Tweet
Jamaica must do more about climate change, says UWI professor
PETRE WILLIAMS, Senior staff reporter williamsp@jamaicaobserver.com
Saturday, November 10, 2007
CHEN. they need to wage war not for oil but on greenhouse gases. (Photo: Karl McLarty)
DR Anthony Chen, professor of applied atmospherics and former head of the Climate Group, Mona, said Thursday that Jamaica and the Caribbean need to do more to stem the tide of climate change, in the best interest of future generations.
Specifically, he said the island and the region would need to put increased pressure on First-World countries, like the United States and Canada, to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, which contribute to global warming and by extension the changing climate.
In addition, he said such countries must be persuaded to invest more in research and development that will allow for the identification of more ecologically-friendly fuel sources, such as hydrogen fuel cells, nuclear power plants, and solar farms.
"Do not let the millions we get for adaptation blind us or stop us from vigorously advocating the need for research and development," said Chen, who was among the group of scientists on Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) who shared the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize with former United States vice-president Al Gore for their work in helping to educate people about man's contribution to climate change.
He added that such countries need to shift their priorities, if Earth is to be saved, in a worse case scenario, from a runaway greenhouse effect such as the planet Venus - which is 400 degrees Celsius hotter than Earth - now experiences.
"They need to wage war not for oil but on greenhouse gases," said the professor, who was speaking at the opening of the two-day climate change forum at the Hilton Kingston Hotel Thursday.
The forum was put on by the National Environmental Education Committee to raise the profile of climate change across the island. The forum, which attracted the participation of a variety of interest groups, is also intended to inform a national strategy to deal with climate change in Jamaica.
Dr Mark Collins, director of the Commonwealth Foundation, echoed Chen's sentiments. According to Collins, it was past time that the voices of the Commonwealth be heard on climate change, to which they have contributed so little but which stands to impact them the worse.
"Since the issue of climate change was brought to the attention of Commonwealth Heads of Government by President (Maumoon Abdul) Gayoom of the Maldives a full 20 years ago, the majority of Commonwealth countries have not done enough in terms of effective actions taken," he said.
"What we must do now. is to raise the voice of Jamaica across the Commonwealth, raise the alarm at the forthcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in Uganda. Raise the awareness of vulnerable people everywhere. And raise the political will of Commonwealth leaders to take action on behalf of those who are suffering the impact of climate change but who played no part whatsoever in creating the problem in the first place."
According to Chen, the world's major contributors of the carbon emissions, including China and India, must cut their emission levels, which threatens to wreck the economies of small island developing states (SIDS).
"Those countries responsible for the world's carbon emissions need to come to grips with some basic home truths well articulated by civil society, the IPCC, and the recently published Stern Review: Emissions have to be capped. Every country has to contribute to the mitigation of carbon emissions according to their ability. Every country has to reduce and pay for its pollution," he said.
"These are the issues that will be discussed in Bali at the next meeting of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in a few weeks time. It is essential that the post-2012 Kyoto Protocol is a truly global agreement, and Commonwealth nations should be working together as a bloc and spearheading the negotiations towards concrete targets," Chen added.
PETRE WILLIAMS, Senior staff reporter williamsp@jamaicaobserver.com
Saturday, November 10, 2007
CHEN. they need to wage war not for oil but on greenhouse gases. (Photo: Karl McLarty)
DR Anthony Chen, professor of applied atmospherics and former head of the Climate Group, Mona, said Thursday that Jamaica and the Caribbean need to do more to stem the tide of climate change, in the best interest of future generations.
Specifically, he said the island and the region would need to put increased pressure on First-World countries, like the United States and Canada, to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, which contribute to global warming and by extension the changing climate.
In addition, he said such countries must be persuaded to invest more in research and development that will allow for the identification of more ecologically-friendly fuel sources, such as hydrogen fuel cells, nuclear power plants, and solar farms.
"Do not let the millions we get for adaptation blind us or stop us from vigorously advocating the need for research and development," said Chen, who was among the group of scientists on Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) who shared the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize with former United States vice-president Al Gore for their work in helping to educate people about man's contribution to climate change.
He added that such countries need to shift their priorities, if Earth is to be saved, in a worse case scenario, from a runaway greenhouse effect such as the planet Venus - which is 400 degrees Celsius hotter than Earth - now experiences.
"They need to wage war not for oil but on greenhouse gases," said the professor, who was speaking at the opening of the two-day climate change forum at the Hilton Kingston Hotel Thursday.
The forum was put on by the National Environmental Education Committee to raise the profile of climate change across the island. The forum, which attracted the participation of a variety of interest groups, is also intended to inform a national strategy to deal with climate change in Jamaica.
Dr Mark Collins, director of the Commonwealth Foundation, echoed Chen's sentiments. According to Collins, it was past time that the voices of the Commonwealth be heard on climate change, to which they have contributed so little but which stands to impact them the worse.
"Since the issue of climate change was brought to the attention of Commonwealth Heads of Government by President (Maumoon Abdul) Gayoom of the Maldives a full 20 years ago, the majority of Commonwealth countries have not done enough in terms of effective actions taken," he said.
"What we must do now. is to raise the voice of Jamaica across the Commonwealth, raise the alarm at the forthcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in Uganda. Raise the awareness of vulnerable people everywhere. And raise the political will of Commonwealth leaders to take action on behalf of those who are suffering the impact of climate change but who played no part whatsoever in creating the problem in the first place."
According to Chen, the world's major contributors of the carbon emissions, including China and India, must cut their emission levels, which threatens to wreck the economies of small island developing states (SIDS).
"Those countries responsible for the world's carbon emissions need to come to grips with some basic home truths well articulated by civil society, the IPCC, and the recently published Stern Review: Emissions have to be capped. Every country has to contribute to the mitigation of carbon emissions according to their ability. Every country has to reduce and pay for its pollution," he said.
"These are the issues that will be discussed in Bali at the next meeting of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in a few weeks time. It is essential that the post-2012 Kyoto Protocol is a truly global agreement, and Commonwealth nations should be working together as a bloc and spearheading the negotiations towards concrete targets," Chen added.
