councilor.org
| Source | Louis Proyect |
| Date | 99/09/16/11:23 |
| London Times, Sept. 16 1999 Global warming will trigger series of disasters, UN warns BY NICK NUTTALL, ENVIRONMENT CORRESPONDENT THE world is facing a string of "full-scale environmental emergencies" which threaten to cause misery for billions of people in the 21st century, the United Nations said yesterday. It is calling on the rich, industrialised nations including Britain to cut their consumption of resources such as oil by 90 per cent to avert disaster particularly in Africa, Asia and other parts of the developing world. In an unprecedented assessment, the UN says air pollution is at crisis levels in many of the world's cities. Booming populations allied to over-exploitation of resources mean that many countries and regions are set to run out of water and fertile land for growing crops. A fifth of the world's people lack access to safe drinking water and half lack access to safe sanitation and "this situation is set to worsen dramatically". The UN cites the World Meteorological Office which claims that, unless water is used more wisely, 66 per cent of the world's population will face water shortages by 2025. The report, Global Environment Outlook 2000, says that global warming related to man-made emissions is now "inevitable", leading to a disastrous rise in sea levels and in weather-related disasters including sharp increases in flooding and hurricanes such as Hurricane Floyd. It says that it is already too late for many species of plants and animals, large swaths of the world's coral reefs and the tropical rainforests. Damage to the rainforests, vital habitats and the planet's green lungs which have been cleared for timber, agriculture and new cities, is now irreversible, the study concludes. The report, introduced in London by Klaus Topfer, executive director of the UN's Environment Programme, is based on a survey of 200 scientists in 50 countries. They cite global warming as the biggest threat to the planet followed by the scarcity of fresh water, deforestation and desertification. New threats are also emerging. Nitrogen loading of the world's environment, because of its use as a fertiliser in intensive agriculture and as a result of emissions from industry, power plants and cars, is proving to be a "largely uncontrolled experiment" on a global scale, say the experts. Excessive nitrogen levels in the environment are triggering the growth of unwanted plants which are strangling estuaries and coastal areas. "A massive increase in algal blooms is leading to underwater oxygen starvation which in turn is responsible for fish kills in areas like the Black Sea, Baltic Sea and Chesapeake Bay." Nitrogen emissions account for 6 per cent of global warming from man-made emissions and this is set to escalate. The experts are also alarmed at the prospect of new wars, partly triggered by environmental factors such as competition for fresh water, which will directly damage the environment and wildlife while making millions homeless who in turn take an ecological toll. Increased globalisation and the smashing of trade barriers through organisations such as the World Trade Organisation are in many cases accelerating environmental problems, the report says. "Where environmental issues are not incorporated in economic prices and decision-making, trade can magnify unsustainable patterns of economic activity and resource exploitation," says the report. A worrying aspect of this has emerged recently as countries challenge national environmental protection measures, claiming they are barriers to trade. "Efforts to protect sea turtles, dolphins and sea birds have been struck down for exactly that reason," says the report. It looks at the threats by region. While forest cover in Western and Central Europe has grown by 10 per cent since the 1960s, nearly 60 per cent of forests are damaged by acidification, pollution, drought or fires. Nearly 70 per cent of waste in Western Europe still ends up in rubbish tips. Waste levels in countries such as Britain have climbed by 35 per cent since 1980. Pollution of land through excessive use of fertilisers and pesticides and by contaminants such as heavy metals, persistent organic pollutants and radionuclides is widespread in Europe, which produces a third of the world's greenhouse gases. The report says that there are some glimmers of hope including the agreement in Kyoto by industrial countries to cut emissions and use cleaner production processes. The Danger Signs Key points in the report include the following: There will be a billion cars by 2025, up from 40 million since the Second World war. A quarter of the world's 4,630 types of mammals and 11 per cent of the 9,675 bird species are at serious risk of extinction. More than half the world's coral is at risk from dredging, diving and global warming. 80 per cent of forests have been cleared. A billion city dwellers are exposed to health-threatening levels of air pollution. The global population will reach 8.9 billion in 2050, up from 6 billion now. Global warming will raise temperatures by up to 3.5C, triggering a "devastating" rise in sea-levels and more severe natural disasters. Global pesticide use is causing up to five million acute poisoning incidents annually. |
Copyright (c) 1998, Joongpil Cho