World Summit on Climate Change
The UN conference on climate change, held annually, relates to how the fight can be ramped up against global warming
Corina Cristea, 18.11.2022, 01:41
The UN conference on climate change, held annually, relates to how the fight can be ramped up against global warming. This 27th edition, held in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, is eclipsed by several crises, including in energy and food supplies in the world. Its main objective is to apply fully the Paris Accords, which are meant to limit the growth of average global temperatures to 1.5 degrees Celsius above the per-industrial era by the end of the century. This is an extremely important objective, because going over this limit amounts to losing control over climate change, according to experts. Almost 200 countries sent representatives to the Red Sea resort, in a year marked by devastating floods and severe droughts, unprecedented heat waves, and disastrous wildfires and hurricanes. This is also a year during which, against the background of the Russian Federations invasion of Ukraine, many countries had to resort to more fossil fuels for their energy needs. This comes as the UN intergovernmental group of experts on climate change also tell us that CO2 emissions have to be reduced by 45% by 2030 as compared to 2010, in order to fulfill the mission set out by the Paris Accords in 2015. Measurements show that the summer of 2022 was the hottest on record in Europe, setting many temperature records, and over 15,000 deaths on the continent have been tied to the heat waves this year. WHO experts say that climate change is already killing us, but strong action at present may prevent many more deaths. They also say that extreme temperatures are responsible for 148,000 deaths in Europe over the last 50 years. According to an UN report, the European continent is the one warming up the fastest, with a rise in temperature over twice higher than the planetary average over the last 30 years.
Roxana Bojariu, an expert on climate, spoke about it to Radio Romania:
“Greenhouse gas emissions dont stay in the place where they are put into the atmosphere, the atmosphere circulates, and these gases mix up and have a global effect. In the case of Europe there is greater impact than in other areas of the world because of some local factors. Agriculture, especially in the south of Europe, is the worst influenced by climate change by significantly reducing water resources. We are talking mostly about the countries around the Mediterranean, which this summer felt a huge impact on water resources. High temperatures evaporate the water in the soil, low summer rainfall also has a negative effect, so that, by early 2050, in some areas of Spain, Italy, and France, even, we could see abandonment of farmland, which will be abandoned because, even with measures to adapt, the climate will no longer favor farming. In Romania we are also feeling this effect, but not as intensely as in Mediterranean countries.”
In Europe, the northern regions also contribute to rising averages, as they are the regions where snow and ice generate a cascade effect when they melt, said Roxana Bojariu. The norther region heats at a triple pace compared to the global average, making Europe heat up twice as fast compared to it. At the COP 27, the UN secretary general warned that we are headed towards climate hell. According to Guterres, all countries have a choice to make: either to collaborate to reduce carbon emissions, or they risk condemning future generation to a climate disaster. US President Joe Biden, speaking at the end of the summit in Egypt, said that the climate crisis is about human security, economic security, environmental security, national security, and life itself. He proceeded to enumerate the steps that will be taken by the US, the second largest producer of greenhouse gases in the world. In his speech, Romanian President Klaus Iohannis specified that the war on the European continent, which has global effects, energy insecurity, food shortages, and economic instability should not distract from climate change. On the contrary, curbing climate change is essential for tackling many of these challenges, in order to protect present and future generations. He said that Romania fully supports its leadership role in the EU in terms of limiting climate change and common commitments to reduce the net effect of greenhouse gases. He said that what was needed was an orderly climate transition, with multiple benefits, and with investments in research and development, innovation, and the green economy, while creating new jobs. The president added that young people in Romania are highly motivated to act on curbing climate change, and that this commitment should be a source of inspiration for us all.
