Africa: Continent May Benefit From Global Climate ChangeG Fight

Kampala — CLIMATE change is here, it is real and has to be dealt with urgently. African and European institutions should work together to take advantage of the existing and emerging opportunities to counter the threat posed by this global public danger.

There is a fundamental unfairness implicit in climate change. The poorest and most vulnerable countries, which are the least to blame for the increase in green house gas emissions, are the most affected and least able to adapt. The threat to Africa, in particular, is extreme. Measures are, therefore, needed to protect the most vulnerable communities against climate destruction. We need to build the resilience of these communities as well as African economies.

Waiting will make matters worse in terms of human suffering, economic costs and damage to the ecosystem assets. This underlines coping with climate change as one of the most important and urgent challenges facing all governments as well as regional and international bodies.

The financial crisis, with all its associated problems, may actually be an opportunity for taking on actions to effectively respond to climate challenge.

As we prepare for Copenhagen in December 2009, where measures to deal with the global climate challenge will be agreed, we must make sure that the interests of the most vulnerable and least developed countries are not forgotten.

The global effort, as a central pillar of response to climate change, offers Africa an opportunity, in terms of providing a platform for strengthening and establishing new regional and international partnerships, even in the business sector. There is plenty of room for cooperation and joint efforts.

Adapting to climate change and reducing emissions are, of course, interrelated; the less the emissions are reduced, the greater the effects and costs for the affected countries. In this partnership, developed countries must support developing countries in building resilience and adapting to the effects of climate change. The question is; how can this be achieved?

Industrialised countries have a special responsibility to take the lead and make sufficient cuts in emissions. Most of those cuts should be made at home and will require significant additional investments in clean technology. But considerable additional investments will also need to be made in developing countries. A key element in the negotiations leading up to Copenhagen is how sufficient support can be mobilised to enable developing countries make these investments.

Over the past few years, one of the key sources for additional private investment in clean technology in developing countries is the Kyoto Protocol's Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). The protocol allows industrialised countries to make investments to reduce green house gas emissions where the impact of the investments is greatest. This is a win-win and cost-effective solution. It has helped to transfer investments and technology from developed to developing countries. It also allows entry into the international carbon market.

So far, a total of 1,450 CDM projects have been registered, resulting in the reduction of 270 million tonnes of green house gases. Most of these projects are in Asia. Very few are in Africa.

This regional disparity is one of the main weaknesses of the CDM, but also one that can and has to be corrected for African countries to meaningfully benefit from it. In addition, greater domestic capacity and institutional support in Africa are needed for the project, but the requirements are far from insurmountable. The necessary reform of the CDM, to make it administratively less burdensome, while ensuring its integrity, should facilitate this further.

Joint efforts between the developing and the developed world are needed. Cooperation between African institutions and European countries are already thriving in many areas. Climate Change and emissions trading should be a new and rapidly expanding area of cooperation. And one that will benefit all involved.

The seriousness attached to climate change by African institutions is evidenced by the Climate Information for Development in Africa (ClimDev-Africa) programme, a partnership initiative of the African Union Commission, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) and the African Development Bank.

ClimDev-Africa seeks to facilitate the development of policies, practices, services, observation networks and communication with stakeholders to enable effective climate change mitigation and adaptation in Africa.

The African Climate Policy Centre being established at UNECA offers a platform and mechanism for multi-actor cooperation, including the pursuit of European ambitions to promote a wider distribution of CDM projects, to meet the African wish to deal effectively with climate change.

The European Union (EU) has indicated its ambition to increase the flow of resources for the CDM to the least developed countries and the small vulnerable island states. In March, the EU announced its longer-term vision on the global carbon market, indicating that it intends to gradually move towards cap and trade systems also in advanced developing countries.

A key element of this strategy is, however, also the intention to strengthen the role of CDM for least developing countries.

In December 2008, the European Union took a decision to this effect, limiting the acceptance of new CDM projects under the EU's independent target to reduce its emissions by 20% in 2020 to CDM projects from least developed countries.

If we join efforts and work together, we shall promote sustainable development while strengthening our forces to deal with climate change through mitigation and adaptation.

The writer is the executive secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa

Fish that triggers hallucinations found off British coast

A species of bream, sarpa salpa, which can trigger hallucinations when eaten, has been been discovered in British waters due to global warming.

The Sarpa salpa fish is a potentially hallucinogenic form of Bream normally found in off the coast of Africa Photo: BNPS

The species of bream is normally found in the balmier waters of the Mediterranean and South Africa, was found by fisherman Andy Giles in his nets in the English Channel.

Mr Giles, 38, caught the fish, which is instantly recognised by its gold stripes running along its body, six miles south of Polperro, Cornwall.

"We were trawling for lemon sole and hauled up the net at the end of the day and almost immediately saw this striped fish, we didn't have a clue what it was," he said.

"I had never seen one before and after taking a photograph of it I tried to look it up on the internet and called some friends to see if they knew what it was.

"I put it in the fish box and brought it back for experts to have a look at it.

"Now I realise what it was and the effects it can have, perhaps I should have taken it into town to sell to some clubbers!"

There have only been three previous recordings of sarpa salpa in British waters before, with one of them being off the Channel Islands in 1983.

James Wright, a senior biologist at the National Marine Aquarium in Plymouth, said: "These are a fairly common fish off Tenerife, Malta and Cyprus but it is very rare to get them this far north.

"It could be a single fish that was shoaling with a different species but it could be that there are more of them in our waters."

Sarpa salpa are a popular dish in many Mediterranean restaurants.

But according to marine experts, certain species of plankton-eating fish, like the sarpa salpa, can give off hallucinogenic fish poisoning if the heads or other body parts are consumed.

The effects include vivid hallucinations within minutes of eating it which can last for days.

In 2006 two men, one aged 90, were hospitalised in the south of France after eating sarpa salpa.

The elderly man suffered from auditory hallucinations a couple of hours after eating the fish followed by a series of nightmares over the next two nights.

The younger man, aged 40, endured similar effects which took 36 hours to disappear.

The Effects of Global Warming

The effects of global warming are both consequential and widespread, and will continue to be catastrophic.

Melting Glaciers and Polar Ice Caps

Melting glaciers, polar ice caps and other frozen grounds are causing, and will continue to cause, a plethora of problems for mankind and all living species. The most pressing problems include:

• Rising sea levels, which lead to flooding and displacement and death of possibly millions of people.

  Per ClimateCrisis.net, the Inconvenient Truth website, "Global sea levels could rise by more than 20 feet with the loss of shelf ice in Greenland and Antarctica, devastating coastal areas worldwide."

• Fresh-water polar ice caps melting into salt-water oceans alter the ocean gulf-stream patterns that regulate temperatures. This process leads to major temperature-pattern changes around Earth.

• The changing landscapes and higher temperatures in polar regions will endanger countless animal and plant species, and irretreivably alter the balance of the ecosystem.

• Ice caps and glaciers serve as sunlight reflectors, bouncing high-temperature sun rays back into space and away from Earth. When these natural structures have diminished greatly or vanished, Earth will be further warmed as the darker oceans absorb much of the sun ray heat.

"The Arctic Ocean could be ice free in summer by 2050" per ClimateCrisis.net.

Extreme Weather-Related Effects of Global Warming

As a result of global warming processes, extreme weather-related effects will continue to impact Earth:

• Droughts and heat waves - Per Environmental Graffiti.com, "Although some areas of Earth will become wetter due to global warming, other areas will suffer serious droughts and heat waves. Africa will receive the worst of it, with more severe droughts also expected in Europe. Water is already a dangerously rare commodity in Africa..."

• Hurricane intensity and frequency - Time magazine reported in September 2008: "All these hurricanes in such a short period of time begs the question: are storms getting stronger, and if so, what's causing it? According to a new paper in Nature, the answer is yes — and global warming seems to be the culprit.

  "Researchers... at Florida State University analyzed satellite-derived data of tropical storms since 1981 and found that the maximum wind speeds of the strongest storms have increased significantly in the years since... They believe that rising ocean temperatures — due to global warming — are one of the main causes behind that change."

  ClimateCrisis.net adds, "The number of Category 4 and 5 hurricanes has almost doubled in the last 30 years."

Global Warming Effects on Mankind

Among the direct effects on mankind of global warming are:

• Homeless refugees displaced by flooding, hurricanes and drought.
• Increased hunger due to food shortages because of loss of farmable land
• Spread of diseases, such as malaria and lyme disease, due to the migration of disease-carrying insects with warmer, wetter weather and more standing bodies of water in the northern hemisphere.
• Economic hardships caused by catastrophic conditions, such as those in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
• War and conflicts over shrinking resources.

Summary

Global warming will continue to affect Earth through increased ocean levels which cause flooding, as well as altered weather patterns. Mankind will be negatively affected in a number of vital ways.

Transportation and Its Impact on Global Warming

Transportation is important to the lives of many individuals, not just Americas. Many commuters rely on the road to get them to and from work, to travel on vacation, to run weekly errands, as well as to make it to important appointments. Unfortunately, we are starting to learn just how much of an impact our reliance on transportation costs. This is most evident in global warming.

When it comes to global warming, you will find that it is defined as the rise in the earth?s temperature, due to the increase in the emission of greenhouse gases. Although all of the vehicles on the road does have a negative impact on global warming and the environment, it is not the sole cause. With that in mind, transportation is an issue that should be discussed. It has been said that each car that is taken off the road can reduce carbon emissions by as much as seven to eight hundred pounds!

Although there is proof that our vehicles have a negative impact on the planet, most of us keep on driving, as if there were nothing wrong. Why is this so? It is largely due in part to a popular misconception. Unfortunately, many drivers believe that they have to completely give up their vehicles or buy a new, energy efficient one. Of course, these methods are the best ways to go about reducing the amount of carbon dioxide that enters into the earth?s atmosphere, but it is important to remember that these two options are not your only.

As previously stated, you do not have to completely give up your vehicle to help in the fight against global warming. What you will want to do, however, is limit your uses. Are you able to carpool or use public transportation? Is your workplace within walking distance? If it is, you may want to leave your vehicle in your driveway. With that in mind, be sure to remember that you do not have to completely give up your vehicle. For instance, you may need to drive yourself to and from the supermarket. If so, try and invite a friend along or carpool with another family member. Also, limit your shopping trips and get as much as you can all in one trip. These are all steps that can help.

In keeping with using your vehicle, it advised that you get your vehicle checked. Does your car?s air filter need to be changed? Are your tires properly inflated? Did you know that these two simple things can save you money, while helping to stop the affects of global warming? They can. In fact, many experts suggest that you change your car?s air filter once a month. As for your car tires, keeping your tires properly inflated at all times can help to get you better gas mileage, as well as lessen the amount of pollutants that come from your vehicle.

As previously stated, one of the best ways to reduce the carbon dioxide emissions from your vehicle is to upgrade. If you are driving an older model, you may want to consider upgrading. There are a number of affordable energy efficient vehicles and hybrids available for you to choose from. Even if you are unsure as to whether or not a new car is in your budget, you may still want to take a look at what is available. Many consumers are actually surprised with the affordability of many hybrids and other energy efficient vehicles.

As a reminder, you are urged to do your part to help limit the amount of carbon dioxide that enters the earth?s atmosphere from your own vehicles. With that in mind, its important to remember that you do not have to go completely green, which is a term used to commonly define global warming activists. Every step that you take to help in the fight against global warming, no matter how large or small, is likely to help.

An Overlooked Part of Global Climate Change

Fire is often an overlooked part of global climate change, according to a new study, which is published in the April 24th issue of Science.

Intentional deforestation fires alone contribute up to one-fifth of the human caused increases in emissions of atmospheric carbon dioxide.

Excerpts from the EurekAlert article..........

In addition to carbon dioxide, methane, aerosol particulates in smoke, and the changing reflectance of a charred landscape each contribute to changes in the atmosphere caused by fire. Consequences of large fires have huge economic, environmental, and health costs, report the authors of the study.

The 22 authors of this study call on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to fully integrate fire into their assessments of global climate change, and consider fire-climate feedbacks, which have been largely absent in global models.

Jennifer Balch, a member of the research team, explains that there are bigger and more frequent fires from the western U.S. to the tropics. There are "fires where we don't normally see fires," she said, noting that it is in the humid tropics that a lot of deforestation fires are occurring, usually to expand agriculture or cattle ranching. "Wet rain forests have not historically experienced fires at the frequency that they are today."

Are proofs of global warming actually myths?

Andrew Bolt offers refutation of several evidences of global warming which he labels "myths." The 10 proofs of global warming he refutes are

1. The world is warming
2. The polar caps are melting
3. We've never had such a bad drought
4. Our cities have never been hotter
5. The seas are getting hotter
6. The seas are rising
7. Cyclones are getting worse
8. The great barrier reef is dying
9. Our snow seasons are shorter
10. Tsunamis and other disasters are getting worse

The second is interesting, the amount of ice in the Antarctic has increased over the last 3 decades. Issue 1 is a shame as I think the biosphere would be more productive if it were warmer, especially in temperature and polar climes. Hopefully the higher CO₂ will increase biomass despite lack of temperature increase.


He tackles issue 4 via record high temperatures. While interesting, it is not the best way to address it. Cities probably are warming via the urban heat island effect.

Global Warming - Global Climate Change

If there is global warming then will there also be global climate changes?

Questions we should ask ourselves: Is global warming happening?

If yes, then: Why is this warming taking place, what are the causes? Are they natural or are they man made?

We could then ask: What impact will this warming have on the climate globally?
And also: Is there anything we can do, as a global community or individually, to stop the warming, slow it down, or reverse it?

The biggest question of all:

Can we, the most successful species on the planet ever, allow ourselves to be ignorant and not take action, one way or the other? Can we allow ourselves to leave behind something different than we received? (Would we do that we anything else in life that we receive?)

So what is global warming

Global warming is the gradual increase of the earth and ocean temperature as a result of the build up of certain gases which trap heat in the atmosphere. These heat-trapping gases, also called greenhouse gases, occur naturally and are produced naturally in certain areas of the planet, but they are also produced in very large quantities through the use of fossil fuels.

One reason it is difficult to pinpoint if global warming and climate change is taking place is that it is a slow process, and a process that has occurred many times before man came on the scene.

Should I be concerned about this

And so what if the ice caps are melting? I am nowhere near an ice cap. What does that have to do with me?

This should be obvious. What happens on one side of the globe affects people on the other side. Most of us strongly believe that, when it comes to politics and economics, and it is as true for the climate as well.

We also know that a natural phenomenon, such as an earthquake, can take place in mid-ocean and kill tens of thousands of people at distances of thousands of miles (such as the December 2005 tsunami).

Eruptions of major volcanoes have profound impact, not only on the people in its vicinity, but also on people far away and the climate even on the other side of the globe.

At the end of the Gulf War in the Middle East in 1991 many of the oil wells in Kuwait were put on fire deliberately. The emissions from these fires caused major climate changes in many parts of the world.

The Earth gets warm and there is Life

The earth is warmed by the sun. The sun’s activities and the earth’s position to the sun have a direct natural effect on our climate.

In addition to the general heat coming from the sun, there are also sunspots generated on the sun’s surface. These sunspots are areas with increased magnetic activity and seem to be the cause of sun flares and mass ejections. When earth is in the path of these flares, enormous waves of additional heat and magnetism impact our planet. The results can be higher temperatures, when other elements that control our climate are disappearing, such as certain protective layers in the atmosphere.

The earth’s orbit around the sun is elliptical, and so there are times when the earth is closer to the sun than others. When that occurs, it’s normal to have an increase in the world’s temperatures.

The earth is kept warm by gases in the atmosphere. These gases, such as carbon dioxide and methane, as well as water vapor, prohibit heat from escaping into space. If our atmosphere contained none of these gases, our planet would be a very cold place. The question being debated is if there actually is an increase in these green house gases that then trap more heat, and so cause climate change.

These gases are created naturally from wetlands and the arctic tundra. Plants in other parts of the world use these gases and in exchange give out oxygen, a gas that we need for breathing.

How does Global Warming Affect the Climate

Average temperatures world wide will rise. There is no consensus among scientists as to how much. But even a small rise can have vast impact on our environment.

With more heat in the atmosphere the temperature of the oceans will go up. This in turn will impact the ice caps, as well as hot water eco-systems. At the ice caps the glaciers will begin to melt. Some say this has already started.

As the water in the oceans heats up it will absorb less and less CO2 (carbon dioxide), thereby contributing further to global warming. The ice caps and the oceans have a very important part in the balancing of global climate. Fewer ice caps … less reflection of sunlight … more heat stays in. Warmer oceans … less reflection … more heat stays in. Inland glaciers will also feel the effect and melt.

As the ice caps and inland glaciers melt, water levels will rise. This will put low-lying coastal areas under threat of flooding.

As the water temperature changes, it will influence the frequency and the ferocity of hurricanes and tornadoes.

As ocean temperatures go up, finely balanced underwater ecosystems may not be able to survive, such as coral reefs in tropical areas, thereby affecting the whole oceanic eco-system.

As ocean temperatures go up, there will be less rain in hot dry climate zones. This means longer and more devastating droughts. These areas will be more susceptible to wild fires. Deserts will expand, and whole eco-systems will be threatened.

As inland glaciers melt, the flow in the rivers coming off them will increase, causing floods.

Have Climate changes happened before

Climate changes have occurred and will continue to occur naturally. They occur when there is a change in global temperatures due to the influences mentioned above. This influences ocean temperatures, precipitation, deforestation and the migration of wildlife. Relatively recent examples of climate changes are the ice ages and the periods in between; the last ice age ending some 10.000 years ago.

How much do we humans as a species influence this process of global warming

As we have seen greenhouse gasses occur naturally as part of the balancing of earth’s temperature.

Does human activity increase the concentration of these gasses in the atmosphere? Since everything on this planet has an affect on everything else, I think it is safe to say that human activity plays a role. We have to decide how much. Since the dawn of human history we have influenced our environment. We have dried up swamps, cut down trees to such an extent that forests vanished, we have expanded agricultural land at the cost of natural resources, we have mined and drilled and what not.

From the beginning of the Industrial Revolution our impact on nature has dramatically increased. Being so successful a species we have even increased in numbers to the detriment of other species.

In the natural world trees absorb carbon dioxide and other gases and exude oxygen, the gas we need in order to breathe. The burning of fossil fuels in transportation, industry, and power plants produce carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gasses in quantities larger than natural.

Since more and more forests are being cut down, especially the rain forests, there are less trees to absorb the carbon dioxide, again resulting in a rise in general greenhouse gas content in the atmosphere.

Is this a double indemnity

Is it possible that earth is going through a period of natural warming?
Is it possible that the activity of man is affecting the planet?

What are we up against

The above scenario may seem frightening and depressing. Frightening enough to make us do something, depressing if we don’t do anything. As stated global warming and climate change is a very slow process and has been going on for eons.

We don’t have all the facts, though a majority believes it is happening. Within a period of global warming, there could be shorter periods of cooling, off-setting the warming to some extent. Such shorter intervals can also be misleading, making some believe that global warming is just in the mind of a few crisis loving scientists or politicians.

Obviously we cannot change the natural causes, such as the earth’s orbit around the sun and the sun flares. But we can have an impact on the man-made causes. Just as we may have caused an aggravation of warming, we can also take an active role in reducing continued aggravation.

The question here is: Can we allow ourselves NOT to take such action?

Do we as top predator, or the most successful species, have a responsibility for what happened, and what will happen?

What actions can we take, as individuals or as societies, or both?

If there is just an inkling of possibility that we may be causing some of this, shouldn’t we do something about it?

Answer some of these questions will come in further articles as well as information on how we can make a difference. Some of the information will be for societies to take action on, but there is so much each and every one can do on a small scale, and many small rivers can make a big one.

Birte Edwards is a concerned world citizen. She writes on the subject of climate and going green. You can visit her blog http://www.alternativepowerpanel.com/blog for more. On other sites she talks about the importance of personal growth, coaching and living in a changing world.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Birte_Edwards

Mature Arctic Ivory Gull Seen in Massachusetts - first time in over a century

One of the claims about “global climate change” is that it will affect the normal ranges of flora and fauna of our planet. Well, with a very cold northern hemisphere this winter, that seems to happening. A bird not seen (as a mature adult) in Massachusetts since the 1800’s , an Ivory Gull, normally an inhabitant of arctic areas, has been spotted. Here are the details from the Plymouth, MA Patriot-Ledger. - Anthony

GULL-LOVER’S TRAVELS: Birdwatchers flock to Plymouth to spot rare specimen

PLYMOUTH — Jan 28th, 2009

The temperatures were in the single digits, but not low enough to keep the gawkers away. A celebrity was in town, behind the East Bay Grille, a visitor not seen in these parts in decades, if not longer.

But these weren’t paparazzi, and this wasn’t a Hollywood star. Rather, they were avid birdwatchers – about 20 in all – braving the frigid air as they scanned the bay and the edges of the breakwater with binoculars and spotting scopes.

And they would be rewarded, catching a glimpse of a glimpse of a rare, fully mature ivory gull. A birdwatcher reported seeing one in Plymouth last week, and another was spotted at Eastern Point Lighthouse in Gloucester. From Sunday through Tuesday, the avian visitor was a regular in Plymouth, much to the delight of birdwatchers, who came from near and far in hopes of adding the extremely rare bird to their life list.

Ivory gulls normally stay well above Newfoundland, living on Arctic ice where they follow whales and polar bears to feed on the scraps and carcasses they leave behind after making a kill.

Until this year, the last report of a fully mature ivory gull in Massachusetts was in the 1800s. Three immature birds were seen in the 1940s. In 1976, another immature bird had been spotted in Rockport.

Russell Graham of Dallas is flying in Friday for a three-day visit. He’s hoping the gull will still be in town when he arrives.

“The ivory gull is one of a handful of birds that every birder dreams of seeing but almost no one has.,” he said. “This isn’t a dream that’s confined to North America. There is also an immature bird in France that is causing the same reaction there. There are a couple of places where you can go in the summer and expect to see one but they are distant and expensive - Svalbard on Spitsbergen, Norway and Pond Inlet on Baffin Island, Canada.

“I never thought I would have the chance to see one and I can’t pass up this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”

If the gull is gone, Graham will consider a side trip to Nova Scotia, where two adult ivory gulls have been seen recently. “I’ll be keeping my fingers crossed,” he said.

John Fox of Arlington, Va., and his friend Adam D’Onofrio of Petersburg drove more than eight hours on Sunday to see the gull.

“No bird this morning,” Fox said a day later, shaking his head. “We left Virginia at three in the morning yesterday and arrived here 20 minutes too late.”

On Sunday morning, hundreds of people got to observe and photograph the gull as it fed on a chicken carcass someone put out on one of the docks in the parking lot. The bird stayed until 11 a.m., then flew across the harbor. It was not seen again for the rest of the day.

“We arrived at 11:20 and spent the rest of the afternoon in the parking lot, hoping it would return,” Fox said.

They stayed at Pilgrim Sands Motel and arrived at the parking lot early Monday morning for one more chance to see the ivory gull before returning to Virginia. Fox said it was his first time in Massachusetts. If he didn’t see the bird, he said, at least he could see Plymouth Rock before they left for home.

“That’s how it goes sometimes,” he said. “We don’t always see what we come for, but it’s nice to see some of the sights when you travel to a new area in hopes of seeing a rare bird.”

As Fox was planning his exit, a commotion caught his attention. One of the birders pointed toward the sky and said with a shout, “There it is.”

The pure white gull was flying toward the parking lot, silhouetted against a bright blue sky. Someone in the crowd announced for the record the gull had arrived at 7:45 a.m.

The bird flew in circles overhead, then landed on a snow bank in the middle of the parking lot. Cameras clicked and the birders “oohed and ahhhed” each time the ivory gull switched positions.

“Look how white it is,” someone said. “It’s got black feet, black eyes and a grayish-black beak,” said another.

The gull eyeballed the chicken carcass, still there from the day before, but it didn’t eat. Instead, it flew to the railing along the edge of the boat ramp and perched with a group of sea gulls. The photographers followed, changing positions to get the best lighting.

Fox stood with the group, talking with other birdwatchers, as the gull sat peacefully on the railing, observing all the people gathered around it. Was it worth the long drive up from Virginia?

“It sure was,” Fox said with a smile.