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Condemnation, despair as Trump withdraws U.S. from Paris Agreement

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Condemnation, despair as Trump withdraws U.S. from Paris Agreement

U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday, May 1, 2017 finally announced his long-awaited decision for the country to withdraw from the Paris Agreement during a Rose Garden address.

Trump-coal
With coal miners gathered around him, Trump some months ago signed an Executive Order rolling back a temporary ban on mining coal and a stream protection rule imposed by the Obama administration

“In order to fulfill my solemn duty to protect its citizens,” he said, “the United States will withdraw from the Paris climate accord.”

The process could be a lengthy one, as both Trump and White House energy policy adviser Michael Catanzaro said the administration would follow the steps for withdrawal laid out in the deal itself.

“We will initiate the process, which, all told, takes four years in total. But we’re going to make very clear to the world that we’re not going to be abiding by what the previous administration agreed to,” they stated.

Expectedly, the somewhat unpopular announcement has attracted widespread reaction – albeit bordering on global condemnation from stateholders.

But they appear to be defiant, as civil society representatives and social movement leaders from Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and the United States vow to build people power to address the climate crisis.

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) said in a statement: “The Secretariat of the UNFCCC regrets the announcement by the President of the United States that his government will withdraw from the Paris Climate Change Agreement.

“The Secretariat also notes the announced intention to renegotiate the modalities for the US participation in the agreement. In this regard, it stands ready to engage in dialogue with the United States government regarding the implications of this announcement.

“The Paris Agreement remains a historic treaty signed by 194 and ratified by 147 counties. Therefore it cannot be renegotiated based on the request of a single Party.

“The Paris Agreement is aimed at reducing risk to economies and lives everywhere, while building the foundation for a more prosperous, secure and sustainable world. It enjoys profound credibility, as it was forged by all nations and is supported by a growing wave of business, investors, cities, states, regions and citizens. We are committed to continue working with all governments and partners in their efforts to fast forward climate action at global and national levels.”

Al Gore, former U.S. Vice-President, and Founder and Chairman, The Climate Reality Project, reacted: “Removing the United States from the Paris Agreement is a reckless and indefensible action. It undermines America’s standing in the world and threatens to damage humanity’s ability to solve the climate crisis in time.

“But disappointment is not despair.

“Make no mistake: if President Trump won’t lead, the American people will.

“Civic leaders, mayors, governors, CEOs, investors and the majority of the business community will take up this challenge. We are in the middle of a clean energy revolution that no single person or group can stop. President Trump’s decision is profoundly in conflict with what the majority of Americans want from our president; but no matter what he does, we will ensure that our inevitable transition to a clean energy economy continues.

“As proof, just look at how communities like Salt Lake City, Utah and Boulder, Colorado are committing to switch to 100 percent renewable electricity. Just last month, California set a new record for clean energy use in the state, and over the past several weeks and months, major corporations and businesses from around the world reaffirmed their commitment to clean energy, the Paris Agreement, and US leadership on climate. The momentum of clean energy and climate action only continues to build, and ignoring that reality is shortsighted and wrong.

“Now it’s up to us to pick up where the White House is leaving off. It’s up to us to keep this progress going full steam ahead. If you’re in the US, commit to pushing your local council or mayor to embrace renewable electricity in your community. If you’re outside the US, commit to pressuring your leaders to fulfill your country’s Paris Agreement pledge and keep the process moving.

“My friends, it’s time to fight like our world depends on it. Because it does. And because together we will win.”

German Federal Environment Minister, Barbara Hendricks, submitted: “I regret the President’s decision. The damage this causes to multilateral cooperation is even more severe than the damage done to international climate action. The unique thing about Paris is that it showcases the world’s determination to make a common effort to tackle one of the most serious global problems of our times. The Trump administration has now announced to pull out of this joint project. By leaving, the US administration is throwing away a precious opportunity for forward-looking development in the United States. This decision harms the United States itself most of all.

“Climate action will continue and will not be stopped by this decision. Large parts of the business sector in the US are already gearing themselves up for a greenhouse gas-neutral future. They recognise the immense economic opportunities which that future offers. They will not be moved away from their path by their President’s decision.

“As far as the implementation of the Paris Agreement is concerned, I remain optimistic, because on top of all this, the rest of the world backs the agreement. Over the past few weeks we have had many encouraging signals from Europe, China, Russia, India, Canada and many other countries. The rest of the world is closing ranks, the commitment to climate action has become even stronger. Trump has opted for the past, the rest of the world has chosen the future.

“Internationally speaking, however, the US is leaving us with a leadership vacuum. Over the years, the US has been a valuable ally on global climate action. Without the United States, the historic breakthrough in Paris would not have been possible. But the Paris Agreement will endure, even without the US. Others will lead the way and we Europeans will certainly be among them.”

Nnimmo Bassey, Chair of the Board of Directors, Global Greengrants Fund and Terry Odendahl, President and CEO: “We are outraged by Donald Trump’s shameful and immoral decision to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement. This assault on the rights of people and nature to exist is steered by greed and a total disregard for the millions of families whose very lives are at stake.

“In 2015, we joined civil society and world negotiators in Paris to advocate for swift action on climate change. We never claimed that the resulting agreement was perfect, but an unlivable planet was never an option.

“Whether Mr. Trump agrees with the science of climate change or not, the United States is located on Planet Earth and no nation is exempt from the impacts of global warming.

We stand in solidarity with partners around the world, and we call for resistance against unjust and polluting industries before more harm is done. We reaffirm our commitment to communities that are standing up to corporate greed while battling the rising impacts of global warming. They are where real progress will happen, with or without the Paris climate deal.

Mithika Mwenda, Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA): “With the plan by Trump to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Agreement, people power and international solidarity are the only hope we have of averting an unimaginable climate crisis which will fan the flames of every existing inequality and injustice. It will take all of us around the world, organising together, to hold the historic emitters like the U.S. under the watch of Donald Trump to account and ensure our governments also do their fair share of climate action in the next four years to keep global warming below 1.5 degrees. Trump’s decision doesn’t change that.”

Lidy Nacpil, Asian Peoples Movement on Debt and Development: “The U.S. pull-out from the Paris Agreement should be strongly condemned and denounced by all peoples of the world. Not because the Paris Agreement is perfect, certainly not because the Paris Agreement will save the world from climate catastrophe.  But because a U.S. pull-out reveals utter disregard for the fate of humanity in favor of continued hegemony of U.S. elites and big corporate interests. Not to mention a tyrannical refusal to accept scientific findings.”

Ben Schreiber, Friends of the Earth USA: “Climate change is not waiting for U.S. action and neither can the rest of the world. Trump has turned the U.S. into a rogue climate state and the world should use economic and diplomatic pressure to compel the U.S. to do its fair share. The majority of Americans do not support Trump and his fossil fuel agenda that puts corporate profits above people. The struggle to create real, deep change continues in the U.S. The resistance to Trump is strong and it is growing.”

Tadzio Mueller, Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung: “Our justified outrage at Trump should not blind us to the destructive policies that he pursued before he got out of Paris, and that are still being pursued by many countries that remain parties to the Paris Agreement. Germany, for example, long feted as a champion of international climate politics, is not world leader in renewable energies, but in fact world leader in digging up and burning lignite, the dirtiest of all the fossil fuels. The struggle for climate justice remains one that must be fought at all levels: from the global, all the way to the local. Trump pulling out of Paris only reinforces the key message: if we want to protect the climate, we can’t wait for our governments to do so. We’ve got to do it ourselves.”

Sreedhar Ramamurthi, Environics India: “Thanks to historic U.S. pollution, we are already suffering the consequences of a rapidly warming world with droughts, fires, and floods wreaking havoc with livelihoods and lives, even displacing whole communities. Trump wants to add to that historic pollution and condemn present and future generations in the global south to further suffering and death. We cannot allow this, there must be forceful political, legal, and economic consequences levied against the U.S. Trump must realise that in the case of climate, nature has the trump card and not him and his cronies!”

Rachel Smolker, BiofuelWatch USA: “I am ashamed of my country’s persistent role in undermining efforts to create a strong and binding agreement, now culminating in Trump’s withdrawal from the Paris Agreement. Here in the U.S. climate justice activists are scrambling hard to find a path forward from within.  We hope our allies will let their voices be heard at U.S. embassies – to both isolate Donald Trump and his ilk – and apply pressure on the U.S. to step up and take responsibility for real and equitable solutions to the escalating climate catastrophe.”

Antonio Zambrano Allende, Movimiento Ciudadano frente al Cambio Climático (MOCICC): “As climate justice movements we stand in solidarity with frontline communities and environmental defenders in the U.S. who have been struggling to ensure the U.S. government takes action on climate change since long before the Paris Agreement. In that spirit of solidarity we call on people everywhere to show up wherever Mr. Trump goes to tell him that his hatred and fear are not welcome in our countries, while we continue to force our own governments to keep fossil fuels in the ground and ensure a just transition for workers.”

Angela Adrar, Climate Justice Alliance USA: “The Climate Justice Alliance has historically struggled to assure that Indigenous people, women, human rights and a Just Transition are at the forefront of international climate agreements. The shortcomings of the Paris Accord – and Trump’s erroneous and embarrassing decision to withdraw the U.S. from the agreement – proves more than ever that communities on the frontlines of the climate crisis are the ones to lead us toward a renewable and regenerative future. We will continue to organize for climate justice and stand in solidarity with our international allies who are fighting for survival, resisting extraction, and creating solutions from the ground up.”

Professor Hans Joachim Schellnhuber, Director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, member of the Advisory Council on Global Change for the German government, and chair of the High Level Panel on Decarbonisation Pathways for the European Commission: “It will not substantially hamper global climate progress if the USA really quit the Paris Agreement, but it will hurt the American economy and society alike. China and Europe have become world leaders on the path towards green development already and will strengthen their position if the US slips back at the national level.  Innovative states such as California, the world’s sixth largest economy, will keep going for climate action, however. The Washington people around Trump hide in the trenches of the past instead of building the future. They fail to recognize that the climate wars are over, while the race for sustainable prosperity is on.”

Paul Shrivastava, Chief Sustainability Officer, Penn State University, and Director, Sustainability Institute, USA, former Executive Director of Future Earth: “As one of the largest producers of greenhouse gases in the world, the U.S. has moral and strategic responsibility to lead the world towards a low-carbon global economy by vigorously implementing the Paris Agreement. Such leadership offers the added advantage of making the U.S. economy and companies more energy and carbon efficient, and consequently more competitive.”

Rob Jackson, Stanford University, USA, Chair of the Scientific Steering Committee of the Global Carbon Project: “Scrapping the Paris agreement is myopic and hurts more than the environment. It undercuts U.S. leadership and will make our products harder to sell in the global market. A low-carbon world is creating jobs, improving air and water quality and saving lives.”

Josh Tewksbury, Director of the Colorado Global Hub of Future Earth, University of Colorado Boulder and Colorado State University, USA: “In the Paris Agreement, the United States has committed to a series of actions that will stimulate the fastest growing sectors of our economy, reduce the need for burdensome regulation and give us a leadership role in defining the future. The United States has always been a nation that leads by example. We should continue on this path and will be a stronger nation because of it.”

Wendy Broadgate, Director of the Sweden Global Hub of Future Earth: “Climate change affects everyone, including the American people. The facts are clear: Trump’s withdrawal from the Paris agreement attempts to threaten global cooperation but will not stop the transition already underway. It will instead isolate the U.S. from the enormous growth in business opportunities that will come from decarbonizing our economies.”

Susanne Moser, Director of Susanne Moser Research & Consulting, Social Science Research Fellow at Stanford University’s Woods Institute for the Environment, USA: “Trump supporters voted for an America that is a great place to live, to raise a family, to find meaningful work and see one’s grandchildren have a better future. They did not vote to have floods wash away their dreams, droughts wither their livelihoods, wildfires to make their homes go up in smoke, rising seas inundate their communities and dirty air give their children asthma. Their legitimate needs and hopeful desires are being misused, not to make America great again, but to make America – and everyone else – suffer greatly.”

Robert Richmond, University of Hawaii at Manoa, USA: “Anything short of full engagement with and support for the Paris Agreement and the UNFCCC by the United States would be ultimately damaging to our economy and the quality of life of all who inhabit the earth. The impacts of failed U.S. leadership on climate change would range from declines in agriculture and food security to losses in coastal protection and fisheries, and would place a terrible burden on our children and future generations who would pay a very high price for such a short-sighted response to a problem for which the science is clear. It’s time many of our elected officials replaced a false ideology with a strong dose of reality.”

Robert Kopp, Rutgers University, USA: “Every ton of carbon dioxide we emit moves the global thermostat up a notch, posing increasing risks to human health and welfare. In order to stabilize the climate, we must meet the Paris Agreement’s goal of bringing net greenhouse gas emissions to zero in the second half of this century. Paris’ framework of bottom-up national commitments, ratcheting up over time, is an important path toward this goal, and it is foolish for the U.S. to cede its leadership role in this framework to China and Europe.”

Frank Biermann, Utrecht University, the Netherlands, Chair of the Earth System Governance Project, a global research project of Future Earth: “The bottom line of global warming is clear: No country is an island. Walls don’t help. Ignorance is no solution. If the United States withdraws from global climate collaboration, all other nations need to collectively protect our common future.”

Karen O’Brien, University of Oslo, Norway: “The potential U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Agreement is a threat to human security. Yes, national security is a concern for some, but human security is a concern for all. Global sustainability is critical to both national and human security – and so are continued interactions between science and policy through the Paris Agreement.”

Melissa Leach, Director of the Institute of Development Studies at the University of Sussex, UK: “America has long been a fount of great scientific ideas, advances and innovations, contributing to progress in its own economy and in the world. It has led in tackling some of the major challenges of our day. But these values and this position on the world stage are deeply threatened by new waves of policy to deny and hide scientific evidence, such as around climate change, and to shirk global leadership on the climate change challenge. If President Trump turns America from a welcoming to a hostile place for science and life and planet saving policy, everyone will lose.”

Chidi Osuagwu, Federal University of Technology Owerri, Nigeria: “Nations can do the best they can to secure their borders and uplift their economies. Climate change and environmental disasters recognize neither borders, nor respect mighty economies.”

Asher Minns, head of communication for Future Earth Europe, University of East Anglia, UK: “The U.S. will be missed from the rest of the world’s battle against climate change. Withdrawing from the world seems to me un-American and disadvantages its own people, current and future jobs and health, especially if withdrawing goes hand-in-glove with a renewed U.S. quest for coal.”

Why gender should be mainstreamed in disaster management, by NEMA

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Why gender should be mainstreamed in disaster management, by NEMA

A call has been made by the Director General, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Engr Mustapha Maihaji, for gender perspective to be adopted in disaster management policies in Nigeria.

NEMA Jos
Participants at the NEMA organised and UNDP supported Expert Review Workshop in a group photograph at the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru-Jos, Plateau State

Making this call on Thursday, June 1, 2017 in his address at the commencement of the two-day NEMA organised and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) supported Expert Review Workshop at the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru-Jos, Plateau State, Maihaji, who spoke through the NEMA Zonal Coordinator North Central, Mallam Abdusalam Mohammed, noted that doing so would result in a smarter outcome of disaster management in the country.

“Our interventions shall strike the right balance between men and women by providing them with the same opportunities to ensure equality of outcome and will undoubtedly contribute to the realisation of social and economic empowerment for all, especially those affected by disaster,” he said.

He stressed that their interventions take the strategic needs of both men and women in view of the fact that gender-equality agenda is not just about improving the situation of women; rather, it is about redressing inequalities between men and women.

Earlier, Director General, Plateau State Peace Building Bureau, Dr Joseph Laiman, who was represented by Mrs Lantana Abdullahi, hailed NEMA’s role in spearheading the policy on gender mainstreaming in disaster management, adding that when it comes to issues of gender, the Bureau is particular in showing interest.

To this end, he said they support NEMA’s review of disaster management policy to include gender mainstreaming and will do same for its re-validation.

“We are interested in this policy and hope that it will help us in Plateau to manage disaster properly,” he added.

In an interview with EnviroNews, immediate past Secretary to the State Government Plateau State and Lecturer, Department of Political Science, University of Jos, Prof. Shedrack Best, enthused that the workshop is an ideal attempt to get an instrument in place that will assist NEMA in mainstreaming gender in service delivery.

Prof. Best, who maintained that, globally, there are efforts to make sure that gender mainstreaming is part of any area of development, stated that the effort would help NEMA key into a situation of genderising its operations and building a gender component into its system so as to strengthen the way it works.

“With the commitment exhibited on the part of NEMA, Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), the media and other advocacy groups should keep a tab on this policy to see that it is not kept in the cupboard,” he stressed.

The occasion featured a technical session with two presentations: “An Overview of NEMA’s Efforts in Mainstreaming Gender in Disaster in Risk Management” presented by NEMA’s Mrs Asmau Leo and “Overview of the Draft Gender in Disaster Management Policy” presented by a consultant, Prof. Funmilayo Para-Mallam, respectively.

By Damian Daga, Kuru-Jos

Scientists unearth new, revolutionary ‘superfuel’

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Scientists unearth new, revolutionary ‘superfuel’

A discovery made 13,000 feet up in the Andes Mountains may forever alter the global energy industry, scientists have said.

OBL
The OBL

The mysterious crystal-like materials, which locals call the “Oro Blanco” (translated to mean White Gold), is said to be is 1,693 times more powerful than gasoline (or petrol) that runs the car.

MIT researchers, Forbes, and The Daily Mail call it energy’s “Holy Grail”; they believe unlocking the crystal fuel’s potential is akin to discovering “The Holy Grail.”

Goldman Sachs, on the other hand, refers to the superfuel as “The new gasoline.” The organisation predicts it will eventually “replace gasoline as the primary source of transportation fuel.”

Oro Blanco, which is commonly referred to as “OBL”, is said to have the potential to burn considerably lesser compared to petrol. Infact, scientists say that, with a full tank, a motorist can drive some 42,325 miles before having to stop at that same gas station again.

“That’s like driving from New York City to Los Angeles and back seven times on a single gallon,” says Mike Ward, Publisher, Money Morning.

He adds: “It can light and heat your home, run factories, propel space ships, and it can even power the entire U.S. electrical grid.”

Already, a campaign by financial managers has begun, seeking investors to buy into the much vaunted product with a promise of high return on investment.

“To truly reap the benefits and rewards of investing in OBL, you must act quickly to stake your claim before the mainstream media blows this story open and ordinary investors become privy to this opportunity.

“Historically, those who invested early in new energy sources made fortunes that allowed them total financial freedom,” urges Ward.

He adds: “We are talking about staggering generational wealth, the kind that could make your family mega-rich today – and keep it that way 100 years from now.”

Polish city, Katowice, to host COP24 in 2018

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Polish city, Katowice, to host COP24 in 2018

The city of Katowice was on Thursday, June 1, 2017 announced by the Government of Poland as the venue for the 2018 24th Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention of Climate Change (UNFCCC), or “COP24”.

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Polish Environment Minister, Prof. Jan Szysko,with Patricia Espinosa, the Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC, announces the venue of COP14, which holds in Poland for the third time in 10 years

Poland was chosen as the upcoming President by the Eastern European Group, whose turn it is to host the conference following Asia-Pacific in 2017.

Several potential locations were considered by the Polish authorities as the host city for the event – which will be the fourth time that Poland has presided over a UN climate change conference.

Two previous Conferences of the Parties (COPs) were held in Poland – COP14 in Poznań, in 2008, and COP19 in Warsaw, in 2013. Poland also presided over COP5 in Bonn in 1999.

Polish Environment Minister Prof. Jan Szysko on Thursday chose the occasion of a visit to Poland by Patricia Espinosa, the Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC, to announce that the southwestern city of Katowice has been given the green light.

Ms. Espinosa said: “I would to like to thank the Government of Poland for agreeing to host COP24 as part of the Eastern European Group and look forward to working with Minister Jan Szysko and his team to make the conference a success on all fronts.”

“2018 will be another important year for international climate diplomacy as nations move forward to implement the Paris Climate Change Agreement – indeed 2018 is when governments are expected to reach some key milestones,” she said.

“These range from finalising the guidelines for fully operationalising the agreement to taking stock of how countries are doing collectively in terms of being on track to realise Paris’s aims and ambitions over the coming years and decades,” added Ms. Espinosa.

Ms. Espinosa was on Thursday shown a research centre in Toruń where the Government of Poland is scientifically monitoring how forests absorb carbon. Forest protection is a key part of efforts to address climate change.

“Better managing, conserving and expanding of forests is going to play a crucial role in meeting the objectives of the Paris Agreement. Indeed, we will need to see transitions across all sectors and all economies if the full potential of the Agreement is to be realised over the 21st century,” she added.

Ms. Espinosa said she looked forward to joining with the people of Poland to realise a successful conference that pushes forward the implementation of the Paris Agreement.

Slovakia ratifies Minamata Convention

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Slovakia ratifies Minamata Convention

The Government of Slovakia on Wednesday, May 31, 2017 deposited its instrument of ratification, thereby becoming the 54th future Party to the Minamata Convention.

Andrej Kiska
Andrej Kiska, President of Slovakia

This is coming about a week after the twin island nation of St Kitts and Nevis on Wednesday, May 24, 2017 and making it the 53rd Party to the global treaty on Mercury.

The Minamata Convention has already entered into force, thanks to the landmark rash of ratifications on Thursday, May 18, 2017 that triggered the Convention on Mercury into force, having garnered the required 50 ratifications.

On that day, the EU and seven of its member States – Bulgaria, Denmark, Hungary, Malta, the Netherlands, Romania and Sweden – deposited their instruments of ratification at the UN Headquarters in New York, bringing to 51 that day the number of future Parties.

As a result, on August 16 2017, the Convention, which aims at protecting human health and the environment from anthropogenic emissions and releases of mercury and mercury compounds, will become legally binding for all its Parties.

The 1st Conference of the Parties to the Minamata Convention (COP1) will gather governments, intergovernmental and non-governmental organisations from around the world in Geneva from September 24 to 29, 2017.

The Minamata Convention is said to be the first new global Convention on environment and health adopted for close to a decade. It addresses the entire life cycle of mercury, considered by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as one of the top 10 chemicals of major health concern, which threatens the environment and health of millions.

Kenya community refugee resettlement plan handed over to authorities

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Kenya community refugee resettlement plan handed over to authorities

The United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) on Wednesday, May 31, 2017 invited ministers, Chief officers, directors and expert officers to discuss the content of the draft plan for Kalobeyei Refugee Resettlement in Kenya, including potential issues and development projects leading up to implementing the settlement development.

Kalobeyei Refugee Settlement
Turkana County Chief Planner presenting the draft Advisory Local Physical Development Plan for the Kalobeyei Refugee Settlement in Kenya

Mr. Mark Ewoi Ewesit, Chief Officer from The Ministry of Lands, Shelter and Urban Development, and Mr. Yo Ito, representative from the Government of Japan, opened the workshop, highlighting the collaborative efforts between the UN-Habitat, the County Government and refugee and host communities and the importance of urban strategies requesting specific regulations to allow for a comprehensive, integrated and sustainable settlement development.

In 2016, supported by the Government of Japan, UN-Habitat had joined in the implementation of Kalobeyei Integrated Socio-Economic Development Programme (KISEDP), the Turkana-based initiative chaired by UNHCR, which seeks to facilitate collaboration and coordination between the Kenyan Government, UN agencies, development actors, private sector and civil society to build sustainable services and economic opportunities in Kalobeyei Refugee Settlement.

Given the circumstances of continuous influx of refugees, Turkana County sought alternative approach to hosting refugees that can leverage the opportunities related to refugee settlements ability to stimulate sustainable growth. UN-Habitat in partnership with UNHCR, Turkana County Government and other partners prepared an integrated spatial plan for the Kalobeyei Settlement, aimed at demonstrating sustainable approaches to human settlement development.

The Spatial Plan, which has been formulated through a participatory process over a period of one year, is to be submitted to the County Government of Turkana, both as part of the collaboration process and also as part of the requisite plan approval process.

The Spatial Plan is setting the setting a spatial framework for coordinating programmes and projects for the other components/sub-components, towards the coordinated implementation under development and humanitarian interventions. The spatial plan has been developed based on a comprehensive socio-economic and mapping analysis conducted by UN-Habitat, as well as on a deeply participatory process involving refugee and host communities, local experts, international humanitarian and development organisations based on the ground and nevertheless continuous support and contribution from expert officers in different ministers in Turkana and the county legislature.

The workshop was structured in order to offer the ministries a clear presentation of the Spatial Plan guidelines and to ensure ownership of the County towards the Kalobeyei Settlement implementation. As Turkana natives are traditionally pastoralists, one of the main concerns was also the integration of locals into the new settlement, and to enhance their livelihoods in the growing economy.  Further factors for consideration include greater emphasis on water provision, and provision of adequate technologies in terms of infrastructure and sanitation. The discussion approached also the relation between Kalobeyei Settlement and the Lodwar-Lokichogio Highway, which as part of a regional potential economic development scheme for future investment projects.

In terms of financial aspects, discussions on possible development directions were conducted with an emphasis on developing cost estimate that will be used as the entry point for promoting a financially and economic sustainable settlement. Potential partnership policies between the government and private sectors can also seek to enhance and capture development and construction costs, providing return of investments for both parties.

A session on the Kenyan legislative framework for community land and on the current land status of the settlement was also conducted. It focused on the current tenure of the settlement and on the possible scenarios to both protect the interests of the host community and ensure the long term sustainability of the settlement.

With acknowledgements to UN-Habitat expertise in urban planning and design, the Turkana County Government has expressed their confidence that once approved; the Spatial Plan can be implemented in lines with the County Development Plans, calling for UN-Habitat to support further social cohesion between refugee and host communities in Kalobeyei and neighboring settlements.

Honorary Members and staff of the Planning Committee of the County Assembly have previously conducted a validation of the draft Advisory Local Physical Development Plan for the Kalobeyei Refugee Settlement, promoting a positive overall feedback for the settlement development guidelines drafted by UN-Habitat. Experts from the UN-Habitat, key officers from the County Government are working towards achieving sustainable solutions for the settlement, and this workshop has set the basis for feasible implementation governed by the local authority.

Turbines at Tanzania power plant for upgrade

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Turbines at Tanzania power plant for upgrade

GE’s Power Services business (NYSE: GE) and Songas have signed a multiyear service agreement (MYA) to upgrade equipment at Songas’ Ubungo Power Plant in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

GE-Songas
The Songas’ Ubungo Power Plant in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

The MYA encompasses GE’s Fleet360* platform of total plant solutions, helping Songas ensure the long-term, reliable operation of its power plant. The upgrades will help Songas increase the efficiency and the plant’s capacity at the Ubungo plant by approximately 10 megawatts (MW). Today the power plant provides nearly 25 percent of the power in Tanzania.

“Songas owns six gas turbines, including 4 GE LM6000 gas turbines which it has been operating at Ubungo Power Plant since 2004,” said Nigel Whittaker, Managing Director, Songas Ltd. “Songas and GE have been working together for several years to ensure high performances of these turbines. Songas is very pleased about this new initiative with GE to help increase the efficiency and reliability of the plant throughout the duration of its agreement.”

Under the terms of the deal, GE will upgrade three of the four LM6000 gas turbines in the fleet from the LM6000PA to the LM 6000PC, expected to increase the output of the units from 38 megawatts (MW) to 43 MW each – and reaching output levels of up to 46 MW with GE’s optional SPRINT technology. The eight-year MYA, which also includes maintenance and repairs of the gas turbines, will help Songas to increase the efficiency of the Ubungo plant to around 41 percent – approximately a three percent improvement.

“As the Government of Tanzania continues to pursue the expansion of generation capacity and extend the capability of its power grid, upgrading existing power plants to improve operation and efficiency is a must,” said Elisee Sezan, general manager, GE Power Services for sub-Saharan Africa. “With GE’s tailored, Fleet360 solutions, we are able to help Songas take advantage of the country’s commercially available natural gas reserves to meet its increasing demand for available and reliable electricity. With this deal, we will help to better position the Ubungo plant to provide reliable, efficient power for the foreseeable future”.

According to a World Bank’s report, in Tanzania, less than 45 percent of the nearly 50-million-people are connected to the grid. The Government of Tanzania’s sector reform plan aims to expand power generation capacity by up to 10,000 MW by 2025, helping to meet increasing energy demands driven by an economy that is expected to continue to grow at a rate of seven percent annually in 2017 and 2018.

Aeroderivative gas turbines provide the ability to frequently and rapidly ramp up to meet load and demand fluctuations – a concern for power grids that rely heavily on renewable generation. They also offer the reliability and flexibility needed to bring power to people around the globe that otherwise may not be able to access it.

GE’s LM6000 aeroderivative technology provides great flexibility with up to 41% simple cycle efficiency (56% combined cycle), fast-start (as little as five minutes from cold iron), fast ramping, and ability to cost effectively cycle multiple times per day. The LM6000 family has more operating hours than any other aeroderivative gas turbine greater than 40 MW.

“This project, the latest in our 13-year history with Songas, demonstrates our commitment to working with customers to bring power to more people and to help improve the efficiency and reliability of electricity throughout Africa,” Sezan continued.

Recently, GE announced a landmark services deal in Algeria to help strengthen the power sector and advance the digital industrial transformation in Africa. This month, the company also announced an order from AE Energia to help provide fast, digital power in Angola, and it is supplying the power generation equipment for the Bridge Power plant project in Ghana. In addition, GE will set up an M&D (Monitoring and Diagnostic) centre in Ivory Coast that will provide the digital data and analytics service to improve the performance of GE equipment in the country.

Concern as climate change, plastics choke the ocean

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Concern as climate change, plastics choke the ocean

Ahead of the United Nations Ocean Conference to support the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 14 (Life below water), the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has called for urgent action on climate change and marine plastic pollution to conserve the ocean and help ensure global food security, coastal protection and sustainable livelihoods.

ocean-surf
Oceans are fundamental to sustaining life on Earth

The ocean is said to be under increasing onslaught from climate change. So far, it has absorbed 30 % of the anthropogenic emissions of CO2 and around 93 % of the added heat arising from human-driven changes to the atmosphere, say scientists. According to a 2016 IUCN report, marine species and ecosystems are already experiencing potentially irreversible damage, with changes in species growth, reproduction and distributions affecting their abundance and diversity.

Compounding these threats, the ocean is being increasingly choked by plastic pollution. A recent IUCN report revealed that tiny plastic particles from synthetic clothes and tyres are a bigger source of marine plastic pollution than plastic waste. Plastics suffocate or entangle marine mammals and fishes, causing severe injuries and deaths.

“A healthy ocean lies at the very heart of our ability to fight climate change, develop sustainably and simply – survive,” says Inger Andersen, IUCN Director General. “And yet, we continue to take it for granted, pushing its destruction to the point of no return.

A rapid implementation of the Paris climate agreement and urgent action to reduce marine plastic pollution are needed if we want to save our seas, which are choking to death on our watch. This conference provides a much needed opportunity for us to turn the tide for the ocean, and shows that the world is waking up to the immense gravity and urgency of this challenge.”

Damage to marine environments has serious negative impacts on people, resulting in reduced fish stocks, loss of income through fisheries and tourism, outbreaks of diseases, more extreme weather events and the loss of coastal protection.

IUCN urges the international community to increase its targets on ocean protection from the current 10% to at least 30%. It calls on governments, civil society and business to protect and restore marine and coastal ecosystems as part of their efforts to mitigate and adapt to climate change. This will also help achieve other Sustainable Development Goals, including food security, and poverty reduction.

“We cannot aspire to effectively implement the 2030 sustainable development agenda without protecting our seas,” says Carl Gustaf Lundin, Director of IUCN’s Global Marine and Polar Programme. “Healthy coastal and marine ecosystems offer nature-based solutions to addressing some of the biggest challenges humanity faces today, such as climate change. Mangroves, salt marshes and seagrasses, for example, act as natural carbon sinks and protect shorelines from flooding and erosion.”

According to IUCN, enhanced protection of areas beyond national jurisdiction is also urgently needed. Current fragmented legal frameworks leave marine ecosystems and species in those areas vulnerable to threats such as overfishing, and hinder the establishment of protected areas.

Negotiations are underway to address these legal gaps, and a meeting to develop a draft agreement under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) is scheduled to take place in July this year. IUCN calls for a rapid finalisation and adoption of an international legally-binding agreement under UNCLOS, for the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction.

The UN conference to support the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 14 is taking place from June 5 to 9, 2017 in New York.

 

Trump expected to pull U.S. from Paris Agreement

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Trump expected to pull U.S. from Paris Agreement

President Donald Trump is expected to withdraw the United States from the Paris climate agreement, three officials with knowledge of the decision said, making good on a campaign pledge but severely weakening the landmark 2015 climate change accord that committed nearly every nation to take action to curb the warming of the planet.

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Donald Trump, US president

A senior White House official cautioned that the specific language of the president’s expected announcement was still in flux as at morning of Wednesday, May 31, 2017. The official said the withdrawal might be accompanied by legal caveats that will shape the impact of Mr. Trump’s decision.

And Mr. Trump has proved himself willing to shift direction up until the moment of a public announcement. He was set to meet Wednesday afternoon with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, who has advocated that the United States remain a part of the Paris accords and could continue to lobby the president to change his mind.

Even as reports surfaced about his decision, Mr. Trump posted on Twitter that he would make his intentions known soon.

Still, faced with advisers who pressed hard on both sides of the Paris question, Mr. Trump appears to have decided that a continued United States presence in the accord would harm the economy; hinder job creation in regions like Appalachia and the West, where his most ardent supporters live; and undermine his “America First” message.

Advisers pressing him to remain in the accord could still make their case to the boss. In the past, such appeals have worked. In April, Mr. Trump was set to announce a withdrawal from the Nafta free trade agreement, but at the last minute changed his mind after intense discussions with advisers and calls from the leaders of Canada and Mexico. Last week, a senior administration official said Mr. Trump would use a speech in Brussels to make an explicit endorsement of NATO’s Article 5 mutual defense provision, which states that an attack on one NATO member is an attack on all. He didn’t.

The exit of the United States, the world’s largest economy and second-largest greenhouse gas polluter would not dissolve the 195-nation pact, which was legally ratified last year, but it could set off a cascade of events that would have profound effects on the planet. Other countries that reluctantly joined the agreement could now withdraw or soften their commitments to cutting planet-warming pollution.

“The actions of the United States are bound to have a ripple effect in other emerging economies that are just getting serious about climate change, such as India, the Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia,” said Michael Oppenheimer, a professor of geosciences and international affairs at Princeton, and a member of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, a United Nations group that produces scientific reports designed to inform global policy makers.

Once the fallout settles, he added, “it is now far more likely that we will breach the danger limit of 3.6 degrees.” That is the average atmospheric temperature increase above which a future of extreme conditions is considered irrevocable.

The aim of the Paris agreement was to lower planet-warming emissions enough to avoid that threshold.

“We will see more extreme heat, damaging storms, coastal flooding and risks to food security,” Professor Oppenheimer said. “And that’s not the kind of world we want to live in.”

Foreign policy experts said the move could damage the United States’ credibility and weaken Mr. Trump’s efforts to negotiate issues far beyond climate change, like negotiating trade deals and combating terrorism.

“From a foreign policy perspective, it’s a colossal mistake — an abdication of American leadership” said R. Nicholas Burns, a retired career diplomat and the under secretary of state during the presidency of George W. Bush.

“The success of our foreign policy – in trade, military, any other kind of negotiation – depends on our credibility. I can’t think of anything more destructive to our credibility than this,” he added.

But Mr. Trump’s supporters, particularly coal state Republicans, cheered the move, celebrating it as a fulfillment of a signature campaign promise. Speaking to a crowd of oil rig workers last May, Mr. Trump vowed to “cancel” the agreement, and Stephen K. Bannon, Mr. Trump’s chief strategist, has pushed the president to withdraw from the accord as part of an economic nationalism that has so far included pulling out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a multilateral trade pact, and vowing to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement.

Coal miners and coal company executives in states such as Kentucky and West Virginia have pushed for Mr. Trump to reverse all of President Barack Obama’s climate change policies, many of which are aimed at reducing the use of coal, which is seen as the largest contributor to climate change.

In a May 23 letter to Mr. Trump from Attorney General Patrick Morrisey of West Virginia and nine other state attorneys general, Mr. Morrisey wrote, “Withdrawing from the Paris agreement is an important and necessary step toward reversing the harmful energy policies and unlawful overreach of the Obama era.” He added, “The Paris Agreement is a symbol of the Obama administration’s ‘Washington knows best’ approach to governing.”

Although the administration has been debating for months its position on the Paris agreement, the sentiment for leaving the accord ultimately prevailed over the views of Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson and Ivanka Trump, the president’s daughter and close adviser, who had urged the president to keep a seat at the climate negotiating table.

Other countries have vowed to continue to carry out the terms of the Paris agreement, even without the United States.

President Xi Jinping of China, the world’s largest greenhouse gas polluter, has promised that his country would move ahead with steps to curb climate change, regardless of what happens in the United States.

During a telephone call in early May with President Emmanuel Macron of France, according to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Mr. Xi told the newly elected French leader that China and France “should protect the achievements of global governance, including the Paris agreement.”

But the accord’s architects say the absence of the United States will inevitably weaken its chances of being enforced. For example, the United States has played a central role in pushing provisions that require robust and transparent oversight of how emissions are monitored, verified and reported.

Without the United States, there is likely to be far less pressure on major polluting countries and industries to accurately report their emissions. There have been major questions raised about the accuracy of China’s emissions reporting, in particular.

“We need to know: What are your emissions? Where are your emissions?” said Todd D. Stern, the lead climate negotiator during the Obama administration. “There needs to be transparent reporting on countries’ greenhouse gas emissions. If the U.S. is not part of that negotiation, that’s a loss for the world.”

By Michael D. Shear and Coral Davenport (The New York Times)

UN chief urges world to rally behind Paris accord

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UN chief urges world to rally behind Paris accord

Highlighting the seriousness of the impact of climate change on the planet and its inhabitants, United Nations (UN) Secretary-General António Guterres on Wednesday, May 31, 2017 called for sustained action to meet the global challenge and to ensure a peaceful and sustainable future for all.

António Guterres
UN Secretary-General António Guterres addresses audience at New York University Stern School of Business. Photo credit: UN /Mark Garten

“The effects of climate change are dangerous and they are accelerating,” Secretary-General Guterres told a gathering of students, business leaders and academics at the New York University Stern School of Business.

“It is absolutely essential that the world implements the Paris Agreement (on climate change) – and that we fulfil that duty with increased ambition,” he underscored, recalling the ground-breaking agreement that entered into force last November.

The Agreement calls on countries to combat climate change and to accelerate and intensify the actions and investments needed for a sustainable low carbon future, and to adapt to the increasing impacts of climate change.

It also aims to strengthen the ability of countries to deal with the impacts of climate change and calls for scaled up financial flows, a new technology framework and an enhanced capacity-building framework to support action by developing countries and the most vulnerable countries in line with their own national objectives.

 

Science ‘is beyond doubt’

Underlining that science behind climate change “is beyond doubt,” Mr. Guterres said:

“As the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change put it, ‘Human influence on the climate system is clear. The more we disrupt our climate, the more we risk severe, pervasive and irreversible impacts,’” he said, recalling that global temperatures have been rising, year after year, and that that last year was the hottest on record.

Furthermore, there are fears that the melt of sea ice and glaciers due to rising temperatures will have deep and far reaching impact: droughts and dry spells will last longer, while natural disasters like floods and hurricanes will be even more destructive.

Impacts of these catastrophic events, Mr. Guterres noted, would be felt in all corners of the world and in all sectors of the economy.

Informing of his intention to convene a dedicated climate summit in 2019 to reach the critical first review of implementation of the Paris Agreement, the UN chief called on all, including those who might hold divergent perspectives on climate change, to engage with him on the way forward.

 

Green business is good business

He also pointed to the opportunities that climate action can provide, such as through the creation of jobs and increased economic growth. It is thus, not surprising, that many private corporations, including major oil and gas companies have adopted climate action.

“They know that green business is good business. It is not just the right thing to do, it is the smart thing to do,” he highlighted.

 

Five-point action plan

Laying out a five-point action plan to mobilise the world for climate action, the UN chief underscored that he would intensify political engagement with countries to increase efforts to limit temperature rise to well below 2 degree-Celsius and as close as possible to 1.5 degree-Celsius, the first point.

He also said that he would engage more with governments and major actors, including the coal, oil and gas industries, to accelerate the global transition to sustainable energy, and committed stronger support by the entire UN development system to Governments as they strive to meet climate commitments and achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially at the country level.

“That is where true change will be achieved,” he said.

The UN chief also said that he will work to with UN Member States mobilize national and international resources for adaptation, resilience, and the implementation of national climate action plans, and called for new and strengthened partnerships, including with the private sector and through North-South, South-South and triangular cooperation.

Further in his remarks, the Secretary-General cautioned that failure to act on combatting climate change would in turn harm the countries themselves for their inaction.

“Those who fail to bet on the green economy will be living in a grey future (but) those who embrace green technologies will set the gold standard for economic leadership in the twenty-first century,” he said.

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