Asia Pacific is expected to produce roughly 45% of the world’s carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 2030 and up to 60% by the end of the century if current trends continue, according to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
The figures underscore the challenges the region’s policymakers face as they deal with rapid population growth, urbanisation and increasing consumption demand.
A store in Bang Phra Chonburi, uses a locally developed turbine that can generate power from wind speeds. Kaikorakosh
Emissions from transport worldwide are also expected to jump by 57% between 2005 and 2030. China and India alone will account for more than half that figure, according to the fifth edition of the Global Environmental Outlook (GEO-5), which was launched on the eve of the recent Rio+20 Summit.
With rapid growth in Asia Pacific countries leading to increasing emissions and degradation of natural resources, progress in addressing climate change has been limited compared with some other parts of the world.
Of the 10 countries in the world that are most at risk from climate change impacts, six are in Asia Pacific, according to GEO-5. Notable among them are the islands of the Maldives, 85% of which could be under water by 2100, according to some international projections.
Elsewhere in the region, South Korea and China are promoting low-carbon and green-growth policies aimed at reducing greenhouse-gas emissions. India, Indonesia and China have reduced or removed fossil fuel subsidies in an attempt to encourage their citizens to consume less energy.
“If the region would like to overcome these environmental problems, it has to have strong governance structures, sustainability approaches to integrate in all policy levels,” the report said.
Marine pollution, which is largely caused by land-based activities, is one area that has attracted far less attention than it deserves. The number of coastal “dead zones” has increased significantly.
Thirteen coastal dead zones out of 169 globally are recovering, while 415 coastal areas suffer from eutrophication, meaning that excess nutrients in the water stimulate excessive plant growth. In Asia Pacific, the dead zones are mostly found in the East Asian, Southeast Asian, Yellow, Bohai and South China seas. Marine litter has also been found in the Southeast and North Pacific, East Asian and Caribbean seas.
However, the report does identify four areas in which many countries have made significant progress: eliminating substances that deplete the ozone layer; removing lead from fuel; providing access to improved water supplies; and doing more research to reduce pollution of the marine environment.
Among major developing economies, India managed to phase out the production and consumption of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), carbon tetrachloride (CTC) and halons at the start of 2010.
Sri Lanka, the Maldives, China, Indonesia and Fiji eliminated CFCs nearly two years ahead of the 2010 deadline. Five of the six remaining CFC plants in China were shut down in 2007, and Indonesia banned CFC imports in 2008.
Air pollution is another concern and has been linked to premature deaths and numerous health problems, as well as reduced agricultural yields. The report estimates that global economic losses of $14-26 billion annually can be attributed to the impact of air pollution.
Water-related problems are also proving difficult to solve. Of 30 environmental goals identified by the UNEP, progress has been made on just one — access to clean drinking water. However, ensuring clean drinking water remains a challenge in many rural areas of Africa and the Pacific.
The elimination of lead in fuel, meanwhile, is one success story that nearly all countries can point to. The resulting health risk reduction, according to the report, can be expressed in monetary terms as $2.45 trillion a year or 4% of global gross domestic product.
In the bigger picture, though, governments will face more serious damage and degradation if current trends continue and they do nothing to cope with them, warned Achim Steiner, a UN undersecretary-general and UNEP executive director.
However, if governments carry out policies or promote technological innovations, it is still possible for them to accomplish their targets by the middle of the century.
The report makes a number of recommendations including specific long-term environmental targets, reliable data for decision-making, changes for both the short and long terms, investments, and governance measures to eliminate emissions sustainably.
Linking accurate environmental data with national economic statistics is one effective way to put environmental issues at the heart of government policymaking, the report suggests.
Some problems in the past were a consequence of a lack of statistics, or if the statistics were available, they were not considered integral to overall economic analysis. The result was slow progress in areas such as chemical pollution and waste reduction.
Similarly, electronic waste is currently the fastest-growing waste category in the world; however, the data in this area are insufficient in Asia Pacific and it receives less attention than it should.
http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/asia/303888/asia-s-carbon-challenge
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