fossil fuels go long as the largest source of energy. Otherwise, our planet will not tolerate the excessive burden and unscrupulous greed of human beings and will be harshly revengeful to human civilization.
The Daily SUN 09-02-2022
