Sustainable development is development that does not violate the fundamental Planetary Boundaries. Some skeptics, are suggesting that we have already crossed the tipping point. Will we ever stand up and be counted? If not know then when?
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The timing is tragically ironic. As Super Typhoon Haiyan -- one of the strongest storms ever recorded -- smashes into the Philippines, sending millions fleeing for safety, negotiators from around the world are beginning to arrive in Warsaw, Poland for the latest installment of the United Nations Climate Talks, COP 19.
Climate change is loading the dice for extreme weather events like Haiyan. The storms strength and rapid development have been aided by unusually warm ocean waters and warm, moist air (warm air holds more water vapor than cold). Global warming also causes sea level rise, increasing the risk of flooding from storm surges, especially in low-lying areas like much of the Philippines. Carbon dioxide is the steroids that leads to grand-slam storms like Haiyan.
Haiyan should be a five-alarm wake up call for negotiators in Warsaw and the capitals that sent them here. Over the next two-weeks, despite the best attempts of the nations most vulnerable to climate change, negotiators from the largest emitting countries will bask under the fluorescent lights of yet another conference center to bicker, delay, and obfuscate. Meanwhile, millions of people in the Philippines -- and other impacted communities around the world -- will be sleeping in relief centers and bravely trying to rebuild their homes.
The United Nations tried to make this year's climate meeting a summit focused on finance, but the Green Climate Fund, which is supposed to provide $100 billion every year by 2020 for adaptation and mitigation efforts, remains empty, and there's no sign that rich countries will come to the table in Warsaw with any serious pledges.
Instead, the Polish government has turned this year's Conference of the Parties into the "Coal COP," going so far as to host a World Coal Summit next-door to the official climate negotiations. It's like throwing a tobacco industry expo next-door to a global meeting of cancer experts. It's the gun show next to a world peace summit.
Coal fired power plants are the largest source of greenhouse gas emission in the world, making coal the number one threat to the climate. If we want a future for the planet, there is no future for coal.
So far, Poland's attempts to promote the future of the coal industry at the climate summit has only cast more of a spotlight on the fragile state of the industry.
In the United States, coal demand has fallen by about 20 percent over the last five years, while environmental regulations in Europe will force the closure of many coal fired power plants over the next decade. The drop in demand has resulted in a similar drop in share price for many coal companies, sometimes by as much as 75 percent.
The situation for the industry will only get worse. According to a growing number of reports by institutions like the World Bank, HSBC, and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, 60-80 percent of current fossil fuel reserves must stay underground in order to limit global warming to below 2°C. Coal, and other high-carbon, unconventional fuels such as tar sands, are likely to be the hardest hit by the tightening carbon budget.
The threat of these reserves turning into stranded assets has led many investors to start shedding their coal industry stocks, and fueled fears of a carbon bubble resulting from the overvaluation of fossil fuel companies. The prices of some coal mining companies have plummeted 75 percent, many others have gone out of business. Meanwhile, the growing fossil fuel divestment campaign is continuing to turn up the heat on institutions to divest from the coal industry and other major-holders of fossil fuel reserves.
Climate activists in the Philippines are already making the connection between Haiyan and the need to end the global dependence on coal. In an interview with the Sun Star, Voltaire Alferez, the national coordinator for Aksyon Klima, a climate coalition in the Philippines, called on the government to start protecting communities rather than polluters.
"We challenge the Aquino administration to be more proactive in helping local governments and communities protect themselves from storm surges, heavy rains, floods, and more," Alferez said. "Aquino and his cohorts have also repeatedly defended its coal-centric policy while underestimating the country's capacity and readiness for renewable energy. If the proposed coal-fired power plants are approved, we are signing up for more emissions and more of this kind of extreme weather."
The test for any would-be climate leader here at the UN Climate Talks in Poland will be whether they are willing to stand up to the fossil fuel industry and tell them that the age of coal is over, and that it's time to start investing in the future. That's especially true for UN Climate Secretary Christiana Figueres, who is keynoting World Coal Conference.
I'm straining to give Figueres the benefit of the doubt--she spoke emotionally to hundreds of young people about the need for bold climate action at the Global Power Shift summit last summer, breaking into tears at one point. If she goes to the summit and calls for an end to the coal industry, it will be a powerful moment. If instead, she plays the politician and spouts off some lies about clean coal, it will be a slap in the face to every young person who believed in her -- and the millions of people in the Philippines who will still be recovering from Haiyan.
From Haiyan to Sandy to Bopha (another major storm that hit the Philippines last year), our so-called leaders have heard alarm after alarm and continued to hit the snooze button. It's time to kick them out of bed and demand action. Warsaw could be the start.
Follow Jamie Henn on Twitter: www.twitter.com/agent350
It’s incredible to me that rich nations are still continuing to ignore the dangers and reality of climate change. Even after such catastrophic natural disasters like Typhoon Haiyan continue to wreak havoc, there seems to be nothing being done about the effects of climate change. Haiyan is estimated to have killed up to 10,000 people and is one of the most powerful storms ever recorded. It was 25 miles wide and reached astonishing speeds of 200 mph. Natural disasters are continuing to get increasingly powerful and it’s obvious that the key reason for this is the change in climate. One of the biggest issues concerning climate change is the use of fossil fuels. Coal burning produces hundreds of millions of tons of solid waste products annually. There are also severe health effects caused by burning coal. It also pollutes water flow. Despite its 20% reduction in the United States, some countries like Poland rely on the fossil fuel industry heavily. Coal accounts for more than 80% of Poland's electricity generation. It’s clear that coal won't go away anytime soon in Poland and the fact that the Polish government will preside over a high level coal industry event while there is a two week climate change conference sends a clear message where their priorities are.
ReplyDeleteThe strength of tropical storms, such as Typhoon Haiyan, is linked to sea temperature. As the oceans warm with climate change, there is extra energy in the system. Pacific Ocean waters are warming much faster than expected and there is scientific agreement that typhoons are now increasing in strength. This is all due to climate change and it’s astonishing that countries aren’t taking more of an initiative to address these issues and coal is still being used plentifully without a second thought in many countries.
It’s also sad to see that typhoons, like Haiyan, are being widely seen in developing countries, like the Philippines and Viet Nam. Many do not receive finance to adapt or prepare themselves for catastrophes, such as this. Many farmers and fishermen made their living by the coast have now seen their livelihoods ruined. Climate change negotiations need to be made immediately and if not, it’s a clear sign of economic and environmental dysfunction and an inability to adapt with the reality of climate change.
Jane Han
Coal production is one of the dirtiest and environmentally damaging fossil fuels to extract. From mining coal, refining it, and the eventual release of GHG there is no such term as "clean coal." Unfortunately the term is still used especially here in the United States. Though the global community knows the damage coal can inflict on global warming we are still seeing increase production and use of it. Current global consumption is at 7 billion tons and is expected to rise to 9 billion tons in the next two decades with the majority of the use by rapidly emerging economies like China and India. As a fuel sources it is very productive when it comes to burning it and transferring it to energy that powers electrical grids. With this in mind many emerging economies see it as a cheap and quick way to create energy. However like the rest of the fossil fuels it is finite and advocates for the paradigm of non-sustainability.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately I expect the Coal COP Summit in Warsaw to accomplish very little. It is very difficult to enact any sort of global regulation when it comes to finite resources. Fossil fuel reduction is only done by pledges from countries therefore have no consequences if they don't meet them. Like worldwide fisheries, coal consumption faces the dilemma of the tragedy of the commons. Though coal may not be free it is non-regulated therefore it will be abused to a point of no return. Personally I think coal consumption is dependent of the economy of a certain nation. The United States and European countries are post-industrial and therefore have the financial ability to start to move toward cleaner technologies. When a developing country that is quickly trying to catch up to the developed countries it has less cause for concern from where they get their energy. It would great to see one of these summit's to make a concrete or tangible plan to decrease coal consumption however until there isn't a viable financial solution many countries will continue to use it.
What is so fascinating to me is that we keep ignoring the issue over and over again. Clearly global warming is occurring before our eyes; clearly this planet is our survival, so why are we not doing something to prevent such things from happening. I have the same opinion that was made in the article “so- called leaders have heard alarm after alarm and continued to hit the snooze button.” It’s almost as if they just push it off, to give people false hope, but never have any intentions of taking steps to resolve the issue that is already well underway. Just like the Green Climate Fund which remains empty, I believe the “Coal COP”, will accomplish nothing as well. When we see effects of global warming that lead to such destruction such as Super Typhoon Haiyan you would think that we would step up to the plate and prevent future occurrences. By putting an end to the coal industry now we can be saving millions of lives in the future. Coal is the most destructive and largest greenhouse gas emission in the world leaving it to be the top threat to the climate, as the article states. There will be consequences to pay in the future because of this. Look at the north east or the Philippines who are now suffering the consequences due to such storms. People are so concentrated on the profits coming from coal plants, but who is going to be concentrated on the funding needed for restoration on these areas, left devastated by such storms?
ReplyDeleteThe most recent storm that left the Philippines devastated has just reinforced the environmental wake up call that every nation must be a part of. The focal point of coal is among one of many contributors to what is speculated as the causer of this "super typhoon." It is important that nations world wide participate in helping reduce fossil fuel consumption and pollution so that we minimize the chances of environmental catastrophes that leave areas in ruin. The reduction of 20% in coal usage in the U.S. stated by the article is an indication of the U.S. making an effort to put this issue as one of their priorities and as a role model for other countries to follow. Time will only tell if the reduction in fossil fuel use will be a major contributor to minimizing natural disasters world wide, but to test the theory it will need to be a corroborative effort among major users to take the steps necessary in reducing the amounts used. Maybe Haiyan will be the turning point for some of the larger nations to get their act together and do their part in contributing to the solution.
ReplyDeleteNicholas Maier.
The Super Typhoon in Haiyan is a tragedy that is most definitely a result of climate change. When are we as a race going to face the fact that we need to change the way we consume and produce energy? Until we can answer this question, I as well as many other scientists believe that these storms will continue to occur and become stronger and stronger. I feel very sad for the Philippine people who had to go through this horrific event. On the other hand I am glad that this has caused a stir and hope it continues to. The United Nations is holding a Climate Talk in Warsaw, Poland. I hope in this meeting, we will be able to finally end the production of coal fired plants that are the number one CO2 emitter. Currently we have Europe on board and the United States has begun to decrease its power source from coal. I think is ridiculous that the coal summit is going to be right next door to the official climate negotiations. I think this is a childish and foolish move that Poland is doing. I understand that many of the coal plants have lost almost 75% of their value and some even went out of business. This could be somewhat bad for the economy, but if we want to create a sustainable environment then an end to coal must be in the near future. Many economists and scientists believe that we are already beyond the tipping point. This may be true however; we need to push for greener solutions to help keep this earth sustainable for the future. Voltaire Alferez, the national coordinator for Akyson Klima, a climate coalition in the Philippines, called on the government to start protecting communities rather than polluters. He said “We challenge the Aquino administration to be more proactive in helping local governments and communities protect themselves from storm surge, heavy rain, floods, and more.” He goes on to say that if the coal fired power plants are approved, then we will be signing up for more emissions and more of this kind of extreme weather. Our society needs to receive a wakeup call like this and actually act upon it. We continue to receive warnings such as hurricane sandy and Katrina. We just build bigger walls and levees and think we solved the problem. This is not the answer! We need to reform and start relying on renewable energy so that the future can live the same moves we are today. Even if we are past the tipping point, it is our job to slow the process down to make life sustainable for as long as possible.
ReplyDeleteNicholas Brodeur
Pace Pleasantville
The typhoon that struck Haiyan, Philippines is such a tragedy. It just goes to show that global warming is indeed real. We have to act fast or other natural disasters like this one are bound to occur again. We need to focus on ways that we can produce and consume energy that is not harmful to the environment. According to the article, it seems that coal is one of the larger factors that has contributed to the super typhoon occurring. “Carbon dioxide is the steroids that leads to grand-slam storms like Haiyan,” statements like this are suggesting that coal and other unconventional fuels are responsible for shift in climate change, which leads to natural disasters like that. The United States has done a great job in reducing its emission of coal by 20%, but there are still countries in the world like Poland who depend on burning fossil fuels as a way of not only producing energy but help their economy. Coal is something that won’t go away tomorrow, but countries like Poland need to try their best to find different ways to produce cleaner energy. Since climate change effects the sea temperature, burning coal is indeed a reason behind why Typhoon Haiyan occurred in the first place. It is a terrible thing to have countries that are still developing like the Philippines to be hit so hard with a natural disaster that will affect them for many years to come, but hopefully this will start to open our eyes on what is going on in the environment.
ReplyDeleteI can not justify why these rich countries do not want to help those whom have experienced climate damage and change first hand however, it is possible that most rich countries do not help financially do to the whole realist paradigm, The realist paradigm has the notion that every man is for himself and that there is a survival of the fittest. Therefore these poor countries that are in need must find their own way to sustain themselves. Unfortunately this ideology has gotten our world and its countries nowhere. The discussion between poor and rich countries should now be under the interdependency paradigm in which countries are encouraged to depend on one another in order to advance. This paradigm holds a much stronger influence towards sustainability. Economically these rich countries must facilitate the damage already done in such incident storms as the Philippines and begin to interact with one another in order to end climate changes damages. Natural disasters are influenced based on our overall operation increase, and those who make the most operation productivity are these rich countries with more natural resources. In a sense these rich countries owe their helping hand to these less fortunate countries. It is clear there isn’t a balance of resources around our world. If looked at in an economical standpoint the entire cost of storm damages should be billed to countries such as the United States, Japan and China etc. This isn’t to say that every natural disaster will be taken from other countries prosperity and funds however it does demonstrate the awareness and seriousness that should be taken within different countries around the world as to how their level of productivity forms immense pollution and therefore risking the lives of others.
ReplyDeleteTyphoon Haiyan is a tragedy of epic proportions and climate change is definitely one factor in the rise of extreme weather. I think its also important to remember weather historically runs in 100 year patterns and my late grandfather often spoke of storms from the 30's which were equal to storms we've had recently and naturally from several hundred years ago before modern technology and real records we don't know how terrible storms from the 15, 16 or 1700's were. I don't say that to downplay the need for more change in the way we conduct and finance the combating of climate change but to offer a fair perspective to consider. They are some in the climate change community including David Dilley the chief scientist at Global Weather Oscillations who believe the global temperature and carbon dioxide cycle are perfectly in line with the global warming cycle which ended in 2012 and who believe we have now entered a 150 year global cooling cycle, he advocates "natural climate change" and the earths ability to control itself. Now I agree coal needs to be eliminated as a fuel, surely the brightest minds of our time with the advanced research and tools at their disposal can find new types of energy, self sustaining power/fuel cells to power entire plants and cities. Each nation needs to address those areas of their countries most susceptible to devastation from natural disasters and take steps to protect them.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with you that other factors possibly contributing to Typhoon Haiyan need to be considered. Yes, climate change is a very large factor in extreme weather, but not the only factor. In fact, if I'm not mistaken, there is still no clear consensus on actual impact of climate change specifically on cyclones by the scientific community. I believe the knee-jerk reaction to claim every large storm is completely caused by climate change to be as based in as little fact as claiming climate change doesn't exist at all.
DeleteHaving said that, I still believe in the wake of this storm it still is incredibly important to be raising awareness for climate change and the reduction of fossil fuels, as one thing that has been definitely proven is that the use fossil fuels such as coal have been causing catastrophic externalities that have harmed untold number of lives, such as climate change, desertification, flooding, and the acidification of the oceans.
It was devastation when the typhoon hit Haiyan, Philippines. Climate change is one of the major factors in the increased amount of extreme weather. This is just another incident that has happened because we as mankind still continue to consume and produce energy that creates greenhouse gases. Not until we kind ways and put into effect methods and or laws that limit pollution, will we see change in the severity of storms that destroy areas around the world. I think that it is a very important subject for nations around the world to focus on. Its time that developed countries stop putting off this topic before its too really too late. The United States is making an effect to reduce coal consumption, as it is one of the most harmful resources of energy, and the largest greenhouse gas emitter. As of now there are other countries in Europe as also supporting this movement and decreasing the amount of coal that is being used. I think that it would be too overwhelming on the economy to totally ban the use of coal, as for consumers because it is one of the cheaper forms of energy. We as mankind need to gradually transform into a more sustainable culture, to not shock the economy but still move towards a way where we can save the earth and the future of humans.
ReplyDeleteThe author of this article illustrates perfectly what needs to happen when they state: "From Haiyan to Sandy to Bopha (another major storm that hit the Philippines last year), our so-called leaders have heard alarm after alarm and continued to hit the snooze button." Our society (not just our leaders) time and again has been "hitting the snooze button" on the topic of climate change and its effects on our planet. We have, in my very short life, seen super-storm after super-storm devastate lives, we have watched the Co2 emissions warm our planet, and we have watched sea levels rise and tiny islands all but disappear under water. Yet this problem is continually ignored. Nations with enormous amounts of money and resources turn a blind eye when asked to step up and offer their support financially. They ignore green initiatives and pledge to carry out orders that will probably never come to be in their own countries.
ReplyDeleteThe article states it best: the planet cannot survive if the coal industry remains and less Co2 emissions are necessary with 60-80% of our fossil fuels remaining underground. Surely there are better (greener) sources of energy to further sustain the planet and its inhabitants. In order to see less of the catastrophes we have been experiencing and less lives uprooted and devastated we MUST find a better way.
Renee S. Taylor
Pace University
New York City
One would assume that stricter regulations and climate change would be the number one topic after the hurricane Sandy hit northeast. But it was not. Philippines had been hit hard twice within two years with devastating results – financial loss as well as loss of lives. This just shows that even if there is a talk about climate change, it is just a talk. None of the rich nations had stepped forward. Little progress has been made since developed countries agreed in the 2009 climate conference in Copenhagen to jointly mobilize $100 billion every year by 2020 to help developing countries such as the Philippines deal with climate change impacts. Fossil fuel industry is just too important for developed countries in order to keep their economic growth. Climate change is ignored and people in developing countries that don’t have enough resources to rebuild, are suffering. Economic growth is based on the principle that we should be better off today than before. How I see it, with all of the unexpected weather changes, lot of people are worse off than before. These repeated disasters are not natural but manmade. And sooner those in charge realize that, sooner we can start saving our planet. I believe this typhoon was strong enough to be a reality wakeup call and something will be finally done.
ReplyDeleteWhat we must think is that these super storms and fantastic weather instances open our eyes to the problem. Controlling the weather is out of the hands of people. The human race is and always has been at the whim of mother nature. When she acts there is nothing we can do to cease her actions and we must ride it out. That does not mean that we should continue to damage the only source of resources for the sake of power generation. Energy is the life blood of human civilization however the earth is what supplies us with the fuels to synthesize it and we must covet these sources as much as a child covets its blanket. Governments must make a stand with the knowledge that should they allow people to rape the planet we will all pay the costs. No one is immune to the affects that are happening to the planet. We are overly relying on the members of government to make these corrective measures. Gandhi once said that "You must be the change you wish to see in the world", and if citizens of the global community all contribute to shifting away from the avarice of corporatism, the so called leaders in government will be forced to follow.
ReplyDeleteThat is a great quote. "You must be the change you wish to see in the world". This is how all generations to come should live. This is something that we should be preaching and letting everyone know to pass along because if we do not change ourselves we can not change our future.
DeleteI don't believe anything positive will come out of this summit just like all the others. The wealthiest people don't think these natural disasters will effect them because there money will provide a protection. They only see the money they have invested into these companies. Storms are getting worst each year impacting areas that are ill prepared to handle these storms because it was never a problem for those areas before. For along time the heads of states were in denial about global warming and the negative impact of co2 emission. Now they can no longer ignore these super storms, but they still chose to stand by and do nothing. If Christiana Figures does the right thing and stand against the progression of moving forward with coal it would shock the hell out of me.
ReplyDeleteIt is very important that everyone must work together to help with these countries poverty stricken countries get back on their feet. Some countries do not believe they need to even pay attention to what is going on in other places because they do not have anything to worry about themselves. There will be a time when every country needs help and those who did not help might regret that. As we witness more and more natural disasters that a becoming far worse than the last one we have to think is this being caused by us polluting the earth? It is becoming reality more and more as we go forward. We need to have more of a system put in place to get other countries on a path where there will be a beautiful world for our future generations.
ReplyDelete