Basics of Energy and Environment Short Notes Part-6

CLIMATE CHANGE

IMPORTANT MILESTONES

1972: Stockholm Conference in Sweden

1972: UN Environment Programme (UNEP) was estd.

1979: First Climate Change Conference organized by World Meterological Organization (WMO) held at Geneva

1980: IUCN published “World Conservation Strategy”, in this the term “sustainable development” was used for the first time

1988: IPCC was estd. by UNEP & WMO

IPCC (Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change)

• Headquarters: Geneva
• Main aims: To provide information on
• Climate change
• Adaptation
• Mitigation
• IPCC publishes a report, known as “Assessment Report”; first time published in 1990, latest (5^th report) in 2014

1992: UN Conference on Environment & Development a.k.a. Rio Summit or Earth Summit held at Brazil

During this conference, following were adopted:

1. Rio declaration of Environment & Development

It has 27 principles

1^st: Human being is at the centre of development

15^th: Precautionary principle

16^th: Polluter pays principle

1. Agenda 21: 1^st blue print to achieve Sustainable development in 21^st century
2. UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD)
3. UN Convention on Biological Diversity (UNCBD)
4. UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)

2002: (Rio + 10) World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, South Africa

2012: (Rio +20) UN Conference on Sustainable Development in Rio –de – Janeiro, Brazil

2015: 17 Goals (Sustainable Development Goals) were adopted which are to be achieved by 2030, in this the 13^th goal is Climate Action

CLIMATE

Average weather of hundreds to thousands to even millions of years

As per WMO, it is the average of minimum 30 years

Indicators of Climate change

1. As per IPCC, from 1980 to 2012, average temperature has increased by 0.85ºC
2. During last century, it increased by 0.7ºC
3. Ocean acidification: pH level of ocean is decreasing
4. Sea level is rising
5. Polar ice caps melting
6. Arctic & Greenland ice cover decreasing
7. Thawing permafrost
8. Frequent extreme climatic events like El Nino
9. Frequent floods, cyclones, droughts etc.
10. Advancing crop cycles
11. Decreasing crop yield

Factors causing climate change

Natural factors

• Milankovitch cycles
• Schwabe cycles
• Volcanic eruptions
• Meteor fall
• Aerosols spray
• Plate tectonics/Continental drift

 Anthropogenic factors

• Green House Gases emission
• Land use change

UNFCCC

• adopted 1992
• wef 1994
• Parties: 197 including India, US, EU
• Secretariat: Bonn (Germany)
• Aim: To stabilize GHGs level to such a point so that it doesn’t have dangerous interference in climate change

Conference of Parties (COP) to UNFCCC [World Climate Change Conference]

COP-1: (1995)  Berlin  ‘Berlin Mandate’

COP-3: 1997  Kyoto (Japan)  Kyoto Protocol was adopted

COP-7: 2001  Marrakech (Morocco)  “Marrakech Accords”

COP-8: 2002  New Delhi

COP-11: 2005  Montreal (Canada)  Proposal of REDD

COP-13: Bali (Indonesia)  “Bali Action Plan”

COP-15: 2009  Copenhagen (Denmark)  “Copenhagen Accord”

COP-16: 2010  Cancun (Mexico)  Idea for “Green Climate Fund”

COP-17: 2011  Durban (South Africa)  “Durban platform for enhanced action”

COP-18: 2012  Doha (Qatar)  Doha Climate Gateway

COP-19: 2013  Warsaw (Poland)  “Warsaw International Mechanism on Loss & Damages”

COP-20: 2014  Lima (Peru)

COP-21: 2015  Paris  “Paris Agreement”

COP-22: 2016  Marrakech (Morroco)

COP-22: 2017  Bonn (Germany)  Design of Talanoa Diaglogue

COP-24: 2018  Katowice (Poland)

Kyoto Protocol

• adopted Dec, 1997
• wef Feb, 2005
• Parties: 192 US not a party, Canada left, India is a party
• Aim: To reduce anthropogenic GHGs emission

Carbon Credit

It is a credit or a certificate or a recognition of an activity which prohibits or restricts or limits or reduces GHGs emission or absorbs GHGs

Carbon footprint

Total amount of GHGs emission of an entity

Green Carbon

Carbon captured & stored by trees & plants

Blue Carbon

Carbon captured & stored by marine & coastal ecosystem

Black Carbon

It is a strong light absorbing component of particulate matter released mainly during the incomplete combustion of fuel in the form of fine particles. It has a very high Global Warming Potential but low atmospheric life time. It contributes in decreasing surface albedo

Carbon Offset

Any entity emitting carbon at one place through an activity offsets it by any other activity at any other place

Carbon Leakage

The strict rules & regulations prevent carbon emission at one place but due to less strict rules at other places, it may increase

FUNDING MECHANISMS

Global Environment Facility (GEF)

• 1981
• Headquarters: Washington D.C.
• One of the biggest funds for environment protection
• Get funding cooperation from many bodies like World Bank

GEF acts as a funding mechanism for

• UNCCD [Desertification]
• UNCBD [Biodiversity]
• UNFCCC [Climate change]
• Stockholm Convention [POPs]
• Minamata Convention [Mercury]

Green Climate Fund

• under UNFCCC
• Idea came in 2010 in COP-16
• Heqdquarters: Sangdo, South Korea
• Aim; To have 100bn $ by 2020
• provides support especially to developing countries

 Adaptation Fund

• created by levying 2% surcharge/cess on Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) activities
• to be used for developing countries especially more vulnerable countries
• Mangement under Kyoto Protocol

PARIS AGREEMENT

• Adopted 2015
• came into effect on November 4^th 2016 thirty days after the date on which at least 55 Parties to the Convention accounting in total for at least an estimated 55 % of the total global greenhouse gas emissions have deposited their instruments of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession with the Depositary.
• Main aim:
• To keep global average temperature within the 2of pre – industrial levels and further effects to keep it within 1.5 of pre – industrial level
• To have $ 100bn every year by 2020, main contribution from developed countries
• Every party to submit National Determined Contribution (NDC) for minimum 5 years at a time, before country becomes a party, called as Intended NDC

India’s NDC (2021 – 2030)

• India to decrease Energy Intensity by 33 – 35% by 2030 at 2005 level
• India to increase Forest Carbon Stock by 2.5 to 3 billion tonne of CO₂.
• To have minimum 40% of electricity from non – fossil fuel sources

OZONE DEPLETION

Dobson Unit

• To measure columnar density of O₃
• 1 Dobson Unit 25 parts per billion
• Amount of O₃ molecules required to form a 10thick layer of ozone at standard temperature & pressure

Ozone Hole

The concentration of O₃ goes below 220 – 200 Dobson unit

Main reason associated with ozone hole formation in Antarctic & Arctic regions is the formation of Polar Stratospheric Cloud (PSC). PSC provides necessary condition for the increased rate of O₃ depletion

Impact of ozone depletion

UV – A → Not harmful

UV – B → Harmful

UV – C → Lethal

Effects of UV radiation
1. Impaired immune system

1. Eye Cataracts, Blindness
2. Skin Cancer
3. Reduced crop yield
4. Damage to sensitive crops like soyabean
5. Damage to marine food chain
6. Coral Bleaching

VIENNA CONVENTION

• adopted 1985
• wef 1988
• Aim: To protect O₃ layer
• Under this on 16^th Sept 1987, adopted Montreal Protocol to prohibit the substances that deplete O₃ layer
• 16^th September: International Day for the Protection of O₃ layer (World Ozone Day)
• The theme for 2017 is “Caring for all life under the sun”

Thanks

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