EDITORIAL: Climate change is driving up average world temperatures much beyond the Global Stock take assessment. Last Sunday was the world’s hottest day ever recorded when average surface air temperature reached 17.09C; and on Monday it rose to 17.15C, breaking the record set in July 2023, according to the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service, which has tracked such data since 1940.
Although the earlier six months were also hotter than usual that was attributed to El Nino, a naturally occurring climate phenomenon. But its effects now have waned, if not vanished. As the global warming continues, say climate scientists, more records are likely to be set and broken because many countries, mostly developed ones, keep burning fossil fuels warming the Earth’s atmosphere with an increasing frequency, igniting wildfires in several countries, including the US, Canada, Russia and Australia, and generating heat waves in other parts of the world. In Pakistan, the average temperatures this summer have been 5C to 6C above normal.
Due to effects of global warming, during the recent years Pakistan has been experiencing devastating rains and consequent floods. The worst climate disaster hit this country in 2022, when one-third of the land was inundated by floods, affecting 33 million people and costing economic losses worth $ 14.9 billion.
Meanwhile, our glaciers — the largest outside the polar region — feeding the country’s river system, lifeblood of its agrarian economy, are melting fast. Pakistan already a water-stressed country is on way to become more water scarce.
As an Asian Development Bank Report released a few months ago noted, water demand will further intensify to 60 percent by 2047 compared with the existing levels, leading to a substantial decrease in crop and livestock productivity. As worrisome as this prognosis is, an estimated 33 glacial lake outbursts are on the cards.
The process has already started, releasing millions of cubic metres of water along with debris within a few hours down its path causing loss of life, destruction of property and depriving local populations of their homes and livelihoods. While effects of climate change are a matter of great concern for Pakistan’s economy and the way of life of its people, the government is yet to focus on risk reduction action.
What needs to be done is pretty obvious. Climate resilient rural and urban infrastructure has to be built to protect lives and livelihoods, and ensure food security. Besides putting in place flood safety measures together with early warning systems, adaptation to climate — smart agricultural practices is essential.
All of this requires proper planning and, of course, mobilisation of additional funds that our crisis-ridden economy is unable to afford at this point in time. It is imperative therefore for our policy planners to do the necessary homework, like Bangladesh, so as to access climate finance, and also benefit from some other new international initiatives that are aimed at addressing multiple global crises, especially the impact of climate change on developing countries like ours.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024
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