[prakruti] Fwd: Climate change disaster is upon us, warns UN

[Guest guest]

Prakruti and Save Bombay Committee

102, Mausam, Plot 285, Sector 28, Vashi

Navi Mumbai 400705

Website:

savebombaycommittee.org

email: kisansbc

Kisan Mehta 9223448857

Priya Salvi 9324027494

---------- Forwarded message ----------

 

Climate change disaster is upon us, warns UN

* Julian Borger, diplomatic editor

* The Guardian

* Friday October 5 2007

 

A record number of floods, droughts and storms around the world this

year

amount to a climate change " mega disaster " , the United Nation's

emergency

relief coordinator, Sir John Holmes, has warned.

Sir John, a British diplomat who is also known as the UN's

under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs, said dire

predictions

about the impact of global warming on humanity were already coming true.

 

" We are seeing the effects of climate change. Any year can be a

freak but

the pattern looks pretty clear to be honest. That's why we're trying ...

to

say, of course you've got to deal with mitigation of emissions, but this

is

here and now, this is with us already, " he said.

As a measure of the worsening situation, Ocha, the UN Office for the

Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs - part of the UN secretariat

that

employs Sir John - has issued 13 emergency " flash " appeals so

far this

year. The number is three more than in 2005, which held the previous

record.

Two years ago only half the international disasters dealt with by Ocha

had

anything to do with the climate; this year all but one of the 13

emergency

appeals is climate-related. " And 2007 is not finished. We will

certainly

have more by the end of the year, I fear, " added Sir John, who is in

charge

of channelling international relief efforts to disaster areas.

More appeals were likely in the coming weeks, as floods hit west

Africa.

" All these events on their own didn't have massive death tolls, but

if you

add all these little disasters together you get a mega disaster, " he

said.

The only one of this year's emergency appeals not connected to the

climate

was an earthquake in Peru, in August. The others arose after an

unprecedented string of catastrophic floods across much of Africa, south

 

Asia and North Korea, and followed severe drought in southern

Africa,

Nicaragua's category-five hurricane, and extreme climate conditions

in

Bolivia, which brought both drought and floods.

The Ocha appeals represent the tip of an iceberg since they are launched

 

only with the agreement of the affected country. India was badly

affected

by floods that hit the rest of the Asian region in July. But unlike

its

neighbour, Pakistan, India did not call on the UN for help.

Ocha believes that 66 million people were made homeless or were

otherwise

affected across south Asia. The lives of several million more people

were

turned upside down across Africa. Sudan, Mozambique, Madagascar, Zambia

and

Uganda experienced disastrous floods, and Swaziland and Lesotho

declared

emergencies because of severe drought that reduced harvests by

half.

" The flooding in Africa just now is the worst anyone can

remember, " Sir

John said, expressing frustration at how little media attention in the

west

was being devoted to what he terms creeping climatic

catastrophe.

Flooding is likely to be common for a warming planet, and climate change

 

has a double effect - causing an increase in the frequency of storms,

while

higher atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide curb the ability of plants

to

draw groundwater.

A climate-change summit is to be held in Bali in December, with the aim

of

agreeing the principles of a new international treaty to replace Kyoto,

the

accord that expires in 2012. But the talks face determined US opposition

to

mandatory emissions targets, and most climate negotiators doubt a real

 

breakthrough can be achieved before the Bush government leaves office

in

2009.

Sir John argues that whatever is done on greenhouse gas emissions,

money

has to be spent now on mitigating the impact that climate change is

already

having. " You can't actually stop disasters happening but you can do

a lot

to reduce their impact and reduce people's vulnerability to them by

making

sure people don't live on the coast or river plains, and that roads are

 

raised and dams are in reasonable shape. "

According to the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which

is

leading research on the issue, global warming will disrupt and

potentially

devastate the lives of billions of people.

And, just as global warming starts to make itself felt, there are

signs

that " donor fatigue " has set in. Of about $338m (£166m)

requested for

Ocha's 13 flash appeals this year, only $114m has so far come from

donors.

OchAt 12:20 AM 10/7/07, you wrote:

Prakruti and Save Bombay

Committee

102, Mausam, Plot 285, Sector 28, Vashi

Navi Mumbai 400705

Website: savebombaycommittee.org

email: kisansbc

Kisan Mehta 9223448857

Priya Salvi 9324027494

---------- Forwarded message ----------

Climate change disaster is upon us, warns UN

* Julian Borger, diplomatic editor

* The Guardian

* Friday October 5 2007

A record number of floods, droughts and storms around the world this

year

amount to a climate change " mega disaster " , the United Nation's

emergency

relief coordinator, Sir John Holmes, has warned.

Sir John, a British diplomat who is also known as the UN's

under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs, said dire

predictions

about the impact of global warming on humanity were already coming true.

 

" We are seeing the effects of climate change. Any year can be a

freak but

the pattern looks pretty clear to be honest. That's why we're trying ...

to

say, of course you've got to deal with mitigation of emissions, but this

is

here and now, this is with us already, " he said.

As a measure of the worsening situation, Ocha, the UN Office for the

Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs - part of the UN secretariat

that

employs Sir John - has issued 13 emergency " flash " appeals so

far this

year. The number is three more than in 2005, which held the previous

record.

Two years ago only half the international disasters dealt with by Ocha

had

anything to do with the climate; this year all but one of the 13

emergency

appeals is climate-related. " And 2007 is not finished. We will

certainly

have more by the end of the year, I fear, " added Sir John, who is in

charge

of channelling international relief efforts to disaster areas.

More appeals were likely in the coming weeks, as floods hit west

Africa.

" All these events on their own didn't have massive death tolls, but

if you

add all these little disasters together you get a mega disaster, " he

said.

The only one of this year's emergency appeals not connected to the

climate

was an earthquake in Peru, in August. The others arose after an

unprecedented string of catastrophic floods across much of Africa, south

 

Asia and North Korea, and followed severe drought in southern

Africa,

Nicaragua's category-five hurricane, and extreme climate conditions

in

Bolivia, which brought both drought and floods.

The Ocha appeals represent the tip of an iceberg since they are launched

 

only with the agreement of the affected country. India was badly

affected

by floods that hit the rest of the Asian region in July. But unlike

its

neighbour, Pakistan, India did not call on the UN for help.

Ocha believes that 66 million people were made homeless or were

otherwise

affected across south Asia. The lives of several million more people

were

turned upside down across Africa. Sudan, Mozambique, Madagascar, Zambia

and

Uganda experienced disastrous floods, and Swaziland and Lesotho

declared

emergencies because of severe drought that reduced harvests by

half.

" The flooding in Africa just now is the worst anyone can

remember, " Sir

John said, expressing frustration at how little media attention in the

west

was being devoted to what he terms creeping climatic

catastrophe.

Flooding is likely to be common for a warming planet, and climate change

 

has a double effect - causing an increase in the frequency of storms,

while

higher atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide curb the ability of plants

to

draw groundwater.

A climate-change summit is to be held in Bali in December, with the aim

of

agreeing the principles of a new international treaty to replace Kyoto,

the

accord that expires in 2012. But the talks face determined US opposition

to

mandatory emissions targets, and most climate negotiators doubt a real

 

breakthrough can be achieved before the Bush government leaves office

in

2009.

Sir John argues that whatever is done on greenhouse gas emissions,

money

has to be spent now on mitigating the impact that climate change is

already

having. " You can't actually stop disasters happening but you can do

a lot

to reduce their impact and reduce people's vulnerability to them by

making

sure people don't live on the coast or river plains, and that roads are

 

raised and dams are in reasonable shape. "

According to the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which

is

leading research on the issue, global warming will disrupt and

potentially

devastate the lives of billions of people.

And, just as global warming starts to make itself felt, there are

signs

that " donor fatigue " has set in. Of about $338m (£166m)

requested for

Ocha's 13 flash appeals this year, only $114m has so far come from

donors.

 

******

Kraig and Shirley Carroll ... in the woods of SE Kentucky

http://www.thehavens.com/

thehavens

606-376-3363

 

 

 

---

Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free.

Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com).

Version: 6.0.859 / Virus Database: 585 - Release 2/14/05