Ja to benefit from climate financing plan

Jamaica has welcomed the news that it is likely to benefit from a climate financing plan to be funded by developed countries and pursuing that will be one of its priority agenda items when the United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) gets under way in Glasgow, Scotland, today.

Pearnel Charles Jr, who has portfolio responsibility for climate change, shared this news with his colleagues in the House of Representatives on Wednesday.

“Yesterday (October 27) we were greeted with the heartening news that the UK COP26 presidency has developed a Delivery Plan for Climate Finance, in which strategies are delineated to increase the delivery of climate finance from developed countries to vulnerable countries by 2023. This is a major breakthrough in preparation for climate negotiations, where the issue of the five unmet goal of mobilising US$100 annually to all developing countries embattled by the impacts of climate change will be widely discussed.

“Jamaica and other developing countries will be holding them to this commitment at COP26,” Charles told the House.

He said another issue of particular interest to Jamaica in the COP26 negotiations is that of compensation for loss and damage associated with climate change impacts, including the effect of extreme weather events and slow onset events; that is, the impacts associated with increasing temperatures, loss of biodiversity, sea level rise, and salinisation.

Also, the need to secure net zero carbon emissions by 2050 of the major global greenhouse gas emitters, in order ensure that the Paris Agreement goal of limiting long-term temperature increases to 1.5oC above pre-industrial levels is achieved.

For small vulnerable island states, such as Jamaica, failure to meet these goals will significantly and irreversibly affect our quality and way of life for generations to come. Indeed, the alarm with respect to the global climate emergency was again recently raised by the head of the UN World Meteorological Service, Petteri Taalas, who stated, “We need to transform our commitment into action that will have an impact on the gases that drive climate change. We need to revisit our industrial, energy and transport systems and whole way of life.”

Jamaica is no stranger to weather and climate extremes, from devastating all-island droughts which occurred in 2014, 2015 and 2019, to heavy rainfall, severe flooding and landslides from the impact of Tropical Storms Delta, Zeta and Eta in October and November 2020.

The Meteorological Service of Jamaica has indicated that, to date, the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season was the most active in recorded history, producing 31 systems, all but one of which became named storms. Of these 30 named storms, 14 developed into hurricanes, of which seven further intensified into major hurricanes. This phenomenon is, in part, attributable to the impact of climate change.

“In addition to the periods of drought and heavy rains, there is also the issue of the extensive coastal erosion experienced along the southern and eastern sections of the island, in part, as a result of sea level rise. These events have negatively impacted the Jamaican economy, to the tune of billions of dollars, and have caused dislocation in several key economic sectors, particularly the agriculture sector.”

All of the above make clear how important the upcoming COP26 is and what are some of the key Issues to be negotiated. The UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, at a recent youth climate summit, summarised the main goals of COP26 as coal, cash, cars and trees”. In this regard, he stressed the need for the global community to:

• Transition from the use of coal to generate electricity;

• Realise the annual climate finance goal;

• Advance electric mobility; as well as

• The planting of trees to act as sinks for greenhouse gases and to assist countries in adapting to climate change.

Indeed, for Jamaica, these are some of the key issues which will determine the success or failure of COP26.

christopher.serju@gleanerjm.com