FCC KASHMIR Reports

Global Warming  : We have a role

Global warming is one of the serious challenges the world faces today. The solution lies in reducing the emission of heat trapping gases. Using energy more efficiently and moving to renewable energy can be helpful.

There is no more speculation about global warming; it has become a hard fact to reckon with. The accumulation of green house gases in the atmosphere has crossed the threshold the scientists around the world had set down at a conference at Briton last year. The worst predicted effects of global warming range from destruction of ecosystems to increased hunger and water shortage for billions of people across the world. It is reported that climatic change has now past the point of no return. The global mean temperature has increased by two degrees in the post-industrial revolution era. It is likely that the green ice sheet would have already begun irreversible melting thereby threatening the world with an alarming rise in the sea level. Agriculture yields have started to fall, not only in Africa but also in Europe, the USA and Asia, putting up to 200 million people at risk of hunger, and between one and 2.8 billion people at the risk of water stress. The conference on “Avoiding Dangerous Climate Change” held at the UK Meteorology Office a year ago highlighted a clear threshold in the accumulation of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide (CO₂) in the atmosphere, which should not be surpassed if the two-degree point was to be avoided with “relatively high certainty”. This was for the concentration of CO₂ and other gases such as methane and nitrous oxide, taken together in their global warming effect, to stay below 400 ppm (parts per million) in CO₂ terms.

The Western media’s reporting about looming danger from climate change and its dangerous fallouts should prompt us to take necessary measures to avoid or at least delay the climate change in our state. Global warming is one of the serious challenges facing the mankind today. In order to safeguard the health and economic well being of our children and future generations, we must reduce our emission of heat trapping gases by using the technology, know-how, and practical solutions already at our disposal. The solutions to reduce the threat of global warming will include protecting our state’s natural health. By investing in renewable energy and energy efficiency, and increasing the efficiency of cars we drive, we can take essential steps towards reducing our dependence on oil and other fossil fuels that cause global warming. Using energy more efficiently and moving to renewable energy (wind, solar, geothermal and bio-energy) would significantly reduce our emissions by heat-trapping gases.

The USA is main culprit, which currently generates 70 per cent of its electricity from fossil fuels such as coal, natural gas, and oil, and only two per cent from renewable sources. With only five per cent of the world population, the US produces nearly 25 per cent of annual global heat-trapping emissions. Since the burning of fossil fuels releases large amounts of carbon dioxide – the leading cause of global warming – but renewable energy does not. Increasing the share of our electricity generation from renewable sources is one of the most effective ways to reduce global warming emissions. Cars and trucks are another significant source of carbon dioxide emission. A serious effort to address global warming must therefore, reduce the emissions from cars and trucks.

In order to ensure healthy air and a stable climate for posterity, we must make responsible decisions about our energy sources. Heat trapping emissions, such as carbon dioxide (CO₂) are expected to cause irreversible damage to communities throughout the country and around the world. This damage will likely include increased urban air pollution and emerging infectious diseases such as West Nile Virus; sea-level rise causing flooding and erosion in coastal communities; extreme weather including more intense droughts and hurricanes; reduced productivity of some agricultural regions; and loss of many treasured landscapes and species— from coral reefs to polar bears. A policy should be adopted that requires electricity suppliers to gradually increase their use of renewable energy such as wind, solar, geothermal and biomass. These areas are demonstrating that renewable standards are an affordable solution to reduce CO₂ and other unhealthy air emissions, while alleviating the harmful impact that fossil fuel extraction, transport and use have on land and water resources.

We have a role:

• One can use less gasoline, natural gas, oil and electricity in his daily life. Our choices about energy and transportation are especially crucial.

• The next time you buy a car, choose one that is highly fuel efficient. Your choice of vehicle is probably your single most important environmental decision: for every single gallon of gasoline burned, 25 pounds of heat trapping carbon dioxide go into the atmosphere. Better gas mileage not only reduces global warming, but will also save you thousands of rupees at the pump over the life of the vehicle.

• Instead of driving alone in your car, join a carpool, take mass transit, walk, or ride a bike—anything that reduces the amount of gasoline you burn.

• Develop a plan to reduce daily electricity use around your home. Ask each member of your household to take responsibility for different electricity – saving action.

• Make sure that public buildings are models of energy efficiency and encourage the incorporation of passive-solar techniques in community construction or remodelling projects.

Household energy savings can make a difference:

• One of the quickest ways to reduce your global warming impact is to unplug the extra refrigerator or freezer you rarely use. This can reduce the typical family’s carbon dioxide emissions by nearly 10 per cent.

• If every family replaces one regular light bulb with an energy saving model, we could reduce global warming pollution by more than 90 billion pounds, the same as taking 7.5 million cars off road. So replace your incandescent bulbs with more efficient compact fluorescents, which now come in all shapes and sizes.

• If you own more than one vehicle, use the less fuel efficient one only when you can fill it with passengers. Driving a full minivan may be kinder to the environment than two midsize cars. Whenever possible, join a carpool or take mass transit.

• When buying wood products, check for labels that indicate the source of the timber. It may make sense for the climate too. Forests that are well managed are likely to store carbon effectively because more trees are left standing and carbon-storing soils are less disturbed.

• You can also make a difference in your own backyard. Get a group in your neighbourhood together and contact your local or urban forester about planting trees on private property and public land. In addition to storing carbon, trees planted in and around urban areas and residences can provide much-needed shade in the summer, reducing energy bills and fossil fuel use.

• Within the full portfolio of domestic and international approaches to manage carbon comprehensively, scientists view geologic carbon sequestration as one potentially viable option to achieve reductions in carbon dioxide emissions and atmospheric concentrations. In no way, however, should geologic carbon sequestration be seen as a “silver bullet” to reducing emissions, nor should it be researched and developed at the expense of other environmentally sound, technologically feasible, and economically affordable solutions to climate change. Scientists views technologies and policies that prevent emissions to the atmosphere in the first place— such as improving energy efficiency in power generation, transportation and buildings, developing renewable energy, and protecting threatened forests—as the safest and highest priority.

In fact, 19 of the hottest 20 years on record have occurred since 1980. The establishment in India and elsewhere needs to take immediate note of these changes and adopt steps to stem any further changes. Our state in general and Kashmir Valley in particular has been gifted with world famous scenic beauty and enriched by natural resources especially treasure of water bodies and plentiful of forests. They need to be preserved and protected at any cost. It needs highest dedication/commitment on part of an individual Kashmiri to safe guard these resources and do not allow these resources to be wasted away. Governance will automatically follow once the action is initiated by the local populace. It is our moral duty to conserve our environment so that the natural resources are preserved for our future generation.