The Manila Times

Our slow, uncertain response to the looming climate change catastroph­e

- TECH SPACE

ASPECIAL report titled “Global Warming of 1.5 degrees Celsius” released late last year by the UN Intergover­nmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) proposes drastic, rapid and widespread changes in society to avert unpreceden­ted adverse impacts around the

that nations have 12 years to bring global warming down to pre-industrial levels or face devastatin­g consequenc­es such as destructiv­e typhoons and rising sea levels starting year 2030.

To radically reduce global warming, the report recommends that greenhouse gas pollution must be reduced by 45 weather intensifie­d by climate change will see the world “sleepwalki­ng into catastroph­e” over the next decade. landmark internatio­nal initiative seeks to hold fossil fuel companies accountabl­e for the carbon emissions that drive global warming. Hearings have already been held in London and New York.

Recent press releases from the Climate Change Commission website feature the Commission

- ing World Wetlands Day and the Cabinet cluster lauding NEDA’s commitment to green its systems and practices while tracking its carbon footprint. There’s also an extensive folder of messages and remarks delivered here and abroad by the head of the agency.

Is it lethargy, procrastin­ation or distress the face of the seemingly insurmount­able challenges that lie ahead? It’s easy to fall into stupor when one realizes the enormity of the grave responsibi­lity for the future not only of the country but also of the entire world. At the same time, the available solutions at present hardly scale in comparison.

Reforestat­ion or massive planting of trees to capture carbon dioxide from the atmosphere will make

targets, researches show. Huge tracts of land that may include plantation­s currently devoted to food production or as natural habitat will have to be converted to carbon sinks to have an appreciabl­e positive impact. In reality, carbon sequestrat­ion technology is still the most effective approach in curbing CO2 emissions.

Unfortunat­ely, the developmen­t of carbon capture mechanisms is typically described as viable but

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