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World Orangutan Day: Conservationists seek end to habitat destruction

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World Orangutan Day: Conservationists seek end to habitat destruction

The world on Saturday, August 19, 2017 observed the International Orangutan Day with events organised globally to raise awareness about the plight of the now critically endangered primate, whose DNA is said to be 97% the same as humans.

Orangutans
Orangutans

The Rainforest Action Network (RAN), for instance, spoke up for orangutans and against forest destruction.

In a campaign focused on a major orangutan stronghold in Indonesia, the not-for-profit group claims that millions of acres of rainforest in the Southeast Asian nation are destroyed each year for the production of Conflict Palm Oil.

“Snack food giant PepsiCo uses an immense amount of Conflict Palm Oil and is driving this destruction. As more and more of its forest habitat are lost, the orangutan is being driven closer to extinction in the wild,” RAN insists, saying that stopping the destruction caused by PepsiCo will go a long in saving the orangutan.

The group adds: “We have convinced more than a dozen of the world’s biggest snack food corporations to adopt responsible palm oil sourcing policies that ensure the palm oil they use is not destroying the orangutan’s home. Today, we demand that PepsiCo cleans up its supply chain by putting an end to the use of Conflict Palm Oil in its products. When orangutans are gone, they’re gone forever. We must fight for the orangutan!”

In 2016, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) changed the classification of the Bornean orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus) from endangered to critically endangered, citing the main causes of its population decline as habitat loss and fragmentation, primarily for logging and oil palm plantations, along with illegal hunting and fires.

The Sumatran orangutan (Pongo abelii) is also listed as critically endangered. There are now only about 14,600 left in the wild.

These are estimated to be between 55,000 and 62,000 Bornean orangutans living in the wild, split into three distinct subspecies.

The IUCN says the population trend is a decrease for both species.

Orangutans’ solitary nature and slow reproductive rates leave them particularly vulnerable when there is forest loss. The rate of population decline is such that it is difficult for the populations to recover because of the lengthy birth intervals.

In findings published in Nature Research’s Scientific Reports in July 2017, a group of researchers concluded that Bornean orangutan populations had declined by 25 percent over the past decade.

The researchers estimated that the overall density of orangutans on the island of Borneo from 1997 to 2002 was about 15 individuals per 100 square kilometres. The density was reduced to 10 individuals per 100 square kilometres in 2009–2015.

“Survival rates of the species are lowest in areas with intermediate rainfall, where complex interrelations between soil fertility, agricultural productivity, and human settlement patterns influence persistence,” the researchers concluded.

The researchers said their study highlighted the urgency of determining specific management interventions needed in different locations to counter the trend of population decline.

The scientists point to the difficulty of accurately assessing the rate of population decline.

“Over the years, different estimates of population sizes have been proposed by various authors, leading to confusion about the conservation status of the species.”

The rate of decline and the drivers of the population change of orangutans are difficult to assess because of the species’ cryptic behaviour, and because surveys of orangutans are typically restricted to small geographic areas, are conducted over short time periods and employ different survey protocols, the researchers say.

The executive director of the UK-based charity, the Orangutan land Trust (OLT), Michelle Desilets, says she would prefer not to get caught up trying to give current population figures.

The OLT spearheads the PONGO (Palm Oil and NGO) Alliance, which was formed in 2015 and aims to protect orangutan habitat in an oil palm landscape.

Desilets points out that 10,000 orangutans are living in areas that have been identified for industrial oil palm cultivation in Borneo. “There is an urgent need for collaborative innovation to protect these animals in mixed-use landscapes.”

There is a genuine commitment from major growers in the PONGO Alliance, Desilets says. “And the alliance has brought together experts and orangutan conservation organisations, who are developing new strategies for the protection of orangutans in legally unprotected areas. All this is quite a positive shift.”

China completes, connects floating solar plant to power grid

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China completes, connects floating solar plant to power grid

China has announced that the largest floating photovoltaic (PV) facility on earth has finally been completed and connected to the local power grid. Long reviled for its carbon emission record, this is the Chinese government’s latest achievement in its ongoing effort to lead the world in renewable energy adoption.

floating-solar-power-plant
The floating solar power plant

Located in the city of Huainan in the Anhui province, the 40-megawatt solar power plant facility was created by PV inverter manufacturer Sungrow Power Supply Co. Ironically, the floating grid itself was constructed over a flooded former coal-mining region.

“Introducing cutting-edge technologies to products is what we are always committed to. We continue to offer better products and solutions to customers all over the world,” said Professor Renxian Cao, president of Sungrow, in a press release announcing the project.

Floating solar farms are becoming increasingly popular around the world because their unique design addresses multiple efficiency and city planning issues. These floating apparatuses free up land in more populated areas and also reduce water evaporation. The cooler air at the surface also helps to minimise the risk of solar cell performance atrophy, which is often related to long-term exposure to warmer temperatures.

This is just the first of many solar energy operations popping up around China. In 2016, the country unveiled a similar 20MW floating facility in the same area. China is also home to the Longyangxia Dam Solar Park, a massive 10-square-mile, land-based facility touted as the largest solar power plant on earth.

This transition to solar is in large part due to the rapidly plummeting cost of the technology itself. By 2020, China could reduce prices offered to PV developers by more than a third with solar power plants projected to rival coal facilities. The nation has also announced plans to increase its use of non-fissile fuel energy sources by 20 percent.

That said, the U.S. is no slouch when it comes to power innovation. The University of Texas professor who pioneered the lithium-ion battery technology recently pushed the envelope on batteries again, and wireless chargers from California’s Energous beam electricity like a modern-day Tesla coil. (Their first home transmitter could be approved by the FCC within “weeks,” reps told Digital Trends in June.) Meanwhile, Immotor’s green “Super Battery” may be the smartest battery every released.

An annual report released by NASA and NOAA determined that 2016 was the warmest year on record globally, marking the third year in a row in which a new record was set for global average surface temperatures. That said, if we as a species hope to reverse this dire trend, initiatives like this and others will need to be adopted around the globe. And small changes at home may help: Solar chargers for your smartphone are just one way to reduce your dependence on fossil fuels.

Sierra Leone mudslides: UN moves to curb spread of diseases

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Sierra Leone mudslides: UN moves to curb spread of diseases

The World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Monday, August 21, 2017 that it is working closely with the Government of Sierra Leone to prevent the spread of infectious diseases such as malaria and cholera in the wake of last week’s mudslides and flooding in Freetown.

mudslide
Around 500 people are known to have died as a result of the flooding and mudslides

The UN health body is also working with partners to ensure ongoing health care for the injured and displaced, and to provide psychological aid to those coping with trauma.

Around 500 people are known to have died as a result of the flooding and mudslides that devastated whole communities in and around Sierra Leone’s capital, Freetown, and hundreds more are still missing. With thousands displaced and local infrastructure destroyed, WHO has mobilised significant human, technical and financial resources to respond to the emergency.

“The mudslides have caused extreme suffering and loss of life, and we must do all we can to protect the population from additional health risks,” said Alexander Chimbaru, Officer in Charge of WHO Sierra Leone.

With damage to water and sanitation facilities, residents of affected areas are particularly vulnerable to outbreaks of pre-existing infectious diseases including malaria and diarrheal conditions such as typhoid and cholera. The most recent cholera outbreak in the country occurred in 2012.

WHO is working with health authorities in the country to maximise efforts to prevent and respond to disease outbreaks. Cholera response kits, including rapid testing tools, are being distributed to areas at risk; health and community workers are being trained to recognise the signs of priority diseases, and the organisation is sending additional cholera and emergency kits to the country.

“While the Government and WHO are working hard to strengthen health services in the affected areas, we also urge the population to take the following precautions to help avoid a possible outbreak: hand washing, drinking only water that has been properly boiled or treated, use of latrines for sanitation, and adherence to good food hygiene practices,” added Dr. Chimbaru.

WHO is also providing extensive support in the area of infection prevention and control at health facilities and at the mortuary located at the Connaught Hospital in Freetown, as well as community engagement and psychological first aid.

Rivers State to host 2017 Editors’ Conference

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Rivers State to host 2017 Editors’ Conference

Rivers State will host this year’s edition of the All Nigeria Editors’ Conference (ANEC 2017) which holds in Port Harcourt from Wednesday, September 20 to Sunday, September 24.

Funke-Egbemode
Funke Egbemode, President of the Nigerian Guild of Editors. Photo credit: premiumtimesng.com

ANEC is the annual flagship conference of the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE). This year’s event, themed: “Nigerian Media – Balancing Professionalism, Advocacy and Business”, will also have an extraordinary convention to adopt the reviewed NGE constitution.

The Nigeria Guild of Editors has in recent years dedicated its annual conference to fostering and deepening discourses on national issues. This year, the Conference is focusing on the media as a major stakeholder in the nation’s democratic project.

Now in its 13th year, this is the second time that ANEC will focus solely on the media after its first edition held in 2004 in Ada, Osun State, with the support of the government of the then Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola. The theme of the 2004 conference was: “Ethics, Professionalism and the Nigerian Editor”.

According to Funke Egbemode, the NGE president, the choice of this year’s theme is a response to popular demand by members of the Guild on the need for the Guild to discuss the myriad of challenges confronting the journalism profession and proffer lasting solutions to them.

The prevailing economic downturn has had a negative impact on the media, leading to low revenue receipts, job losses with several media houses either extinct or on the brink of collapse.  There is also the issue of safety of journalists. In recent time, there have been cases of impunity against journalists who were either harassed or killed in the course of discharging their constitutional duty which is to uphold the responsibility and accountability of the government to the people.

All of this has necessitated the theme of this year’s ANEC which will be attended by no fewer than 300 Nigerian editors from the print, electronic and online platforms, media entrepreneurs, sundry public officers and administrators.

Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State said that the conference would afford the state the opportunity to showcase its investment potential as well as consolidate its partnership with the media for sustainable development of the state.

Wike noted that the state is hosting several national and international events as a demonstration of the fact that Rivers State is an investors’ destination, stressing that the state is peaceful and the people hospitable.

“Hosting this year’s conference will also make the editors witness first-hand the development projects and programmes of my administration which has improved the living standard of the people,” the governor said.

ANEC is the largest gathering of Nigerian editors. It is a watering hole of ideas that has shaped government policies and programmes over the years. The conference also attracts both local and foreign speakers as well as editors from organizations such as the West African Editors Forum (WAEF), the African Editors Forum (TAEF), the World Editors Forum (WEF), the World Association of Newspapers (WAN) and the Global Editors Network (GEN).

Helmeted hornbill: Saving the bird that’s more valuable than ivory

Michael Simire
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Helmeted hornbill: Saving the bird that’s more valuable than ivory

The helmeted hornbill (Rhinoplax vigil) has been classified as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List since 2015. The bird, which was once common on Sumatra, has virtually disappeared there, as the IUCN notes.

Helmeted Hornbill
The helmeted hornbill

Helmeted hornbills face a two-pronged threat: poachers and palm oil. Rampant hunting and plantations encroaching on its lowland rainforest habitat are behind the decline.

Poachers hunt the birds for their keratin “casque”, an enlargement of the beak. Unlike other hornbill species, the helmeted hornbill’s casque is solid, making it attractive for carvers and particularly valuable for poachers. There is also a market for the bird’s feathers.

China is the main destination market for the poached bird parts, where the “red ivory” fetches up to $6,150 per kilo. The bird’s casques have been carved into jewelry, ornaments and belt buckles for centuries. Demand has exploded over the past five years, however.

Currently, poachers are focusing on Indonesia: in the year 2013, an estimated 6,000 helmeted hornbills were killed in West Kalimantan alone. They also target juvenile birds, a practice that has an outsize impact on the population. As soon as the supply from Indonesia dwindles, it is expected that the poachers will move on to Malaysia’s forests.

While international trade in hornbill parts has been illegal since 1975, the ban has not helped the birds, it was gathered. Organised crime syndicates operate with impunity and profit handsomely from the trade, which is – in theory, at any rate – punishable by up to five years in prison.

Strict enforcement of the existing laws will be crucial to preventing the helmeted hornbill’s extinction in the very near future, according to the Rainforest Rescue, which has taken up a campaign to save the bird species by demanding that concerned persons sign a call-to-action petition to the governments of Indonesia, Malaysia and China.

The letter reads in part:

To: the governments of Indonesia, Malaysia and China

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Your countries bear great responsibility for the survival of the helmeted hornbill (Rhinoplax vigil). The bird has been classified as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List since 2015.

If you do not act, the species will become extinct in the very near future.

Poaching, which has increased dramatically over the past five years, is driving the helmeted hornbill’s alarming decline. The bird’s casque – an extension of its beak – is in great demand as “red ivory”, fetching up to $6,150 per kilo in China. A further factor is habitat loss due to plantations encroaching on its native lowland rainforests.

While international trade in helmeted hornbill parts has been banned since 1975 (CITES Annex I), trafficking is still rampant. Poachers and criminal traders operate with impunity.

To save this majestic bird from extinction, your countries must work together closely. We call on you to intensify your efforts against the poaching and trafficking of helmeted hornbills.

Yours faithfully,

Charcoal merchants, ‘vultures’ of Nigerian forests

Michael Simire
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Charcoal merchants, ‘vultures’ of Nigerian forests

As human population continues to inch towards infinity, the energy needs of households for domestic heating have more than doubled over the last few years. Fossil fuel derivatives and wood sourced mainly from the forests are options widely available to Nigerian households to service their energy budget.

Forest
Saving the forests from charcoal merchants

However, the current economic realities and occasional scarcity of fossil fuel derivatives, such as Kerosene and liquefied gas, have become enough disincentive to sway the bulk at the very end of the socio-economic strata towards a cheaper and readily available alternative from the forests. Domestic heating using electricity is a luxury available to a privileged few.

Consequently, wood derivatives have dominated the bioenergy markets in Nigeria. The tons of piled firewood and charcoal bags along major roads should suffice as proofs. However, charcoals seem to resonate as the favourite energy brand of households in the rural and urban areas, except for the extremely poor settlers who would rather prefer to gather firewood as against any fundamental investment in charcoal pots. Therefore, charcoal industry has continued to support local earnings in Nigeria despite glaring future consequences on the forestry sector.

A new twist to charcoal consumption, albeit a dangerous one for the environment and the people, is the volume of charcoals regularly exported to service the clean energy demands of foreign nations. This act is synonymous to taking coals to Newcastle as these countries are well-off in terms of the living standards and boost of more stable electricity supply to satisfy their energy demands. However, in a bid to cut down on electricity bills and operate a more climate friendly energy alternative, hard currencies are dangled before impulsive charcoal merchants to locally source for high quality charcoals for exportation. Worst still, market prices are determined by “him who owns the piper”.

This no doubt is a vivid pure case of modern slavery as there seems to be little or no difference between the present band of charcoal dealers and our progenitors who received mirrors and sugars to relinquish the right of ownership of their collective heritage to the colonial masters.

It has been argued that charcoal merchants, who are often than not the bread winners of their families, have the right to a means of subsistence. The argument may have some alluring strands to hold onto, things can however be done differently to attain more environmentally friendly, socially responsible and economically viable impacts. The current practice of charcoal production and exportation is unhealthy and a forerunner to climate change and biodiversity loss in Nigeria. This has led the federal government on several occasions to place restrictions on further exportation of charcoals. However, such bans are hardly operable as they buckle easily to barrage of complaints from sympathisers and juggernauts at the corridors of power.

Complaints are always that tons of charcoals awaiting shipment at the port would be wasted, and their means to livelihood stamped out. Yet, they have failed or refused to recognize the fact that a cow that is daily being milked without recourse to feeding will cease to exist. In other words, forests will sooner cease to support charcoal production if we turn a blind eye to afforestation efforts.

Tree-growing efforts on the part of users of forest resources is near non-existent and claims of planting efforts scantily mooted will pale into insignificance when juxtaposed with the volumes of charcoal ferried beyond the borders to some Asian and European countries.

Others pushed their justification a little further by referring to charcoal dealers as the “vulture” of the forest. The logic would be that charcoals are made from gleaned wood residues and not necessarily from timber-sized trees or logs from the forest. The truth however is that large scale production of charcoal is not possible without the use of an automation device. Often power chainsaws are used for massive despoliation of indigenous trees covering several hectares of land and cross-cutting usually done to re-size trees in readiness for carbonisation.

For the records, vultures are not predators and they do not hunt for their food. Vultures only eat carcasses of animals. Vultures help to clean up the environment therefore reducing incidences of disease outbreaks. The opposite of what vultures are to the environment are true of charcoal production activities within the forests. Should it not therefore be that charcoal merchants are rather “vampires” of Nigerian forests? Or perhaps these are mutant species of vultures who would choose to see the forests as carcasses.

At just about 7% forest cover in Nigeria, it will only take few years to finish what is left of the forest cover and plunge the rural economy into disarray as about 20 million people are directly or indirectly dependent on the forests for their livelihood. Only then will charcoal dealers realize that the industry in itself is not sustainable, without aggressive tree planting and support for the forestry sector. Only then will the roles of forests in agricultural productivity, honey production and climate regulation become more appreciated. Only then will you appreciate advocacy appeals for nature conservation.

Conclusively, it is glaring that the forestry sector is in dire need of rescue from all forms of parasitic and illegal extraction activities. The need to plug loopholes through which forest resources drain uncontrollably is urgent and monies generated as taxes from regulated forestry activities be ploughed back into the environment. Enacting bye-laws to protect indigenous fruit and fodder trees (FFTs) which are often bagged as charcoals will be a step in the right direction among other helpful actions.

Save the forests! Plant a tree today!!

By Stephen Aina (Nigeria Conservation Foundation, Lagos; stephen.aina@ncfnigeria.org)

With World Bank’s $300m, housing scheme plans to make every Nigerian a landlord

Michael Simire
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With World Bank’s $300m, housing scheme plans to make every Nigerian a landlord

Shifting from the tradition of borrowing with collateral to fund housing, My Own Home scheme of the Federal Government, with a loan of $300 million from the World Bank, plans to make every Nigerian a homeowner.

Housing
R-L: Phyllis Uzoma of NMRC, Akin Lawal of Nigeria Police Mortgage Bank, Adeniyi Akinlusi of MBAN, Badung Gyan and Jackson Imandi

The scheme, which is about home-ownership, was flagged off in Abuja last month.

The loan will be repaid in 40 years.

In partnership with the Nigeria Police Mortgage Bank and other eight microfinance banks, the scheme is enabled by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and supported by Nigeria Housing Finance Programme (NHFP), Nigeria Mortgage Refinance Company (NMRC) and Mortgage Bankers Association of Nigeria (MBAN).

During a press briefing on Saturday, August 19, 2017 at the Conference Hall of Tejuosho Market, Yaba, Mortgage Finance Consultant of NHFP under the CBN, Mrs.  Nike Fasanya-Osilaja, noted the seeming fear among Nigerians over mortgage financing. This she attributed to the culture of stigmatising borrowing.

However, she said the campaign “is to educate every Nigerian that they have a right to own a home.”

Pulling the press into partnership with the promoters of the scheme, she urged them to take the message to every nook and cranny of Nigeria.

Allaying fears of those who may think the scheme is another political gimmick, she said, “This is not another 419 scheme. Nigerians should know that it is okay to approach banks for enquiries, and even access mortgage loan.”

The NHFP, she said, is a catalytic product which will positively affect several aspects of the economy.

Stressing that the scheme is different from other housing schemes of the past, she said: “Industry will drive this product. This programme is designed to assist the market to assist you.

“Once it starts, banks will take over, as CBN (the bankers’ bank) won’t deal with individuals.”

She listed the four products in the programme viz refinance, mortgage guarantee insurance, microfinance and technical support.

President, MBAN, Adeniyi Akinlusi, said the project is a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement from the primary to secondary market.

He added that housing has a multiplier effect on economic growth by creating different kinds of jobs at every level of development. “The more money you put in the housing sector, the more jobs you create. And this trickles down to even curbing crimes, because deviants who are employed would see reason to become responsible citizens.”

Reiterating the need for the press to take the campaign to the grassroots, the chief executive of TrustBond Mortgage Finance Bank said “with this programme, we can make Nigeria a place of our dream.”

Restating the cliche that people should cut their coats according to their sizes, Ms Phyllis Uzoma of NMRC said “anybody who can pay house rent can equally own a home”, as one can start by planning for a prototype of where they are living as tenant.

She maintained that everybody should own a home, “provided you are engaged in a decent activity that gives you money.”

With this, she added, in no time, Nigeria will be ranked among developed economies.

Member, project administration team of NHFP, Badung Gyan, said responsible behaviour is important for the success of the programme.

He urged borrowers to behave responsibly in repayment of their loans, so that the loan can revolve and the programme sustained.

He disclosed that of the N300 million borrowed from World Bank, $10 million is for technical assistance.

According to Fasanya-Osilaja, there needs to be a paradigm shift in the industry. “We need to change from a demand to supply system to supply to demand, where people would go to banks first for enquiries before looking for property to buy. This is what happens in developed countries.”

By Innocent Anoruo

Lagos is world’s second least liveable city, says report

Michael Simire
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Lagos is world’s second least liveable city, says report

Nigeria’s commercial capital city, Lagos, has been ranked second on the World’s Least Liveable Cities.

Lagos
A view of the Lagos Marina, a popular business hub.

War-torn Damascus in Syria takes the bottom spot, just below Lagos, which has slipped to second-worst of the 140 cities ranked, according to the the annual report by the Economist’s Intelligence Unit (EIU), which also sees Lagos ranked ahead of Tripoli and Dhaka.

Melbourne has however topped a list of the World’s Most Liveable city for the seventh year running but terrorism and diplomatic tensions are eroding living conditions worldwide, the report finds.

The Australian city was ranked number one out of 140 cities, slightly ahead of the Austrian capital Vienna, with the Canadian trio of Vancouver, Toronto and Calgary completing the top five.

“This is a win for all Victorians, who contribute so much to making Melbourne the best place to live in the world,” said Victorian state Premier, Daniel Andrews.

The survey, released on Wednesday, August 16 2017, scores cities on five broad categories: stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education, and infrastructure.

The EIU found that medium-sized cities in wealthy countries fared best.

“These can foster a range of recreational activities without leading to high crime levels or overburdened infrastructure,” the report said.

Major hubs like New York, London, Paris and Tokyo were hives of activity but lost points due to high levels of crime and overcrowded public transport.

More broadly, global stability continued to weaken due to the increase in terror-related incidents world wide.

“Violent acts of terrorism have been reported in many countries, including Australia, Bangladesh, Belgium, France, Pakistan, Sweden, Turkey, the UK and the US,” the report found.

“While not a new phenomenon, the frequency and spread of terrorism have increased noticeably and become even more prominent.”

The United States had seen a decline in a number of its cities over the past few years related to growing unrest.

“This stems in part from unrest related to a number of deaths of black people at the hands of police officers,” the report found.

“In addition, the country has seen protests held in response to President Trump’s policies and executive orders.”

It said increased diplomatic tensions – from Russia and the Ukraine to North Korea’s nuclear threat and Iran’s relationship with its neighbours – was leading to declining stability scores around the world.

Conflict was the main factor for those cities finishing on the bottom of the survey, with Syria’s Damascus at number 140, behind Nigeria’s Lagos, under threat from Islamist groups like Boko Haram and Libyan capital Tripoli, caught up in Middle Eastern strife.

FRSC names GOCOP as partners for 7th Annual Lecture

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FRSC names GOCOP as partners for 7th Annual Lecture

The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has named the Guild of Corporate Online Publishers (GOCOP) as one of its partners for its forthcoming 7th Annual Lecture series scheduled to hold in Abuja.

Osinbajo
Vice President of Nigeria, Prof Yemi Osinbajo, will be the Special Guest of Honour

The GOCOP is an association of professional journalists who rose to the top of their profession in the print media before taking their practice online.

A statement earlier by Corps Public Education Officer of the FRSC, Bisi Kazeem, said the lecture series would hold on Thursday, August 24, 2017.

The event will take place at the Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa in Abuja.The lecture has “Achieving the goals of the UN Decade of Action for Road Safety in Africa” as its theme.

Also, Kazeem named Jean Todt, the President, Federation Internationale de l’Automobile, the United Nation’s Secretary General’s Special Envoy for Road Safety, as the Guest speaker.

The Acting President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo (SAN), is scheduled to be the Special Guest of Honour, while the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, Ojaja II, will serve as the Chairman of the occasion.

China to launch carbon emissions market

Michael Simire
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China to launch carbon emissions market

China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) plans to establish a national carbon-trading system and launch a carbon emissions market this November, according to a report by Scientific American.

Jiang Zhaoli
Jiang Zhaoli, deputy director of the Department of Climate Change

The NDRC said in its report a carbon emissions quota control system will be applied to manage the cap-and-trade program covering companies with an annual energy consumption of more than 10,000 tons of standard coal in the petrochemical, chemical, building materials, iron and steel, nonferrous metals, paper, electricity and aviation sectors.

In addition, a state and local two-level management system for the emissions market will be set up, the report stated.

“The carbon market will develop gradually as a continuously improving system,” Jiang Zhaoli, deputy director of the Department of Climate Change, was quoted in media reports. “Judging from the estimating quota allocation of the eight sectors, the emissions are expected to reach five billion tons, half of the country’s total emissions. It will make the market the biggest in the world.”

The Commission said a national carbon-trading market that will improve the system, activate trade and have strict regulation and transparency will be developed by 2020.

Since June 2013, China has piloted carbon emissions trading in seven provinces and cities, including Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Chongqing, Shenzhen, Hubei province and Guangdong province.

“With more than 2,000 companies involved in the pilot carbon-trading system, the total trading volume reached 160 million tons and the trading value rose to 3.7 billion yuan ($553 million) as of this May. The performance rate of companies in the pilot areas was nearly 100 percent,” Ma Aimin, deputy director of the National Centre for Climate Change Strategy and International Cooperation, was quoted by Jiemian.com.

In 2009, China promised at the Copenhagen climate change conference to cut its carbon emissions per unit of GDP by 40-45 percent by 2020 from 2005 levels. In June 2015, it set a target of peaking its carbon emissions by 2030.

“It is a common and urgent task for all countries to adopt strong and effective policies and actions for tackling climate change and speed up low-carbon transition,” Xie Ji, an inspector at the Department of Climate Change said, Jiemian.com reported.

Xie said that as a responsible developing country, China has actively participated in the global climate governance and promoted the establishment of a fair, cooperative and win-win global climate governance system.

According to the China Carbon Market Research Report released by United Nations Development Programme, if carbon trading tools are established, the scale of China’s carbon transactions will reach at least 100 to 120 billion yuan after 2020.

“Currently, the European Union has the world’s biggest carbon-trading system, but China’s emissions market being established is more than likely to replace the EU to become the world’s biggest one,” Vicky Pollard, environmental counselor in the EU delegation to China, told 21st Century Business Herald.

Courtesy: ChinaDaily.Com.Cn

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