'Collective efforts needed to combat global warming'

Disna Mudalige

Environmental enthusiasts say the global carbon dioxide level surpassing 400 parts per million (ppm) in the atmosphere, is a sober reminder for committed and collective efforts by the world to address the issue of global warming.

On May 9, the world's most important CO2 observatory installed in Mauna Loa in Hawaii, measured daily concentrations above 400 ppm, highest in 3.6 million years. The level of CO2 is not only rising, but it is doing so at an alarming rate over the past decades.

Green Movement of Sri Lanka Chairman Suranjan Kodituwakku said the concentration of CO2 should be controlled below 350 ppm to control the global warming with just 1.5-2 Celsius degrees rise in temperature. He said the world has far exceeded the safe level of carbon in the atmosphere.

He said Sri Lanka, being an island nation cannot escape from the dire results of global warming.

He said the world will have to endure extreme weather patterns and natural disasters more frequently in the coming years. He observed it is becoming unlikely that the world can achieve the goal of limiting global warming to just 2 degrees due to the increasing pollution and greenhouse gas levels.

He noted the global warming and climate change will greatly affect the agriculture, food security, fisheries and biodiversity aspects in the world.

He said countries such as Sri Lanka can do little to avoid this impending disaster, rather than improving the disaster resilience to face them. However, he added that it is important for Sri Lanka to organize and actively involve with the other countries to voice out the problems and injustices faced by the people in the country due to global warming.

He said G77 is a good platform for countries such as Sri Lanka to present their concerns to the world.

Western Provincial Council Agriculture, Agrarian Development, Minor Irrigation, Industries and Environment Minister Udaya Gammanpila said the entire global community has a collective responsibility to force the USA, the main contributor to CO2 emissions, to join hands with the rest of the world to control global warming. He said the USA accounts for 20 percent of the global carbon emissions, but it has stubbornly refused to ratify any carbon emission controlling treaty.

He said global warming is the biggest challenge faced by the human kind in its entire history.

"Our children's children will be the last generation on earth if we failed to take effective action to address global warming. The USA is always talking about human rights violations in third world countries which refuse to accept their hegemony," he said.