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Latin American, Caribbean nations in $365m initiative to restore degraded land

Michael Simire
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Latin American, Caribbean nations in $365m initiative to restore degraded land

Latin American and Caribbean countries and regional programmes, working with regional and global organisations, on Sunday, December 7, 2014 in Lima, Peru launched “Initiative 20×20,” a country-led effort to bring 20 million hectares of degraded land into restoration by 2020. This is an area larger than Uruguay.

As part of the initiative, five impact investors also announced plans to invest up to $365 million of new financing to support land restoration efforts in the region. Initiative 20×20 is supported by the World Resources Institute (WRI), International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), Centro Agronómico Tropical de Investigación y Enseñanza (CATIE), and the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (ICUN).

Minister of Environment Gabriel Vallejo, Colombia
Minister of Environment Gabriel Vallejo, Colombia. Photo credit: landscape.org

Through Initiative 20×20, countries and programmes in the region will work with leading research organisations and the private sector to restore degraded lands, resulting in carbon storage, reforestation, more productive agriculture, avoided deforestation and improved livelihoods. The 20 million hectares committed through Initiative 20×20 will not be fully restored by 2020 because it takes many years for forests and ecosystems to redevelop, but will start their restoration process by 2020.

Ambitions announced through Initiative 20×20 will also contribute to the Bonn Challenge, a global goal to bring 150 million hectares of land into restoration by 2020.

The Initiative 20×20 partnership announced the following ambitions adding up to just over 20 million hectares:

  1. México: 8.5 million hectares
  2. Perú: 3.2 million hectares
  3. Guatemala: 1.2 million hectares
  4. Colombia: 1 million hectares
  5. Ecuador: 0.5 million hectares
  6. Chile: 0.1 million hectares
  7. Costa Rica: 50,000 hectares
  8. Regional Program of Conservacion Patagonica: 4.1 million hectares
  9. Regional Program Bosques Modelo: 1.6 million hectares

“Land restoration in the region is an essential element to promote equity, poverty reduction, alternatives for development in poor rural areas as well as a mechanism to achieve a low carbon, more resilient future,” said Minister of Environment Gabriel Vallejo, Colombia.

Christian del Valle, CEO, Althelia Climate.
Christian del Valle, CEO, Althelia Climate. Photo credit: coderedd.org

The restoration activities of Initiative 20×20 will be partly supported through $365 million of commitments from impact investors and bilateral and multilateral funders. Other financial instruments, including a partial risk guarantee for restoration, are under design. So far, private sector investors have indicated the intention to invest:

  1. Althelia: $120 million in support of agroforestry and silvopastoral activities.
  2. Moringa: $80 million in support of agroforestry and silvopastoral activities.
  3. Permian Global: $100 million in support of reforestation and avoided deforestation in tropical rainforest biomes.
  4. Terra Bella: up to $60 million in non-timber forest projects and high-value low carbon and climate resilient sustainably produced agricultural projects.
  5. Rare: about $5 million in the protection and recovery of cloud forest and riparian biomes.

“Althelia is deploying capital in support of a portfolio of projects in the region to improve agricultural practices, restore degraded lands, and reduce pressure on natural ecosystems, with concrete results in emissions reductions, zero-net deforestation commodities, biodiversity, and livelihoods,” said Christian del Valle, CEO, Althelia Climate.

Dr. Andrew Steer, President and CEO, WRI. Photo credit: blogs.worldbank.org
Dr. Andrew Steer, President and CEO, WRI. Photo credit: blogs.worldbank.org

About half of the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in Latin America and the Caribbean are generated from land use, land use change, and forestry. Of the 4.2 gigatons of GHGs emitted by Latin American and Caribbean countries in 2012, 2.0 Gt were from land use and loss of forests.  Reducing emissions from land use change is key for the prospects of a low carbon development future.

“As the world prepares to deliver a binding climate agreement in Paris by 2015, restoration will be absolutely essential for countries to hit their emissions targets, while also delivering huge benefits for the rural poor. Through their leadership in Initiative 20×20, these countries will have a tremendous head start,” said Dr. Andrew Steer, President and CEO, WRI.

Analysis by WRI and IUCN has identified over 200 million hectares of restoration opportunities in Latin America and the Caribbean. Further analysis is underway to quantify the economic and climate benefits of reaching the Initiative 20×20 restoration targets.

Ruben Echevarria, Director General, CIAT. Photo credit: global.umn.edu
Ruben Echevarria, Director General, CIAT. Photo credit: global.umn.edu

“CIAT has understood for a long time the pivotal linkage between agriculture and climate change.  We are committed to support initiative 20×20 as a cost effective approach to reduce GHG emissions while promoting improved soil quality, nutrient retention and agricultural yields,” indicated Ruben Echevarria, Director General, CIAT.

“Initiative 20×20 can be an important contribution to the global restoration goals outlined under the Bonn Challenge and the New York Declaration on Forests,” added Grethel Aguilar, IUCN coordinator in Central America.

Through Initiative 20×20, countries and investors will work to restore forests, rewild degraded ecosystems, and improve the productivity of “mosaic landscapes” through sustainable agroforestry and silvopasture. This restoration process is expected to provide substantial economic, social, and environmental benefits through improved local livelihoods, ecosystem services such as biodiversity recovery and protection, erosion prevention and water purification, avoided deforestation, as well as carbon storage.

“The mosaic approach in Initiative 20×20 or what we call ‘climate smart territories’ will allow countries to target improvements in rural incomes and food security as well as to protect natural forests and grasslands so critical to our sustainable future,” said Jose Joaquin Campos, Director General, CATIE.

Progress in first week of Lima UN climate negotiations

Michael Simire
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Progress in first week of Lima UN climate negotiations

Technical negotiations during the first week of the climate talks in Lima (COP20) have mostly gone smoothly, but important negotiating-team level discussions on a handful of key issues need to conclude this week so that there is wide agreement on the range of options facing the Ministers as they arrive early next week to pick up the high-level negotiations.

Peru’s environment minister and president of COP 20, Manuel Pulgar-Vidal, Photo credit: COP20 Peru
Peru’s environment minister and president of COP 20, Manuel Pulgar-Vidal, Photo credit: COP20 Peru

Negotiations are focussing in on critical elements including the nature of country pledges for the upcoming Paris agreement, pledges known as intended nationally determined contributions (INDCs). Countries will need clarity on the rules and format for these pledges as they are due to be delivered in the next three to six months. One key issue that Ministers must contend is the time period the pledges will cover.

“The timeframe issue is our key worry,” explains Li Shuo from Greenpeace China. “A short commitment period would do a lot of good things but it hasn’t been discussed in an extensive manner. We learnt from the Kyoto Protocol that an 8-year period makes it very difficult to ratchet measures up as changes take place in the real world.

“In China, for example, things are changing fast, coal consumption is down 1-2% this year. The Marshall Islands have sent a very positive signal, arguing for a 5 year commitment period that can capture the most relevant and fresh circumstances in the real world. Countries will submit their INDCs early next year so we need to make progress over a short-term commitment period here in Lima.”

Discussions about what actions need to be taken to tackle climate change before 2020 have been noticeably absent from the negotiations so far. Although the The Paris Agreement is set to be reached in 2015, it won’t kick-in until 2020, leaving unaddressed what action countries should take in the six years before then.

Shuo explained, “We are already approaching the end of the week and we are worried that we won’t have enough time to discuss this vital element of a draft Paris agreement. We need to ensure that countries are sufficiently prepared to capture the low hanging fruit. This is about securing short-term actions that countries can take that will form the basis for ongoing climate action.”

Negotiators also need to focus on how a Paris agreement would help countries affected by climate change adapt to the challenges that they face. A new UNEP report shows reveals that the cost of this adaptation could reach $150 billion by 2030, underlining how vitally important this aspect is.

“We believe there won’t be agreement in Paris if adaptation is not included in the draft of the agreement – most countries asking for it. Fortunately the talks are going smoothly and we are making progress on this issue,” said Tania Guillén from Centro Humboldt Nicaragua/SUSWATCH.

When ministers arrive for the high level negotiations next week will have to decide whether the current structure of the draft Paris agreement provides those suffering from climate impacts that are “locked-in” with enough support or whether a new mechanism needs to be established to compensate for loss and damage.

Many delegations are seeking for a clear pathway to ramp up financial and technological support. “We think that $10 billion already pledged by rich nations is not enough for vulnerable countries to deal with the impacts of climate change,” said Guillén.

Ministers also need to discuss the option of having an adaptation goal, an idea that really needs fleshing out. “They have to decide whether this will be part of the new agreement and whether it will be part of the INDCs. If adaptation is included within national climate action plans it will help to reinforce this vital pillar of the entire convention”.

UNEP: Climate adaptation costs could triple

Michael Simire
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UNEP: Climate adaptation costs could triple

A new report by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) shows climate adaptation costs for developing countries are likely to be two to three times the current estimates of $70 to $100 billion per year.

Achim Steiner, UNEP
Achim Steiner, UNEP

The UNEP Adaptation Gap report says this will happen even if global emissions are cut drastically to meet the agreed goal of limiting warming to less than 2 degrees Celsius.

The African Group of Negotiators (AGN) at the climate talks has acknowledged that the $100 billion to be mobilised by developed countries by year 2020 is a starting point to climate adaptation. Their aim, according to the Chair, Nagmeldin El Hassan, is to see a 1.5oC or 2oC warming limit.

Martin Kaiser, Head of Climate Politics in Greenpeace, said: “If the Paris treaty is to make a difference, countries must agree to phase out fossil-fuel emissions to zero and lead us to a renewable energy future”.

He wants businesses causing the problem to be held accountable and compensate the victims of their dirty actions, a position shared by African civil society.

Christian Aid has also called for negotiators at the ongoing UN climate summit in Lima to heed the warnings.

Christian Aid’s Senior Climate Change Advisor, Mohamed Adow, said: “This UNEP report outlines in stark detail the huge costs of adapting to climate change being faced by poor countries around the world. Already some developing countries are reaching the limit they can bear with their limited resources. The poor and most vulnerable should not be left alone with the option to simply adapt or die.”

He described as “a cruel irony” that the rich countries whose carbon emissions helped create these climate change impacts do not want adaption to be a central part of the Paris agreement.

“It’s important that action on emissions is linked to action to help countries adapt. While emissions cuts remain low it is even more vital that adaption support increases,” said Mohammed.

African civil society, led by the Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA), has stated that any climate change deal that is leading to 3oC of warming should be resisted as it will cause untold problems of hunger,  starvation, disasters, conflicts and wars in Africa.

By Kofi Adu Domfeh

Activists observe #LightForLima climate vigil

Michael Simire
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Activists observe #LightForLima climate vigil

On the evening of 7th December, 2014 (today) candle and solar-lantern lit vigils are taking place all over the world.  People are gathering to show their concern about climate change.

LightforLimaBuilding on the momentum from the People’s Climate March where they mobilised tens of thousands of participants, faith groups are holding vigils in 13 countries to pray for progress towards an international agreement to address climate change.  The vigils take place even as leaders are gathered for the crucial Lima climate talks.

As part of the project #LightForLima, Climate Aid Initiative in collaboration with other environmental NGOs in Lagos will be home to a vigil at Ndubuisi Kanu Park, Alausa at from 5pm-7pm.

“We want our leaders to hear the moral imperative for action,” said Oluwatosin Kolawole of Climate Aid.  “These vigils represent the voices of the human spirit, expressed through our religious and spiritual traditions and through many people’s personal convictions.  The vigils show love and concern for our children, vulnerable people and our precious planet.”

Oluwatosin Kolawole added “We want our Leaders to know they have our support to be more determined and generous in finding ways to a meaningful global agreement on climate change”

Leaders from Muslim and Christian communities, and people from a variety of spiritual backgrounds, are leading the vigils in countries including Australia, Canada, India, Israel, Japan, Nigeria, UK, and the USA.

Proposed activities at the vigil include: Opening Song; Brief Statement of the Harm Caused by Climate Change; Talk: what do we love that we want to protect from climate change; Readings or Prayers from a Variety of Sacred Texts; Prayers for the Leaders of the World and for those harmed by climate change; Song; Lighting of candles; Call to Action (invite attendees sign the Our Voices petition on cell phones); Prayer or statement of commitment to continue praying, meditating and advocating for a climate agreement; Closing Prayers; and, Closing Song.

Kolawole submitted: “This month, just weeks after the largest climate mobilisation ever, the world’s two biggest polluters – the United States and China – announced their most ambitious climate action yet. That is not a coincidence: it’s a sign that our pressure is working, and that we need to apply much more.

“The emissions of China and the US have been used by governments around the world as an excuse to dodge their own responsibilities. But this new agreement leaves these governments with nowhere left to hide and opens the door for real progress from global governments. Time is running out for our leaders to reach an agreement to save us from devastating climate change.”

NESREA: FG safeguards environment with 24 regulations

Michael Simire
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NESREA: FG safeguards environment with 24 regulations

The Federal Government of Nigeria has introduced 24 environmental regulations aimed at adopting sustainable environment good practices. The regulations are now in force.

Dr. Ngeri Benebo, irector-General and Chief Executive Officer of NESREA
Dr. Ngeri Benebo, irector-General and Chief Executive Officer of NESREA

Sokoto State Coordinator of the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA), Alhaji Jubril Inuwa, disclosed this recently in Wamakko.

Inuwa, who spoke at the flag-off of Security Awareness, Early Warning Signs and Environmental Sustainability Sensitisation programme organised by the State Office of the National Orientation Agency (NOA), also said that the regulations were aimed at providing legal frameworks for the adoption of sustainable and environment-friendly practices in
environmental sanitation.

He said: “The purpose of these regulations is to provide legal framework for the adoption of sustainable and environment-friendly practices in environmental sanitation and waste management to minimise pollution.”

Enumerating some of the regulations to include National Environmental Sanitation and Waste Regulations 2009, Inuwa added that they were also to prevent and minimise pollution and ensure tranquillity of the human environment, among other purposes.

He explained that public awareness and provision of environmental education was a vital way of effective enforcement of environmental regulations.

Speaking, Director of NOA in Sokoto State, Alhaji Abubakar Danchadi, said that the objective of the programme was to increase security awareness of the people.

By Abdallah el-Kurebe

Civil Society’s visit to African Group at COP 20 in photos

Michael Simire
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Civil Society’s visit to African Group at COP 20 in photos

Members of the African Group of Negotiators on Climate Change recently in Lima, Peru at the sidelines of the COP 20 UN climate summit met officials of a team of civil society organisations (CSOs) operating under the aegis of the Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA).

Chair of the African Group of Negotiators on Climate Change, Nagmeldin G. Elhassan (right), in a handshake with Samual Samson Ogallah of the Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA)
Chair of the African Group of Negotiators on Climate Change, Nagmeldin G. Elhassan (right), in a handshake with Samual Samson Ogallah of the Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nagmeldin G. Elhassan, the Chair of the African Group of Negotiators (right)
Nagmeldin G. Elhassan, the Chair of the African Group of Negotiators (right)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Delegates at the meeting. Dr Uyi Ojo of the Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN) is at extreme left)
Delegates at the meeting. Dr Uyi Ojo of the Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN) is at extreme left)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Delegates at the meeting
Delegates at the meeting

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Aerial view of the gathering
Aerial view of the gathering

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Discussions at the close of the meeting
Discussions at the close of the meeting

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Delegates at the close of the meeting
Delegates at the close of the meeting

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Photo credits: PAMACC

 

 

BOWEL MOVEMENTS

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Civil society seeks shift in private sector investment at Lima talks

Michael Simire
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Civil society seeks shift in private sector investment at Lima talks

Solving the problem of global climate change is impossible without huge shift in private sector investments, since this sector represents trillions of dollars with vast majority of economic activities around the world.

This is the view of Civil Society in contributing to a discussion at the ongoing climate change talks in Lima, Peru.

Dr. Thomas Jallah of the Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA)
Dr. Thomas Jallah of the Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA). Photo credit: awoko.org

According to Dr. Thomas Jallah of the Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA), what is needed most is policy changes and regulations particularly in developed countries “to shift private investments from brown to green”.

“National governments could do far more to shift incentives so that trillions of dollars of private investments will flow to sustainable climate-friendly activities,” he said.

Such measures, Dr. Jallah noted, may include strong legally-binding emission targets, output limit and scaling down fossil fuel power stations.

Business and industry groups attending the COP20 say they strongly support the works of the parties to address climate risks to emission mitigation and adaptation.

“We welcome the targets taken on by the EU and those announced by the US and China” said representative, Miles Austin. “We hope to see far more progress in the short term and encourage you to ensure the markets can make their fullest contribution and the private sector investment and action is capitalized to the utmost.”

The Business and Industry (BINGO) Day at the COP20 presented the activities and messages of business and industry organizations concerned about the potential impacts and opportunities presented by the negotiations.

By Kofi Adomfeh

2014 will likely be the hottest on record, WMO warns

Michael Simire
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0
2014 will likely be the hottest on record, WMO warns

The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) says the year 2014 is on track for being one of the hottest, if not the hottest, on record, according to preliminary results issued at the side lines of the UN Climate Change Conference in Lima, Peru.

WMO Secretary General, Michel Jarraud
WMO Secretary General, Michel Jarraud

The changes, according to the estimates, are largely due to record WMO high global sea surface temperatures, which are predicted to likely remain above normal until the end of the year.

The report says high sea temperatures, together with other factors, contributed to exceptionally heavy rainfall and floods in many countries and extreme drought in others.

The high January to October temperatures, according to WMO Secretary General Michel Jarraud, occurred in the absence of a full El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO).

ENSO occurs when warmer than average sea-surface temperatures in the eastern tropical Pacific combine, in a self-reinforcing loop, with atmospheric pressure systems, thus affecting weather patterns globally.

During the year, sea surface temperatures increased nearly to El Niño thresholds but this was not coupled with an atmospheric response. However, many weather and climate patterns normally associated with El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) were observed in many parts of the world.

“The provisional information for 2014 means that fourteen of the fifteen warmest years on record have all occurred in the 21st century. There is no standstill in global warming,” said WMO Secretary-General Michel Jarraud,” he says.

He adds that what was observed this year is consistent with what they expect from a changing climate.

Jarraud explained that record-breaking heat combined with torrential rainfall and floods destroyed livelihoods and ruined lives.  He said what is particularly unusual and alarming this year are the high temperatures of vast areas of the ocean surface, including in the northern hemisphere.

Record-high greenhouse gas emissions and associated atmospheric concentrations according to Jarraud are committing the planet to a much more uncertain and inhospitable future.

UNFCCC Executive Secretary, Christiana Figueres
UNFCCC Executive Secretary, Christiana Figueres

Christiana Figueres, Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), commenting on the report expressed fears over the fact that then changing climate the risks of extreme weather events will have an increased impact on humanity.

“Fortunately our political climate is changing too with evidence that governments, supported by investors, business and cities are moving towards a meaningful, universal climate agreement in Paris 2015”

She explained that  an agreement that keeps a global temperature rise below 2 degrees C by putting in place the pathways to a deep de-carbonisation of the world’s economy and climate neutrality or ‘net zero’ in the second half of the century is urgently needed.

WMO’s provisional statement on the Status of the Global Climate in 2014 indicated that the global average air temperature over land and sea surface for January to October was about 0.57° Centigrade (1.03 Fahrenheit) above the average of 14.00°C (57.2 °F) for the 1961-1990 reference period, and 0.09°C (0.16 °F) above the average for the past ten years (2004-2013).

The reports says if  November and December maintain the same tendency, then 2014 will likely be the hottest on record, ahead of 2010, 2005 and 1998. This according to Jarraud and his forecasters confirms the underlying long-term warming trend.

 

Highlights from the Statement:

 

Land surface temperatures

Average surface air temperatures over land for January to October 2014 were about 0.86°C above the 1961-1990 average, the fourth or fifth warmest for the same period on record.

Western North America, Europe, eastern Eurasia, much of Africa, large areas of South America and southern and western Australia were especially warm. Cooler-than-average conditions for the year-to-date were recorded across large areas of the United States and Canada and parts of central Russia.

Heatwaves occurred in South Africa, Australia and Argentina in January. Australia saw another prolonged warm spell in May. Record heat affected northern Argentina, Paraguay, Bolivia and southern Brazil in October.  Notable cold waves were reported in the U.S. during the winter, Australia in August and in Russia in October.

 

Ocean heat

Global sea-surface temperatures were the highest on record, at about 0.45°C above the 1961-1990 average.

By Wambi Michael

Christiana Figueres: Climate finance flowing, but inadequate

Michael Simire
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0
Christiana Figueres: Climate finance flowing, but inadequate

Climate financing across the globe has hit record high to about $650 billion in the last two years, but UN climate chief Christiana Figureres says it is not enough to meet the growing financial needs to tackle global warming.

Christiana Figueres of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
Christiana Figueres of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)

A new financial assessment report presented to at the UN Climate Change Conference in Lima, Peru puts the lower range of global total climate flows at $340 billion a year for the period between 2011 and 2012.

The assessment, compiled by the UNFCCC standing committee on finance, is the first to put together information and data on financial flows supporting emission reductions and adaptation within the countries and through international support.

Support from developed countries according the assessment amounted to about $35 billion dollars and $50 billion annually, within the multilateral development banks.

Flows from dedicated multilateral climate funds –including UNFCCC funds represented $0.6 billion- which was the smallest share contributed during the period. The flow according to the assessment does not figure pledges for the Green Climate Fund amount to nearly $10 billion.

Figueres, the UNFCCC Executive Secretary, while launching the report said: “Finance will be crucial key for achieving the internationally-agreed goal of keeping a global temperature rise under 2 degree C and sparing people and the planet from dangerous climate change.”

She however noted that the flows were an indication of optimism that climate financing should be in the trillions of dollars if the world is to make the transformation it needs in the timely fashion. “We will get to the trillions only if we leverage private sector and private capital flows,” said Figueres while addressing journalists.

She said understanding how much is flowing from private and public sources, how much is leveraging further investments and how much is getting to vulnerable communities including for adaptation is vital for ensuring adequate financing for global transformation.

Commenting on the source of financing, Figueres said it was heartening to note that the money was coming from multiple sources through different channels all aimed at addressing climate change. “Because it is not realistic that all the climate finance we need will come from one particular source or one channel,” she said.

She hoped that financing of climate change permeates the global financial system and becomes a global component of the global finance.

One negative part of the assessment is that most of the money was flowing towards mitigation interventions and less toward adaptation. Also the assessment shows that Africa and small Island states were also receiving less share of the adaptation financing.

Seyini Nafo, a delegate from Mali, who is also a member of the Standing Committee of the UNFFCC, in the presentation indicated that only five percent of the global financing was getting to adaptation with a whopping 95 percent targeted towards mitigation.

Figueres noted: “There is no doubt that adaptation finance needs to increase. Because that is the urgency among most developing countries to cover their adaptation cost because many developing countries are putting their own money in adaptation financing because they don’t have any other source and they cannot wait for international climate flows,” she noted.

By Wambi Michael

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