The issues of climate change and global warming that occupied the centre stage of international affairs early this year, faded for some time. But they came roaring back recently after publication of world climate report, the observations of which were emphatically opposed by President Trump and his men.
It was an exhaustive scientific report directly contradicting much of the Trump administration's position on climate change. That climate change is driven almost entirely by human action, was reaffirmed in the report. Whereas the Paris climate agreement pinpointed carbon emission as the dominant cause of global temperature rise prompting climate change across the world, President Trump has put America at odds with the rest of the world, when it comes to the goal of combating climate change.
Contradictions raised by Trump and his men appear untenable in view of growing evidences of temperature rise. Bangladesh being one of the largest deltas in the world is highly vulnerable to natural disasters because of its geographical location and its physical, social as well as economic conditions are typically similar to those of the countries most vulnerable to natural disasters. The total land area is 147,570 sq. km. consisting mostly of floodplains leaving major part of the country prone to flooding during the rainy season. Moreover, the adverse effects of climate change - especially high temperature, sea-level rise, cyclones and storm surges, salinity intrusion, heavy monsoon downpours etc. have aggravated the overall economic development of the country.
Bangladesh is predominantly agricultural with two thirds of the population engaged in farming or agro-based industrial activity. The climate of Bangladesh can be characterised by high temperatures, heavy rainfall, high humidity, and fairly marked three seasonal variations like hot summer, shrinking winter and medium to heavy rains during the rainy season.
While much of the discussion of climate change looks at the role of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in warming the planet, the report puts a renewed emphasis on the impacts of other atmospheric pollutants like ozone and smoke, which can cause respiratory problems and lead to premature death, of which smoke is a direct result of human activities and ozone layer is continuously depleted by interference by human action. These pollutants may not be the central element in causing deterioration in world climate, but they are making significant contribution to climate change.
The US administration is actually underplaying the effects of global warming and climate change and the reasons thereof. The truth is, while the rest of the world is thinking about and working on development of alternative energy in preference for fossil fuels to reduce carbon emission, the USA pledges to increase its petroleum production.
As one of the most vulnerable countries, Bangladesh believes that the human factors attributable to climate change will have to be brought under control to reduce its impact. The country must step up our efforts to address global warming, otherwise these consequences will continue to intensify and increasingly affect the entire planet. More and more of the predicted impacts of global warming are now becoming a reality, which is a matter of great concern and be addressed with priority.
The views expressed in the report contradict claims by President Trump and his administration continually downplaying human contribution to climate change and questioning the ability of scientists to predict its effects. Happily, we have the practical solutions at hand to dramatically reduce carbon emissions, slow the pace of global warming, and present a healthier and safer world for the future.
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