Survival strategies to mitigate climate change

To one with even a cursory awareness of climate change issues, the sixth and latest report released by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) gives the direst of warnings on inaction by countries and governments.

The first and second installments of this three-part assessment on current climate science were issued in August last year and last Monday, respectively.  The third and last part is expected in April. The unmistakable verdict on the first two is that Earth’s health has gone from bad to worse, and we dare say that the third part will carry the same tone.

Those who keep tabs on global current events will agree given the abundance of news stories coming out about severe and prolonged droughts, expansive wildfires, super hot summers, abnormally heavy rain anflooding, and disappearing snowcaps and melting of huge glaciers.

Most of the severe climate changes may be happening thousands of miles away from the Philippines, but our experience with tropical cyclones that have become more intense in the last years should prod us to take the IPCC warnings with more seriousness.

Focus on adaptation
and transformation

What majorly differentiates the sixth IPCC report with previous ones is a focus on adaptation and transformational responses that can bring fundamental changes to derail the path of further destruction on humanity.

The changing climate is expected to expose nearly half of the world’s population to severe climate shocks in the coming years, and climate action must be framed in the context of sustainable development. The report stresses that maladaptation or band-aid solutions, like building seawalls as a protection to sea surges, are not advisable.

Of course, as with previous IPCC reports, the ultimate solution to keep global warming to below two degrees Celsius of pre-industrial levels and to drastically cut carbon use, specifically fossil fuels like oil, gas, and coal.

The report urged governments, people, non-government institutions, and businesses to come together to draw up innovative solutions that will not just cut down on carbon emissions, but also respond to the ongoing changes already happening.

Vulnerabilities of the Philippines

For the Philippines, highlighted is the displacement of people caused by harsher tropical cyclones. This calls for better measures in responding to the aftermath of such disasters: restoration of basic services disrupted by the typhoons, rebuilding of shelters and homes at a faster clip, and an immediate reconnection of affected livelihoods to the economic network.

As with many other countries, climate change is also affecting our ability to produce food. While typhoons are capable of wiping out a harvest, warming temperatures bring with it the risk of pestilence and other diseases in farmlands.

The threat to rice-dependent countries like the Philippines has been singled out. New studies project the likely negative impact from an invasion of the golden apple snail, considered a notorious pest on rice, by 2080 with climactic conditions becoming suitable for its widespread replication.

Our fisherfolks are also vulnerable to warming seas, and the IPCC studies forecast a continuing decrease in catch. Not only is this bad news for the livelihoods of fishing communities, but also for many poor Filipino households that rely on cheap fish as part of their diets.

By 2050, the IPCC report projects further densification of urban areas, as affected people from agriculturally challenged localities flock to cities. This would increase the areas of slum dwellers and consequently aggravate poverty level in cities.

Metro Manila, with its high concentration of residents, was singled out in the report as one of the top 10 most vulnerable cities in Asia to economic disasters and disaster-related mortality from at least one of either cyclones, floods, droughts, earthquakes, landslides or volcanic eruptions.

Likewise, Metro Manila is also regarded as highly at risk to sea level rise resulting from the fast melting of ice from the northern hemisphere. Extremely vulnerable are its high concentration of infrastructure, utilities, commercial establishments and industries, as well as people.

Survival strategies

For every problem, there is a solution. Such is the overriding message of the sixth IPCC. While adaptation and transformational responses documented in the report are admittedly few, they offer keys to unlocking additional creative strategies in dealing with the effects of global warming.

Local governments have been seen as crucial in mobilizing grassroots-level responses, and these could provide models for replication. The Philippines, in particular, has been improving its disaster mitigation responses, and while there is still a lot of room left for improvement, lessons have been quickly distilled and applied by others.

Knowing our vulnerabilities should guide us in planning our survival strategies. More investments are imperative for monitoring weather movements and creating an early warning device, for example, which will give time for evacuations of endangered communities.

In agriculture, a better system of information dissemination is needed that will arm farmers with knowledge on how to deal with pestilence. The country needs to be more aware too of the importance of biosecurity, as more viruses could affect livestock.

A more conscious effort to decentralize economic activity away from Metro Manila should be seriously considered before it becomes too late. Better land planning is crucial.

Finally, a more resolute approach to shifting our energy sources from non-renewables to renewables like solar, wind, and hydropower must be vigorously supported.

The Philippines may not be facing yet the worst lashes of climate change, but inaction will bring us to that point where living will become unbearably painful. Let us be more forceful in protecting our environment for future generations to come.

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