Climate change: Whose responsibility to take the initiative to cope with it?
Friday, 8 June 2007
BANGLADESH ritually observed another World Environment Day on last Monday. But one cannot help but ask what the utility of such observation is when the worst environmental threat hangs over this country from the global phenomenon of climate change. Bangladesh like other countries also emits greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. But Bangladesh's contribution to global pollution and hence worldwide climatic change, if sought to be measured, would be found to be very tiny indeed, probably not even one half of one per cent.
This country is discharging very insignificant amounts of greenhouses in the atmosphere which is creating the climate change. But from the massive emissions of a few countries, a handful of the rich and developed countries, Bangladesh would be likely devastated from the consequences of changes in the global weather. Bangladesh with an exceptionally big population among the countries of the world could find 16 per cent or more of its small land territory sinking into the sea by 2040 or earlier. A big part of its population would be displaced and turned into environmental refugees. Its agricultural productivity and food production would be hard hit cyclically from drought, heavy rains and floods. Indeed, the projections are that Bangladesh would be the hardest hit among the countries from global climate change.
The forecasts have been known to our leaders and governments for long. But what have they done about it, so far? Nothing it seems. Bangladesh should have been at the forefront leading the group of countries which are likely to be worst affected from climatic change, with demands made on the few rich countries for whose polluting actions they would face such environmental disasters. It is also not that the offending countries are completely unconscionable in these respects. Most of them have already embraced international protocols to cut down emission of greenhouse gases excepting the United States.
There is a lot of support within these countries for adopting the environmental restraints. If Bangladesh and other similarly bracketed countries stepped down harder on the pedal to mobilise international opinion and actions, then the offending countries would have probably made more commitments to take harder measures to reduce emissions of the dangerous gases. In that case, the top most offender, the USA, would also feel sufficiently persuaded to agree to reduce its emissions to safe levels.
But proactive policies in this direction is very unfortunately not noted in Bangladesh. Successive governments here have been behaving as if the disaster looming over the country will somehow automatically dissipate or be wished away or the people in this country should pathetically submit to fate. There could not be a worse case of governmental irresponsibility than this.
Leading a diplomatic initiative, Bangladesh by now could be in a position to get the commitments of some hundreds of billions of dollars from the offending countries as compensation and aid to set up defences against climate change. The pledges of assistance could be made for the short, medium and long terms and Bangladesh could progressively make good use of the funds to set up all kinds of barriers and devise different coping technologies to cope with the climatic changes. For example, dykes like in Holland can be built in the coastal areas of Bangladesh to guard against sea level rise and research can be attempted to evolve new varieties of seeds to resist drought and floods. But where is the initiative of Bangladesh in this regard?
A wise saying in our countryside says that 'even a mother will not open her bosom to her child for breast milk till the baby cries for it.' So, where is this cry or rather the shout from Bangladesh that the international community -- specially the top polluting countries -- owe it financial and technological help in generous doses to cope with climatic disasters which are not its own making?
Even now, it is not too late for Bangladesh to engage the international community hard, as it should, to mobilise adequate international funding that it would surely be needed in the near future to avert or mitigate the effects of global climatic change. Very valuable time has been already wasted. It is high time for the authorities in Bangladesh to wake up to this issue of getting compensation and assistance in response to the climatic adversities which is being thrust on it. At the same time, Bangladesh should be preparing a detailed plan for the fastest implementation identifying very precisely the areas where early work should be started to cope with climatic changes.
This country is discharging very insignificant amounts of greenhouses in the atmosphere which is creating the climate change. But from the massive emissions of a few countries, a handful of the rich and developed countries, Bangladesh would be likely devastated from the consequences of changes in the global weather. Bangladesh with an exceptionally big population among the countries of the world could find 16 per cent or more of its small land territory sinking into the sea by 2040 or earlier. A big part of its population would be displaced and turned into environmental refugees. Its agricultural productivity and food production would be hard hit cyclically from drought, heavy rains and floods. Indeed, the projections are that Bangladesh would be the hardest hit among the countries from global climate change.
The forecasts have been known to our leaders and governments for long. But what have they done about it, so far? Nothing it seems. Bangladesh should have been at the forefront leading the group of countries which are likely to be worst affected from climatic change, with demands made on the few rich countries for whose polluting actions they would face such environmental disasters. It is also not that the offending countries are completely unconscionable in these respects. Most of them have already embraced international protocols to cut down emission of greenhouse gases excepting the United States.
There is a lot of support within these countries for adopting the environmental restraints. If Bangladesh and other similarly bracketed countries stepped down harder on the pedal to mobilise international opinion and actions, then the offending countries would have probably made more commitments to take harder measures to reduce emissions of the dangerous gases. In that case, the top most offender, the USA, would also feel sufficiently persuaded to agree to reduce its emissions to safe levels.
But proactive policies in this direction is very unfortunately not noted in Bangladesh. Successive governments here have been behaving as if the disaster looming over the country will somehow automatically dissipate or be wished away or the people in this country should pathetically submit to fate. There could not be a worse case of governmental irresponsibility than this.
Leading a diplomatic initiative, Bangladesh by now could be in a position to get the commitments of some hundreds of billions of dollars from the offending countries as compensation and aid to set up defences against climate change. The pledges of assistance could be made for the short, medium and long terms and Bangladesh could progressively make good use of the funds to set up all kinds of barriers and devise different coping technologies to cope with the climatic changes. For example, dykes like in Holland can be built in the coastal areas of Bangladesh to guard against sea level rise and research can be attempted to evolve new varieties of seeds to resist drought and floods. But where is the initiative of Bangladesh in this regard?
A wise saying in our countryside says that 'even a mother will not open her bosom to her child for breast milk till the baby cries for it.' So, where is this cry or rather the shout from Bangladesh that the international community -- specially the top polluting countries -- owe it financial and technological help in generous doses to cope with climatic disasters which are not its own making?
Even now, it is not too late for Bangladesh to engage the international community hard, as it should, to mobilise adequate international funding that it would surely be needed in the near future to avert or mitigate the effects of global climatic change. Very valuable time has been already wasted. It is high time for the authorities in Bangladesh to wake up to this issue of getting compensation and assistance in response to the climatic adversities which is being thrust on it. At the same time, Bangladesh should be preparing a detailed plan for the fastest implementation identifying very precisely the areas where early work should be started to cope with climatic changes.