Post by Andrei Tchentchik on Mar 6, 2020 17:52:14 GMT 2
(.#A.076).- Fires in Australia, recall from the Climate Emergency. 10 Jan. 2020.
Fires in Australia, recall from the Climate Emergency. 10 Jan. 2020.
Have the lessons been learned from the fires, typhoons and cyclones that affected many territories and populations in 2019? Has the alert given by millions of citizens around the world throughout the year, urging political decision-makers to act in the face of climate change to save our planet, been heard?
You can doubt it when you see the devastating images that mark the beginning of 2020. Historical fires ravage Australia. Climate change is upon us, and a reality for too many people. If we want to prevent them from continuing to impact the most fragile and leave a planet bloodless, we still have the power to make them retreat, by demanding from our political and economic leaders that they take measures to match the emergency.
The intensification of climate events in 2019, part to be confirmed in 2020
2019, a record year
If one could have the feeling, the statistical confirmation fell a few days ago: according to the European Copernicus program, 2019 was the second hottest year in the world since the existence of the surveys, after 2016 .
Climate change has been felt more closely and more intensely, and is having increasing impacts.
A year 2019 marked by a succession of large-scale natural disasters
Last summer was particularly devastating for the environment, with incessant forest fires in the Congo Basin and the Amazon, and abnormally high temperatures in Siberia, which caused fires causing the disappearance of more than 12 million people. 'hectares of taiga. Asia has not been spared, with no less than 21 typhoons recorded over the past year in the Philippines, and floods in Indonesia.
In France, two heat waves were recorded in the space of a month, with temperatures reaching 45.9 ° C in the Gard.
Poorest people at the forefront of climate change
Ultimately, it's our entire ecosystem that is impacted by climate change, and the most vulnerable people who pay the highest price. Climate change thus leaves millions of people homeless and without food to meet their basic needs, accentuating inequalities and poverty.
As the report “Uprooted by climate change” published by Oxfam in 2017 demonstrated, climate change is already causing multiple upheavals for the most vulnerable populations in developing countries: increased hunger, deteriorating livelihoods. , worsening conflicts, displacement, etc.
An unfair situation since it is estimated that the poorest 50% are responsible for only 10% of total CO2 emissions linked to consumption patterns, while the richest 10% are responsible for 50% of these emissions . And that people in the poorest countries only have $ 3 a year to protect themselves from the consequences of climate change.
Fire in Australia: a historic disaster
Bush fires of historic magnitude with dramatic consequences
The "monster" is the name the Australians have given to the terrible bush fires that have ravaged their country for several weeks. In addition to the “classic” vegetation zones, tropical forests have also been affected, which is relatively rare.
80,000 km2 of bush, wooded areas and national parks have gone up in smoke, which corresponds to the area of Ireland, or to the whole of the New Aquitaine region in France. And on a human and material level, 26 people have died, as of this writing (January 2020), as well as more than a billion animals. More than 2,000 houses have been reduced to ashes.
Climate change behind the scale of the fires
This extreme climate context confirms the predictions of scientists concerning the consequences of climate change: the fires which the country is currently suffering from are caused by the conjunction of more frequent and intense factors as warming worsens, including severe drought, winds and a drop in precipitation.
A situation that France is also experiencing, where there has already been an 18% increase in the frequency of forest fires between 1960 and 2008, a figure that could reach 30% by 2040 according to Météo-France.
Yet despite the environmental, human and financial cost (probably more than A $ 4.4 billion in economic damage, and more than $ 700 million in insurance compensation), the Australian government is not up to the task.
Climate change knows no borders, let's be united!
Everyone concerned by climatic negligence
The situation in Australia is further proof of the worsening of climate change, but also a confirmation that we are all directly concerned by the global deregulation of temperatures. Climate change affects the most vulnerable populations. But they know no boundaries and are today a reality for everyone. All of the testimony gathered in the context of the Affair of the Century in France is also proof of this.
Indeed, Australia is one of the most important powers in the world, but also one of the biggest polluters (1st exporter of coal in the world). And rather than acknowledging its responsibility for greenhouse gas emissions, the country has been a rebellious when it comes to implementing its commitments.
Last fall, during the Green Fund replenishment conference supposed to help the populations most affected to adapt to the consequences of climate change, Oxfam already denounced Australia's refusal to increase its financial contribution to countries the poorest.
Then in Madrid, during COP25, with other rich countries such as the United States, Australia tried by all means to hinder the progress of the discussions and to evade its responsibilities.
Lynn Morgain, Managing Director of Oxfam Australia: "The Australian government needs to set a timetable for the complete elimination of coal and other fossil fuels from the country's energy system, including the switch to 100% renewable electricity from here 2030. […] It must also commit to ending the exploitation of new coal mines, to move quickly from exports of coal and gas to clean exports and to ensuring that no Australian- be left behind in the transition to a zero emission future. ”
It is a question of limiting harmful emissions and preserving the most fragile populations, in particular the Aboriginal communities, forced to abandon their territory due to lack of water.
Oxfam recalled in December 2019 that worldwide, natural disasters, exacerbated by the effects of climate change, have forced more than 20 million people a year to leave their homes in the past decade. The World Bank estimates that the number of people forced to move could exceed 140 million by 2050.
Let’s lobby together to tackle the root causes of climate change
If 2019 leaves a bitter taste and a scorched earth image, it has been a successful year in terms of citizen mobilization. At the call of the youth, millions of people have been heard from around the world asking states to respect their commitments in the fight against climate change, and to come to the aid of the populations more fragile.
Words that have been partly heard. Dutch justice thus definitively condemned last December the government of the Netherlands to reduce its CO2 emissions within the framework of the file "Urgenda".
2020 - the highlight of which will be COP26 in Glasgow - will be a crucial year for monitoring compliance with the Paris Agreement commitments and securing new, more ambitious national contributions.
To remind everyone of the urgency to act in the face of climate change policies, and not to relax the pressure on our decision-makers, join us in expressing your solidarity with Australia and demanding global action in the face of climate change.
OXFAM.
F I N .
Fires in Australia, recall from the Climate Emergency. 10 Jan. 2020.
Have the lessons been learned from the fires, typhoons and cyclones that affected many territories and populations in 2019? Has the alert given by millions of citizens around the world throughout the year, urging political decision-makers to act in the face of climate change to save our planet, been heard?
You can doubt it when you see the devastating images that mark the beginning of 2020. Historical fires ravage Australia. Climate change is upon us, and a reality for too many people. If we want to prevent them from continuing to impact the most fragile and leave a planet bloodless, we still have the power to make them retreat, by demanding from our political and economic leaders that they take measures to match the emergency.
The intensification of climate events in 2019, part to be confirmed in 2020
2019, a record year
If one could have the feeling, the statistical confirmation fell a few days ago: according to the European Copernicus program, 2019 was the second hottest year in the world since the existence of the surveys, after 2016 .
Climate change has been felt more closely and more intensely, and is having increasing impacts.
A year 2019 marked by a succession of large-scale natural disasters
Last summer was particularly devastating for the environment, with incessant forest fires in the Congo Basin and the Amazon, and abnormally high temperatures in Siberia, which caused fires causing the disappearance of more than 12 million people. 'hectares of taiga. Asia has not been spared, with no less than 21 typhoons recorded over the past year in the Philippines, and floods in Indonesia.
In France, two heat waves were recorded in the space of a month, with temperatures reaching 45.9 ° C in the Gard.
Poorest people at the forefront of climate change
Ultimately, it's our entire ecosystem that is impacted by climate change, and the most vulnerable people who pay the highest price. Climate change thus leaves millions of people homeless and without food to meet their basic needs, accentuating inequalities and poverty.
As the report “Uprooted by climate change” published by Oxfam in 2017 demonstrated, climate change is already causing multiple upheavals for the most vulnerable populations in developing countries: increased hunger, deteriorating livelihoods. , worsening conflicts, displacement, etc.
An unfair situation since it is estimated that the poorest 50% are responsible for only 10% of total CO2 emissions linked to consumption patterns, while the richest 10% are responsible for 50% of these emissions . And that people in the poorest countries only have $ 3 a year to protect themselves from the consequences of climate change.
Fire in Australia: a historic disaster
Bush fires of historic magnitude with dramatic consequences
The "monster" is the name the Australians have given to the terrible bush fires that have ravaged their country for several weeks. In addition to the “classic” vegetation zones, tropical forests have also been affected, which is relatively rare.
80,000 km2 of bush, wooded areas and national parks have gone up in smoke, which corresponds to the area of Ireland, or to the whole of the New Aquitaine region in France. And on a human and material level, 26 people have died, as of this writing (January 2020), as well as more than a billion animals. More than 2,000 houses have been reduced to ashes.
Climate change behind the scale of the fires
This extreme climate context confirms the predictions of scientists concerning the consequences of climate change: the fires which the country is currently suffering from are caused by the conjunction of more frequent and intense factors as warming worsens, including severe drought, winds and a drop in precipitation.
A situation that France is also experiencing, where there has already been an 18% increase in the frequency of forest fires between 1960 and 2008, a figure that could reach 30% by 2040 according to Météo-France.
Yet despite the environmental, human and financial cost (probably more than A $ 4.4 billion in economic damage, and more than $ 700 million in insurance compensation), the Australian government is not up to the task.
Climate change knows no borders, let's be united!
Everyone concerned by climatic negligence
The situation in Australia is further proof of the worsening of climate change, but also a confirmation that we are all directly concerned by the global deregulation of temperatures. Climate change affects the most vulnerable populations. But they know no boundaries and are today a reality for everyone. All of the testimony gathered in the context of the Affair of the Century in France is also proof of this.
Indeed, Australia is one of the most important powers in the world, but also one of the biggest polluters (1st exporter of coal in the world). And rather than acknowledging its responsibility for greenhouse gas emissions, the country has been a rebellious when it comes to implementing its commitments.
Last fall, during the Green Fund replenishment conference supposed to help the populations most affected to adapt to the consequences of climate change, Oxfam already denounced Australia's refusal to increase its financial contribution to countries the poorest.
Then in Madrid, during COP25, with other rich countries such as the United States, Australia tried by all means to hinder the progress of the discussions and to evade its responsibilities.
Lynn Morgain, Managing Director of Oxfam Australia: "The Australian government needs to set a timetable for the complete elimination of coal and other fossil fuels from the country's energy system, including the switch to 100% renewable electricity from here 2030. […] It must also commit to ending the exploitation of new coal mines, to move quickly from exports of coal and gas to clean exports and to ensuring that no Australian- be left behind in the transition to a zero emission future. ”
It is a question of limiting harmful emissions and preserving the most fragile populations, in particular the Aboriginal communities, forced to abandon their territory due to lack of water.
Oxfam recalled in December 2019 that worldwide, natural disasters, exacerbated by the effects of climate change, have forced more than 20 million people a year to leave their homes in the past decade. The World Bank estimates that the number of people forced to move could exceed 140 million by 2050.
Let’s lobby together to tackle the root causes of climate change
If 2019 leaves a bitter taste and a scorched earth image, it has been a successful year in terms of citizen mobilization. At the call of the youth, millions of people have been heard from around the world asking states to respect their commitments in the fight against climate change, and to come to the aid of the populations more fragile.
Words that have been partly heard. Dutch justice thus definitively condemned last December the government of the Netherlands to reduce its CO2 emissions within the framework of the file "Urgenda".
2020 - the highlight of which will be COP26 in Glasgow - will be a crucial year for monitoring compliance with the Paris Agreement commitments and securing new, more ambitious national contributions.
To remind everyone of the urgency to act in the face of climate change policies, and not to relax the pressure on our decision-makers, join us in expressing your solidarity with Australia and demanding global action in the face of climate change.
OXFAM.
F I N .
