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UPS meets cleaner-miles-target ahead of schedule

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UPS meets cleaner-miles-target ahead of schedule

United Parcel Service (UPS), an international package delivery firm, on Monday in Atlanta, Georgia announced that it has achieved its goal of driving one billion miles in its alternative fuel and advanced technology fleet one year earlier than planned, and marked more than 10 years of learning from its “Rolling Laboratory.”

UPS Hybrid Electric Vehicle
UPS Hybrid Electric Vehicle

According to the company, it’s commitment to sustainability is now transforming commercial transportation and logistics, spurring growth in the clean fuels market and powering critical engineering advances. The company’s wider sustainability progress is detailed in the 14th annual Sustainability Report, released on Monday.

“We had a big sustainability goal as we set out to make the most of our rolling laboratory by driving one billion clean miles in alternative fuel vehicles – that’s the equivalent of well over 4,000 trips to the moon,” said David Abney, Chairman and CEO, UPS. “While attaining this goal is new, our commitment to seeking out alternative fuels actually dates back to the 1930s when UPS tested electric vehicles. With more than 100,000 drivers logging more than 3 billion miles per year, our future depends on our ability to meet the growing demand for global trade while reducing our impact on the environment.”

UPS Cargo Cruiser
UPS Cargo Cruiser

UPS, believed to be the world’s largest package delivery company, reportedly deepened its commitment to alternative fuels in 2012, when it set the goal of reaching one billion miles driven with alternative fuels by the end of 2017. Shattering that goal one year early, about 12 percent of the conventional diesel and gasoline fuel previously used by UPS’s ground fleet is now being replaced by alternative fuels including renewable natural gas and renewable diesel.

“The question wasn’t should we make alternative fuels work?” said Mike Whitlatch, UPS’s vice president of global energy and procurement. “Instead, it was ’What’s the best way to make alternative fuels work for UPS, and for the environment?’ After more than a decade of focus, we are now driving more than 1 million miles globally each business day in our alternative fuel and advanced technology fleet.”

UPS Propane Powered Package Car
UPS Propane Powered Package Car

Recognising alternative fuels and advanced technologies each have unique advantages depending on the routes and geographies in which they are used, UPS, it was gathered, deploys the more than 7,200 vehicles in the Rolling Lab to determine what works best in each situation. From old-fashioned pedal power and electric-assisted bicycles in dense urban areas like London and Hamburg to electric and hybrid electric vehicles in the U.S., and natural gas, renewable natural gas and propane globally, UPS is putting sustainability innovation into action, all over the world.

“Many congested cities around the world are implementing zero tailpipe emissions zones, and UPS is keeping ahead of the curve by investing in advanced technologies and creating the commercial delivery fleet of the future,” said Abney.

By the end of 2016, UPS, founded in 1907, will have invested more than $750 million in alternative fuel and advanced technology vehicles and fueling stations globally since 2009. That continued investment, combined with supportive government policies, and a collaborative set of partners has helped to expand development and utilisation of alternative fuels, vehicles and infrastructure throughout the world.

UPS Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Tractor
UPS Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Tractor

UPS disclosed in a statement that, along the way, it learned several lessons that can help other companies make sustainability investments that create long-term payoffs. It listed these to include:

  • Encourage innovation. What started out as an “approach” has become an ecosystem of innovation and progress shaped by collaboration with suppliers, policy makers and other stakeholders. UPS applied its expertise in logistics to the sustainability challenge and leveraged the scale of its 100,000 vehicle fleet to drive technology, market, and infrastructure improvements that make cleaner fuels and technologies economically viable.
  • Adapt and tailor the solution. The best solution is not always the perfect solution. The fuels and vehicles that work in one region or one setting may not make sense in another. Technology constraints, range, infrastructure availability, government policies and local air quality goals all play a role in determining vehicle deployment and fuel selection.
  • There’s no substitute for real-world big data. UPS is able to see 30,000 delivery route optimisations per minute through its On-Road Integrated Optimisation and Navigation (ORION) system, which uses fleet telematics and algorithms to reduce the number of miles driven. The application of this big data approach to the UPS Rolling Lab’s fleet has been a key enabler to improving performance and reducing costs. When fully implemented, ORION is expected to help UPS avoid 100 million miles driven every year, reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 100,000 metric tonnes annually, and avoid 10 million gallons of fuel per year.
  • It takes consistent, unwavering commitment from leadership. Long-term investments don’t always pay off in the short term. Economic and market forces are constantly changing, and the political environment that is necessary to foster investment and infrastructure development can be unpredictable. It took UPS more than a decade to reach a point where the accumulation of miles driven by its fleet was rising nearly exponentially. That wouldn’t have happened without a long-term commitment.

Partner, promote and report progress. Sharing progress and learnings with key stakeholders and partnering with alternative fuel and technology developers, non-profits, government agencies and industry trade groups have been critical to the Rolling Laboratory’s success. UPS reports its progress annually in its Sustainability Report, and includes key metrics such as CO2 emissions, energy consumption, and alternative fuel and advanced technology miles driven, among others. Together, these metrics demonstrate the positive impact of the company’s sustainability and social responsibility programmes.

Industrial effluent poisoning six million Americans, says study

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Industrial effluent poisoning six million Americans, says study

Drinking water supplies serving more than six million Americans contain unsafe levels of a widely used class of industrial chemicals linked to potentially serious health problems, according to a new study from Harvard University researchers.

A drinking water well structure at Versluis Park in Plainfield Township, Mich. Utilities serving the area recently reported elevated levels of two potentially toxic industrial chemicals in both raw and treated water. Photo credit: Garret Ellison/The Grand Rapids Press via AP
A drinking water well structure at Versluis Park in Plainfield Township, Mich. Utilities serving the area recently reported elevated levels of two potentially toxic industrial chemicals in both raw and treated water. Photo credit: Garret Ellison/The Grand Rapids Press via AP

The chemicals – known as polyfluoroalkyl and perfluoroalkyl substances, or PFASs – have been used for decades in a range of industrial and commercial products, including non-stick coatings on pans, food wrappers, water-repellent clothing and firefighting foam. Long-term exposure has been linked to increased risks of kidney cancer, thyroid problems, high cholesterol and hormone disruption, among other issues.

“Virtually all Americans are exposed to these compounds,” said Xindi Hu, the study’s lead author. “They never break down. Once they are released into the environment, they are there.”

As part of the study, which was published on Tuesday in Environmental Science & Technology Letters, the researchers examined concentrations of six types of PFAS chemicals in drinking water supplies around the country. The data came from more than 36,000 samples collected by the Environmental Protection Agency between 2013 and 2015.

They also looked at sites where the chemicals are commonly found – industrial plants that use them in manufacturing, military bases and civilian airports where fire-fighting foam is used and wastewater treatment plants.

What they found: 194 of 4,864 water supplies across nearly three dozen states had detectable levels of the chemicals. Sixty-six of those water supplies, serving about six million people, had at least one sample that exceeded the EPA’s recommended safety limit of 70 parts per trillion for two types of chemicals – perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA).

“It’s a big problem in a lot of communities,” said Richard Clapp, professor emeritus at Boston University’s school of public health. “It’s happening in a lot of places.”

From Decatur, Alabama State, to Merrimack, New Hampshire State, residents have been wrestling with high levels of the potentially harmful chemicals, and public officials have been scrambling to figure out how to prevent them from contaminating drinking water supplies.

The federal government does not currently regulate PFAS chemicals. But they are on the EPA’s list of “unregulated contaminants” that the agency monitors, with the goal of restricting those that most endanger public health. Partly because the rules that it must follow are complicated and contentious, officials have failed to successfully regulate any new contaminant in two decades.

Only once since the 1990s has the EPA come close to imposing a new standard – for perchlorate, a chemical that sometimes occurs naturally but also is found in explosives, road flares and rocket fuel. It has turned up in the drinking water of over 16 million people.

Joel Beauvais, who leads the EPA’s Office of Water, told the Post earlier this year that the system mandated by Congress demands the agency move deliberately. “It’s a rather intensive process to get one of these drinking-water regulations across the finish line,” he said.

There are reasons for that, Beauvais said at the time. A substance may occur in only a very small number of drinking-water systems or might occur only in extremely low levels. Before the EPA imposes new limitations on the nation’s water utilities, it has to prove that there is a meaningful opportunity to improve public health. “These are very consequential regulations,” Beauvais said. “They are consequential from a health perspective. They are consequential from an economic perspective.”

One of the agency’s approaches is to issue health advisories that can prompt state and local officials to take action or at least notify residents about contaminants. In May, it issued advisories for PFOS and PFOA, urging utilities around the country to follow more stringent guidelines than the EPA previously had recommended.

What they found: 194 of 4,864 water supplies across nearly three dozen states had detectable levels of the chemicals. Sixty-six of those water supplies, serving about six million people, had at least one sample that exceeded the EPA’s recommended safety limit of 70 parts per trillion for two types of chemicals – perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA).

“It’s a big problem in a lot of communities,” said Richard Clapp, professor emeritus at Boston University’s school of public health. “It’s happening in a lot of places.”

From Decatur, Ala., to Merrimack, N.H., residents have been wrestling with high levels of the potentially harmful chemicals, and public officials have been scrambling to figure out how to prevent them from contaminating drinking water supplies.

The federal government does not currently regulate PFAS chemicals. But they are on the EPA’s list of “unregulated contaminants” that the agency monitors, with the goal of restricting those that most endanger public health. Partly because the rules that it must follow are complicated and contentious, officials have failed to successfully regulate any new contaminant in two decades.

Only once since the 1990s has the EPA come close to imposing a new standard – or perchlorate, a chemical that sometimes occurs naturally but also is found in explosives, road flares and rocket fuel. It has turned up in the drinking water of over 16 million people.

Joel Beauvais, who leads the EPA’s Office of Water, told the Post earlier this year that the system mandated by Congress demands the agency move deliberately. “It’s a rather intensive process to get one of these drinking-water regulations across the finish line,” he said.

There are reasons for that, Beauvais said at the time. A substance may occur in only a very small number of drinking-water systems or might occur only in extremely low levels. Before the EPA imposes new limitations on the nation’s water utilities, it has to prove that there is a meaningful opportunity to improve public health. “These are very consequential regulations,” Beauvais said. “They are consequential from a health perspective. They are consequential from an economic perspective.”

One of the agency’s approaches is to issue health advisories that can prompt state and local officials to take action or at least notify residents about contaminants. In May, it issued advisories for PFOS and PFOA, urging utilities around the country to follow more stringent guidelines than the EPA previously had recommended.

By Brady Dennis, Washington Post

Rio Olympics demands climate action

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Rio Olympics demands climate action

Amid the pomp and circumstance of the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games last Friday, in between the fireworks and musical acts, the costumed performers and the camera shots of Gisele Bundchen dancing giddily alongside her fellow Brazilians in the crowd, came a more somber message.

The Opening Ceremony at the Rio 2016 Olympics Games centered on climate change and its effects. Photo credit: Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)
The Opening Ceremony at the Rio 2016 Olympics Games centered on climate change and its effects. Photo credit: Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)

In primetime, with the world watching, Brazil showed a video focused on the problem of global warming and climate change. The video, narrated by Academy Award-winning actor Judi Dench, included maps and graphics showing how rapidly the earth’s temperature has spiked over time, how drastically the Antarctic ice sheet has wilted in recent decades and how steadily seas are rising around the globe.

This was not the stuff of celebration and joy, of gold medals and national pride, but rather a stark message about the challenges facing the planet and an unsubtle reminder that the countries of the world are inexorably linked in their fates.

Perhaps it was fitting that Brazil chose to raise awareness about climate change when the world was tuned into the opening moments of the Olympics. The country is home to about one-third of the world’s rainforests, and more than half the Amazon rainforest lies within its borders, according to Climate Central. Significant chunks of that land has been lost to deforestation, and drier, hotter weather is expected to stress the rainforests only more in coming years.

In addition, more frequent storms and heavy rains fueled by climate change could pose a threat to Rio’s already abysmal water quality. Not to mention, the changing environmental conditions could help accelerate outbreaks of mosquito-borne illnesses such as Zika, which have ravaged Brazil over the past year and led to serious birth defects in infants.

The climate change interlude of the opening ceremony ignited social media, winning praise from environmental advocates who welcomed the worldwide attention on the topic.

Not everyone was moved by the display, however, as some saw it as outright hypocrisy.

By Brady Dennis, Washington Post

Big emitters urged to ratify Paris Agreement

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Big emitters urged to ratify Paris Agreement

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Monday in Buenos Aires urged Argentina and other large nations to ratify the Paris climate accord , even as Argentina’s foreign minister said she hoped the country would do so by the end of the year.

Argentine President Mauricio Macri (right) and Secretary General of the United Nations Ban Ki-moon shake hands after delivering a joined statement at the Casa Rosada government house in Buenos Aires, Argentina on Monday August 8, 2016. Photo credit: Télam
Argentine President Mauricio Macri (right) and Secretary General of the United Nations Ban Ki-moon shake hands after delivering a joined statement at the Casa Rosada government house in Buenos Aires, Argentina on Monday August 8, 2016. Photo credit: Télam

In December 2015, some 195 countries reached an agreement in Paris that obligates states to take concrete measures to curb emissions that contribute to climate change. But the pact will not go into force until it is ratified by 55 countries representing 55 percent of global greenhouse emissions.

As of now, only 22 countries have done so, many of them small, vulnerable island nations that account for a negligible percentage of emissions.

Ban urged China and the United States, the world’s top two greenhouse gas emitters, to ratify the deal, and also pushed Argentina, Latin America’s third largest economy, to do the same.

“When we add up the two countries’ greenhouse gas emissions, it comes to almost 40 percent” of global emissions, Ban said of the United States and China.

“So 55 percent may not be difficult to achieve, and I urge Argentina to ratify as soon as possible.”

In response, Argentina’s foreign minister, Susana Malcorra, who is running to replace Ban as U.N. secretary-general, said the accord has already been approved by one chamber of Congress and she hopes Argentina will have it ratified by the next major U.N. climate summit in December.

At the event in Buenos Aires, Ban also thanked Argentina for a recent commitment to take in 3,000 refugees from various war-torn locations.

“This kind of solidarity, sign of humanity, should be emulated by many people around the world,” Ban said.

By Gram Slattery, Reuters

Flood alert: Geographers tell government to evacuate people living on flood plains

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Flood alert: Geographers tell government to evacuate people living on flood plains

Following the threat of a repeat of the devastating 2012 flooding in the country, geographers have called on the authorities to urgently evacuate people living on flood plains to reduce possible loss of lives, should the great flood occur, as alerted by the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).


Correspondent Innocent Onoh brings the details in this report on ways of saving lives during flood disasters.

 

Benefits of limiting global warming to 1.5-degree

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Benefits of limiting global warming to 1.5-degree

The recent streak of record-breaking temperatures has shown that climate change is not waiting for the world to take decisive action.

Sir John Odey (left), Mr Daouda Toure (middle) and Mrs Bahijjahtu Abubakar at a function last year: Climate change mitigation initiatives being undertaken by the Abuja-based RUWES Nigeria is helping to keep the earth's warming under 1-5-degree
Sir John Odey (left), Mr Daouda Toure (middle) and Mrs Bahijjahtu Abubakar at a function last year: Climate change mitigation initiatives being undertaken by the Abuja-based RUWES Nigeria is helping to keep the earth’s warming under 1-5-degree

But the adoption of the Paris Agreement was a clear signal that the world is ready to take climate change seriously. 175 countries signed and 15 of these ratified the climate deal during the signing ceremony.

Now there is every indication the agreement could enter into force this year. Many countries, led by the two biggest emitters, China and the United States, have signaled their intent to ratify by the end of 2016, leaving just four countries and 1.72% of global emissions needed for it to become official.

There can be no doubt that the window of opportunity to limit global warming to below 1.5℃, a key target of the 2015 Paris agreement, is closing fast. But there are encouraging signs around the world that this can still be done, even if there is still a very long way to go. Here are three of the most positive developments that will help the world reach its target.

 

Green energy is getting cheaper

The costs of climate mitigation have decreased drastically. According to NREL’s Transparent Costs Database, wind energy costs in the US are now on a par with coal-fired power.

In May 2016 the price of photovoltaic (PV) energy fell to less than three US cents a kilowatt at an auction in Dubai. Even in not-so-sunny Germany, solar energy costs have been decreasing steadily: in a recent auction December 2015, prices fell to eight euro cents per kilowatt hour.

We can expect further cost decreases in the coming years. According to a recent report, by the end of the decade, the cost of onshore wind should decrease by a quarter, off-shore wind by a third and photovoltaics by almost two-thirds. By the mid-2020s, solar PV and onshore wind should cost 5 or 6 US cents per kilowatt hour on average. This is significantly below the cost of energy from nuclear and coal.

As a result of decreasing costs and additional benefits, investment in renewables exploded in 2015 despite low oil prices. Meanwhile, renewable energy investment reached a record $286 billion, generating 152 gigawatts of new capacity. This is more than the combined installed capacity from all sources for the whole African continent.

 

Carbon dioxide emissions have stopped rising

In 2014 and 2015, the CO₂ emissions from the energy sector stalled despite the global economy growing by 3%. According to the International Energy Agency, in 2014, emissions increased by less than 0.2% and by only 0.03% last year.

BP’s estimates for both years were slightly higher, (0.5% in 2014 and 0.1% in 2015), but that was a significant change of trend compared to the average annual emission growth of around 2.6% over the past decade.

The major factor in this flattening trend was a fall in emissions of the two biggest emitters: China and the United States. In China, despite an increase in power consumption by 3%, power generation from fossil fuels decreased by 2%. This led emissions to fall by 1.5% last year. In the United States, emissions decreased by 2% despite healthy economic growth.

Meanwhile, developing countries are taking advantage of the significant fall in the costs of renewables. While India’s emissions grew by over 5% last year, the second most populous country in the world has embarked on one of the fastest renewable expansion programmes anywhere on the planet.

At the same time, India is taking steps to curb coal investments. The choice between renewables and coal in India might be the most important factor when it comes to global efforts to reduce emissions.

 

Green jobs are good for the economy

Every major transition is accompanied by fears of job losses. But the positive economic impacts of new technologies are given less attention. In 2014, more than 7.7 million people worked in the renewables sector, excluding large hydropower plants. A third of these jobs were in the photovoltaic sector, and an additional one million were employed in wind power – technologies which barely existed two decades ago.

Another report, shows that doubling the share of renewables in the energy mix by 2030 would triple the number of jobs in the sector and increase global GDP by 1.1%. That’s the equivalent to US $1.3 trillion. In 2016, India plans to roll out 30 million solar irrigation pumps, which would have significant economic and sustainable development benefits for farmers, saving US$3 billion per year on subsidies.

The funds required for this transition could be partly covered by savings from removing fossil fuel subsidies. The IMF has found that elimination of post-tax subsidies in 2015 would have increased government revenues by US$2.9 trillion and significantly reduced environmental and social impacts of fossil fuels.

In May 2016, G7 leaders committed to eliminate “inefficient fossil fuel subsidies” by 2025. The G20 is also under pressure to agree on a timetable for phasing out subsidies.

 

Time for leadership

The ingredients for transforming energy systems and decarbonising the economy are already there. We are deploying more technologies that can peak emissions and accelerate their decrease.

To speed up this transformation, governments must adopt policies that ensure investments in renewable energy are secure and provide clear signposts for everyone participating in the process of decarbonisation.

Political leadership now is fundamental to prevent a slide-back to coal, and to stand up to vested interests, while providing finance and technology to the regions that need it most.

Courtesy: Namanews

Ogoni clean-up Council, BoT members unveiled

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Ogoni clean-up Council, BoT members unveiled

President Muhammadu Buhari has appointed a former commissioner in Lagos State, Wale Edun, as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Ogoni clean-up project.

Nnimmo Bassey, Director, Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF), is part of the 12-member Ogoni clean-up Board of Trustees. He was picked to represent non-governmental organisations on the BoT
Nnimmo Bassey, Director, Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF), is part of the 12-member Ogoni clean-up Board of Trustees. He was picked to represent non-governmental organisations on the BoT

The 12-member BoT was inaugurated last Thursday by Mr. President, alongside a 13-member Governing Council for the clean-up.

Mr. Edun was Commissioner for Finance in Lagos when the leader of the All Progressives Congress, Bola Tinubu, was governor of the state.

Ibrahim Jibril, the Minister of State for Environment; Kemi Adeosun, the Minister of Finance; and Ibe Kachikwu, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources/NNPC chairman are also members of the BoT.

Renowned environmentalist and activist, Nnimmo Bassey, is also a member of the BoT. He was picked to represent non-governmental organisations on the board.

Other trustees are: Peter Medee and Bebe Okpabi, representing Ogoni stakeholders; Nicholas Terraz, Insula Massimo and Osagie Okunbor, representing the multinationals being Shell Petroleum Development Company, Agip and Total; and, Mike Emuh, the National chairman of Host Communities of Nigeria Producing Oil and Gas (HOSCOM), representing other communities in the Niger Delta.

A slot has been reserved for a yet-to-be named United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) observer, while the Secretary and HYPREP (Hydro-Carbon Pollution Restoration Project) Legal Adviser is to be appointed by the Governing Council.

Chaired by Environment Minister, Amina Mohammed, the 13-member Governing Council comprises: Ibe Kachikwu, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources/NNPC chairman; Udo Udoma, Minister of Budget and Planning; Usani Usani, Minister of Niger Delta Affairs; Major General Babangida Monguro (Rtd), National Security Adviser; Nisima Ekere, Managing Director (designate), Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC); and, Osagie Okunbor, Managing Director, Shell Petroleum and Development Company (SPDC).

Others are Anyakwee Nsirimovu (IHRHL), representing non-governmental organisations; Roselyn Konya (a commissioner in River State), representing nine oil producing states; Pyagbara Legborsi, Ben Naneen, Batam Ndegwe and Kammy Ngelala, who are representatives of Ogoni Stakeholders; Timi Agari and Pamela Asiri, who are representatives of other Niger Delta communities; and, a slot for a yet-to-be named UNEP observer.

Africa’s Great Green Wall stars at Olympic opening ceremony

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Africa’s Great Green Wall stars at Olympic opening ceremony

The history of the Olympic Games is one of chasing impossible dreams and stretching the limits of human ambition. Thus, it was fitting that, beneath the glitz and glamour, the Samba and Rio’s Carnival-like atmosphere, this year’s Opening Ceremony that held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Friday, 5 August 2016 showcased what has been described as the most impossible sounding dream of all – Africa’s Great Green Wall.

Team Nigeria at Rio 2016: Nigeria has so far created 20,000 jobs in rural areas under the Great Green Wall project
Team Nigeria at Rio 2016: Nigeria has so far created 20,000 jobs in rural areas under the Great Green Wall project

Featured in the Rio Olympics Creative Director Fernando Meirelles’ film on global reforestation efforts, the Great Green Wall struck a chord as a what appears to be a generation-defining initiative aiming to grow an 8000km wall of vegetation across the entire width of Africa, against all odds.

The aim: to restore vast swathes of degraded land in a region called the Sahel and in the process provide food, jobs and a reason to stay for the millions of people living on the frontline of climate change that may be forced to migrate.

unccd
Monique Barbut, Executive Secretary of the UNCCD. Photo credit: www.iisd.ca

Once complete, the Wall will be three times the length of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. More importantly, it is expected to promote peace and strengthen resilience in a region long devastated by drought, war and famine.

The Sahel region of Africa is believed to be one of the world’s most impoverished – a key reason being the degradation of enormous tracts of fertile land, which form the basis of people’s livelihoods there. Persistent drought, food insecurity, and conflicts over dwindling natural resources are some of the many consequences, according to observers, adding that continued inaction means an estimated 60 million people could migrate to Europe from Africa’s degraded areas by 2030.

Meirelles’ film, which features footage from the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification’s (UNCCD) Virtual Reality experience unveiled at last year’s Paris Climate Summit, provides a stark warning of the need to restore natural resources, like land.

Rio Olympics Creative Director, Fernando Meirelles
Rio Olympics Creative Director, Fernando Meirelles

The progress made since the initiative started a decade ago shows that land restoration efforts on a mass scale are both possible and offer hope. Senegal has already planted 12 million trees, Ethiopia has restored 15 million hectares of degraded land and Nigeria has created 20,000 jobs in rural areas.

“The Great Green Wall is about far more than just growing trees. It is a mosaic of interventions weaving across the Sahel region that is helping to build community resilience and provide economic opportunity. Already, it is feeding hungry families and malnourished children, putting people back to work and growing peace and security to help communities thrive once more. Most crucially, it provides young people with a genuine alternative to migrating from their communities,” says Monique Barbut, head of the UNCCD.

During last year’s Paris Climate Change Conference, world leaders pledged a further $4 billion to the initiative over the next five years. For a poor region with hardly any resources to spare, this raises hopes of moving the initiative closer to its ambition of restoring 50 million hectares of currently degraded land, and sequestering 250 million tonnes of carbon by 2030.

The Great Green Wall is a collaborative effort that transcends geographical, political and cultural divides, and is uniting people across borders on an unprecedented scale.

“This is a bold ambition that chimes with the spirit of solidarity enshrined in the Olympic dream. It is a global symbol to celebrate our common humanity in divisive and troubling times,” Barbut adds.

The Great Green Wall is an African-led initiative with an epic ambition: to restore the productivity of degraded lands across the Sahara and the Sahel and transform millions of lives. Under the leadership of the African Union Commission, it brings together African countries and international partners that include the European Union (EU), the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the UNCCD and World Bank Group (WBG).

Impending flood: Riverside communities asked to evacuate

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Impending flood: Riverside communities asked to evacuate

Intense rainfall and rising water levels that may likely result to dangerous floods have instigated the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to advise communities along the River Niger to be evacuated to safer places.

Director General (DG) of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Muhammad Sani Sidi
Director General (DG) of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Muhammad Sani Sidi

Director General (DG) of NEMA, Muhammad Sani Sidi, in a statement issued by Sani Datti of the Media and Publicity Unit of the Agency on Saturday, warned that the agency had received alerts of the impending flood from available information by the Republic of Niger that the present water level in the river has reached a point that may result in the flood that could be compared with the unfortunate experience of 2012.

According to the NEMA boss, “Niger Basin Authority (NBA) notified Nigeria that rainy season, which started in the Middle Niger (Burkina Faso and Niger Republic) in June, 2016, has led to a gradual rise of the level of River Niger in Niamey, Niger Republic. This high level of water in Niger Republic is already spreading to Benin Republic, and invariably, to Nigeria.”

He explained that the level of water in all the hydrological monitoring stations across the country, as at Friday, 5th August, 2016, had already exceeded the corresponding values at that time, “which is an alarming situation that requires the prompt and coordinated action of all governments and stakeholders,” adding that ‎”if the heavy rainfall continues in intensity and duration within these regions of the River Niger, it is imminent that flood situation similar to that of year 2012, may occur.”

The DG called on all stakeholders to take necessary actions in line with their various mandates. “The states and local government are to ensure observance with the threat in order to avert imminent loss of lives and properties that might certainly arise in the event of flood.”

He identified the states along the River Niger belts as being the most vulnerable as well as those along its major tributaries that include Benue River belts, the confluence states and downstream to the Atlantic Coast.

The Agency’s Zonal and Operation offices, he said, have been instructed to continue with advocacy visits to the state governments and also urged the state to utilise the flood vulnerability maps given to them earlier by NEMA to identify safer ground for temporary shelters in time of evacuation as well as reviewing all their contingency plans.

By Abdallah el-Kurebe

‎Sustaining tomato production in Nigeria amid climatic threat

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‎Sustaining tomato production in Nigeria amid climatic threat

The Mile 12 Market is reputed to be the largest perishable food market in West Africa. The market is characterised by a beehive of activities at the various food section.

The tomatoes scarcity in markets forced Nigeria to import the item from Cameroon and Ghana. Photo credit: authorityngr.com
The tomatoes scarcity in markets forced Nigeria to import the item from Cameroon and Ghana. Photo credit: authorityngr.com

However, in May, the usual hustling and bustling that typifies the perishable food market was missing. Most of the traders were seen hanging around with few produce displayed for sale.

Alhaji Sheu Musa, a seller of tomatoes at the market was haranguing a customer over her “ridiculous” pricing of the produce.

“It is not my fault that tomatoes are expensive in the market. In the last few days, I hardly made profit from the sale of the produce because pests have destroyed tomato farms and made tomato scare and expensive.

“I am tired. I have spent all day explaining why tomato prices are so high to numerous customers,” he exclaimed.

Tomato prices across Nigeria have skyrocketed since April, causing consternation across the country. Most families now find it difficult to prepare stew or cook other delicacies with fresh tomatoes.

The rising cost makes a huge difference to family budgets and to the farmers who rely on steady sales for their income.

Hotels and restaurants, in particular, face a nightmare as the crisis has also shot up the price of tomato paste.

In the first few months of the year, a basket of tomato was sold as low as N1,500 but, during the scarcity, the price of a basket spiked to as high as N40,000.

However, the ingenuity of Nigerians is commendable as many homemakers that are unable to afford the fresh tomato switched to the use of blended carrots, dried tomatoes and palm nut juice for sauce.

According to an agriculturist, the scarcity of tomatoes was caused by the pest “Tuta Absoluta”, locally named “Tomato Ebola”, that destroyed virtually all the tomato farms in the northern part of the country.

Tuta Absoluta is the specie of moth in the scientific family of Gelechiidae known by the common names tomato leafminer and South American tomato moth.

The insect originated from South America around 1912 and has spread to other parts of the world. Reports reveals that the insect came to Africa through the Republic of Niger.

Alhaji Haruna Mohammed, Chairman, Mile 12 Market Perishable Foods Association, notes that the pest invasion of tomato farms is due to the prolonged dry season.

He said, “The insects come out and are very active during extreme sunshine. The insects always attack in dry season and harmattan periods.

“This is not the first time the insects are disturbing tomato farms but this year’s is severe. The insects are not active during rainy season.

“Tomato buyers and sellers are not happy with this situation. It has affected us seriously.”

According to him, traders are buying tomatoes from Cameroon and Ghana to make up until they start harvesting the new ones planted to replace those ravaged by insects.

“It costs between N500,000 and N600,000 to bring tomatoes to Lagos from Cameroon and Ghana.

“This is the reason tomatoes are scarce and costly when seen in the market. It is a nightmare and tomato traders are praying for good harvest so that the nightmare will be over.”

According to a climatologist, Dr Ibidun Adelekan, heat enhances the growth of some pests, a situation she says threatens the country’s quest for food sufficiency and industrialisation.

Tomato scarcity became a major concern as the Dangote Tomato Processing plant in Kano State, that started operation in March suspended production in May due to unavailability of fresh tomatoes which constitutes its raw material.

Governor Nasiru El-Rufai of Kaduna State, on May 23, declared a state of emergency in the tomato sector of the state, saying that within a month, 12 local government areas of the state that produce tomatoes have lost 80 per cent of its tomatoes harvest.

In three local government areas, about 200 farmers lost N1 billion worth of tomatoes.

The 450,000 metric tons per annum tomato processing plant of Erisco Foods Ltd in Lagos was also affected by the fresh tomato scarcity leading the manufacturer to resort to using dried tomatoes for production of its tomato paste.

Chief Eric Umeofia, Chief Executive Officer, Erisco Foods said, “Heat wave caused by effects of climate change has destroyed my company’s tomato farms in the North.

“Reduced access to fresh tomatoes for production of tomato paste has affected our production capacity, as we are presently producing below capacity.”

Dr Anthony Anuforom, Director-General, Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet), says extreme weather conditions such as drought, flood and heat waves constitutes serious threat to global food security.

He asserts that the threat is as a result of the high vulnerability of agricultural produce to weather variability.

The NiMet boss said that the impact of extreme weather on food security in Nigeria could be managed through climate change adaptation policies and appropriate economic framework.

He notes that weather forecast and climate predictions, such as NiMet’s Seasonal Rainfall Prediction (SRP), were useful tools for reducing the impact of extreme weather condition.

Experts said that a combination of informative, adaptive, behavioural and innovative technological strategies would be required to transform the nation’s agricultural sector for the purpose of ensuring food security.

They emphasised that the government should boost mechanised farming, strengthen the nation’s Agricultural Research Institutes with adequate funding to improve their capacity to produce crop varieties that matures quickly and are heat, drought and flood resistant.

The experts added that government should also improve the ratio of agricultural extension workers to farmers in the country to enhance food production.

By Oluwafunke Ishola

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