Lowering priority of Gadani coal-fired projects’ hailed

Karachi
Dr Qamaruz Zaman Chaudhry, an eminent climate change expert, has welcomed the government’s decision of giving lesser priority to the Gadani coal-fired power projects.
He said in view of the changing global perspective about intense carbon-emitting activities it would be very difficult to justify such plans.
Dr Chaudhry told The News that a new global consensus on reducing carbon emissions by all countries was expected in Paris in December, 2015.
He agreed that many countries, including India and People’s Republic of China, have coal-based power generation but they were not planning and adding new coal-fired power plants into their system.
“If we install new coal-based power plants it will mean we are locking-in our country for this technology for next 20-25 years. There are all indications that global community will not allow us to do that without any penalty. Internationally they are already talking about carbon tax on exports from countries using dirty technologies for power generation. So, we should have mixed power generation,” the expert said.
Chair of the Least Developed Countries Group Prakash Mathema at the UN climate change negotiations has said the latest science tells us that we can limit global temperature increase to a level that will save the poorest countries in the world. All that was required was the will to do it. But if we don’t act urgently the world’s poorest will suffer.
Two new reports from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) present alarming realities for the world’s poorest. Extreme temperatures, rainfall and drought, increase in aridity, more intense tropical cyclones, rising sea levels, and ocean acidification are among other adverse effects of climate change. These effects will lead to declining crop yields, undernourishment, injury and ill-health, and a number of other socio-economic and development challenges.
Mathema said, “It is still technically and economically feasible to limit temperature increases to below 1.5°C, but only if we all work together to resolve the climate change problem. If some countries advance their own interests and ignore the need for international cooperation, then we are doomed.”
The LDC Group is calling for urgent action to ensure that we reach a new legal agreement in Paris.
“As a sign of our commitment to addressing climate change, the LDC Group is already choosing low-carbon and climate-resilient development pathways. We want to show that everyone has a role to play,” said Mathema.
“We stand ready to engage proactively and progressively in the negotiations for a new agreement. We have demonstrated our leadership as the ‘moral voice’ in difficult negotiations.
“We sincerely hope that all nations will join us in this quest. Reaching a strong conclusion in Paris is crucial for us; it is about the very survival of our communities and future generations. If there is no progress, we stand to lose the most,” he said.