Climate Crisis and Clean Energy
Climates crisis is a much spoken yet underrated topic when taken the world in general and Sri Lanka in particular. This is the very reason to write an article on this topic. The term climate crisis connotes the imbalance caused in nature due to global warming and extreme climatic conditions and the outcomes of them. The global temperature is rising in a rapid speed than expected recording the last decade the warmest decade in history, where 2016 and 2020 are tied for the warmest year and 2019 ranking second. We live in a crucial moment in history where our negligence could result in no future for mankind on Earth. So this problem should be dealt in time in the most equitable approach. Usage of Clean energy or in other word renewable energy where there is no emission of greenhouse gases is a key most approach to mitigate this issue.
Human activities results in the release of billions of ton of co2, which is a major greenhouse gas and also other greenhouse gases such as methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbans(HFCs), perclorocarbons (PFCs), sulphur hexafluoride(SF6) and nitrogen trifluoride (NF3) contributing for global warming. This increase in temperature in the environment results in melting of ice glaciers in the artic, Antarctic and the mountains. Glaciers and ice sheets are melting faster than in any time in History, consequently increasing the sea level. The global mean sea level has risen about 21 to 24 centimeters since the 1880. Densely populated coastal cities (where 40% of the world population live) are sited as vulnerable area. If timely action is not taken the entire districts of New York, Shanghai, Abu Dhabi, Osaka, Rio de Janeiro, and many other cities will drown in to the sea leaving people homeless within next few years; not to mention our little Island. Sri Lanka ranks the 6th in the Global Climate Risk Index 2020 by environmental and development organization Germanwatch which listed the countries which were vulnerable because of climate crisis. The North and the North-Eastern provinces are considered the hotspots of climate calamities in Sri Lanka.
Global warming trigger extreme climatic conditions like intense hurricanes, wild fires and more. These extreme condition have also become highly prevalent. Now a days, 90% of the disasters are caused as a result of climate changes. Nearly 140 death were resulted by the detrimental flood caused in neighboring India by melting down of glaciers in the Himalayas only last month (February 2021). The more recent wild fire was on the 26th of February in South Africa spreading to more than 33000 acres. Forest fires have become more frequent than we can think of. According to the disaster management center, Sri Lanka experiences 50 to200 cases of wild fire every year. Many people lose their loved ones, sometimes become homeless and miserable because of such disasters. It also cost the economy of the world around 520 billion USD per year while 26 million people become poverty stricken.
Water needed for agriculture becomes limited because of climate changes. The quality and the quantity of water is not available for sustainable production of food. The quality of soil is also lost due to erosion resulting in food scarcity. There is a possibility for the gap between the world’s richest and the poorest countries to grow because of climate crisis. The peace of the world is also at danger because of climate crisis. Due to limited resources there will competition for land, clean water and food resulting in social and economic unrest among us.
The 2015 Paris agreement on climate change came into agreement to maintain the temperature increase at 1.5oC (well below 2oC) by the end of 2020. 196 parties (197 states and the European Union) entered into this agreement. Sri Lanka is also one of them. Even though there were some reluctance initially, 75 counties committed to deliver 2050 net zero emission strategy by 2020.
In order to resolve this problem, the basic transformation in the way we grow food, use land and transport is mandatory. Power remains the basis of almost our every need. Technology definitely resulted in climate crisis, but it cannot be denied that newer technologies which are eco-friendly are the solution for this problem. In Sri Lanka nonrenewable resources like coal, petroleum and natural gas are the mostly used which are also mostly imported. It is worth mentioning burning them result in the emission of CO2 to the environment. Renewable energy resource are solar energy, hydro power, wind energy and geothermal energy. Electricity in Sri Lanka are almost produced by Hydro Power, building dams across and utilizing the kinetic energy of water to turn into electrical energy. Although wind turbine are used to produce electricity in Sri Lanka, it doesn’t contribute much to the Sri Lankan power grid. Solar energy is also not very commonly used in Sri Lanka. Adopting to a more environment friendly energy resource could be an expensive choice, but considering the lost caused by climate changes we are in utter need to adopt to such Technologies.
The united nation quotes an article under the topic “The Climate Crisis, A Race We Can Win”. But it makes me question that could the once existed perfectly balanced ecosystem ever be reversed. Are we really playing a losing game? We live in a world of chaos where we tend to forget the most important Elixir of survival and trapped in our trivial matters. When we are already running out of time, it is not wise to step back and be a mere spectator. We are in a crisis, we aren’t sure of the exact way to overcome this crisis. We are constantly working on the remedies to reverse the disorder that we have caused. Now we have to be well educated on this issue and not turn a blind eye in this crucial moment. Let’s unite and save our home.
References
United Nations https://www.un.org/en/un75/climate-crisis-race-we-can-win
United Nations Climate Summit
https://www.un.org/.../clima.../un-climate-summit-2019.shtml
Nasa https://climate.nasa.gov
Sri Lankan Sustainable Energy Authority http://www.energy.gov.lk/en/renewable-energy/what-we-do
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