Big strides for the environment
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Jan 12, 2012, 12:34:45 PM1/12/12
to Philippine environment conservation
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle.asp?xfile=data/opinion/2012/January/opinion_January43.xml§ion=opinion&col=
Big strides for the environment
Habiba Al Marashi (FIRST PERSON)
12 January 2012
The Emirates Environmental Group (EEG) joined in solidarity with the
more than 2,000 Filipinos and other expats in the UAE who participated
in the Hakbang Buhay 2012 (Walk for Life) held in Safa Park, Dubai
last weekend for the benefit of typhoon victims in southern
Philippines.
Typhoon Washi which ravaged the island of Mindanao last December
claimed more than 1,000 lives with hundreds still more missing and
affected more than 27,000 families who remain in evacuation centers as
their houses were swept away by flash floods.
There were several factors which contributed to the calamity. Some
survivors said ravishing mud and huge logs brought about by
deforestation which triggered the landslide crushed the residents.
Others added it was a disaster that was waiting to happen as the
Philippine government allowed thousands of families build houses on
the edge of riverbanks and that there was no early warning system on
the ground.
The sense of grief over the lost of family members, the displacement
of homes, the loss of livelihood, and the lack of basic necessities as
a result of the flash floods brought about by Typhoon Washi are
immeasurable but the human tragedy could have been made preventable.
Back on the home front, it is good and highly commendable that we
engage and cooperate with relief and rehabilitation works such as the
‘Walk for Life’ but our efforts will be more worthy if we take bigger
strides for the environment. One of these is to implement, on a
national level, more stringent but practical environmental regulations
to ensure environmental protection and make remarkable improvement in
lowering our carbon footprints, which is recorded to be one of the
highest in the world.
With the failure of the United Nations Conference of Parties (COP 17)
in Durban, South Africa last year to forge a binding agreement to set
a limit on worldwide CO2 emissions and substitute the Kyoto Protocol,
it has become incumbent upon independent governments to make
conscientious efforts in lowering their CO2 emissions.
Recent scientific studies show that by 2050, global temperature will
increase from 2 to 3 degrees Celsius. With this scenario, the majority
of the world’s population especially the people from developing
countries will experience grave climate change at a larger scale and
greater intensity.
Last year, we’ve also witnessed heavy flooding in China, a massive
earthquake and destructive tsunami in Japan, volcanic explosion in
Chile, forest fires in Arizona and New Mexico, severe drought in East
African region, severe tornadoes in the US, and fish and bird kills in
various parts of the world. Summers across the world have also become
hotter than ever with temperatures in the UAE going above 50 degree
Celsius. These are all strident wake-up calls from Mother Earth that
we must take heed.
We need to be more aggressive in promoting green thinking and
sustainable lifestyle among our residents. One area that we need to
improve on is proper waste management. Consider for example the
estimated 500 million canned beverages consumed every year in the UAE.
Out of these, only five per cent are sent for recycling as compared to
a world-wide average of 63 per cent. If we increase our average, we
put less pressure on our environment and consequently we lower our
carbon footprint.
On a wider scale, we need to mount pressure on local and international
policy makers and business decision makers to create practical and
sustainable solutions to global energy needs with the aim of
conserving our finite resources and preserving the environment.
We can join environmental organisations like the EEG to educate
ourselves on environmental issues and to take part in various
campaigns that promote a cleaner and healthier environment. We can use
as a springboard the Earth Day celebration in April and organise a
global coalition of environmental, inter-faith and civil rights groups
that will take action in the next UN Conference on Sustainable
Development (Rio +20) which is slated for the middle of the year.
The UAE is host to 202 nationalities, technically more than the entire
membership of the UN. If each of us will become an environmental
activist and take to task our respective governments to take care of
our environment, we will make great strides in giving justice to those
who have fallen victims of environmental disasters.
Mrs. Habiba Al Marashi is the Chairperson of Emirates Environmental
Group (EEG) and Board Member of the United Nations Global Compact
Big strides for the environment
Habiba Al Marashi (FIRST PERSON)
12 January 2012
The Emirates Environmental Group (EEG) joined in solidarity with the
more than 2,000 Filipinos and other expats in the UAE who participated
in the Hakbang Buhay 2012 (Walk for Life) held in Safa Park, Dubai
last weekend for the benefit of typhoon victims in southern
Philippines.
Typhoon Washi which ravaged the island of Mindanao last December
claimed more than 1,000 lives with hundreds still more missing and
affected more than 27,000 families who remain in evacuation centers as
their houses were swept away by flash floods.
There were several factors which contributed to the calamity. Some
survivors said ravishing mud and huge logs brought about by
deforestation which triggered the landslide crushed the residents.
Others added it was a disaster that was waiting to happen as the
Philippine government allowed thousands of families build houses on
the edge of riverbanks and that there was no early warning system on
the ground.
The sense of grief over the lost of family members, the displacement
of homes, the loss of livelihood, and the lack of basic necessities as
a result of the flash floods brought about by Typhoon Washi are
immeasurable but the human tragedy could have been made preventable.
Back on the home front, it is good and highly commendable that we
engage and cooperate with relief and rehabilitation works such as the
‘Walk for Life’ but our efforts will be more worthy if we take bigger
strides for the environment. One of these is to implement, on a
national level, more stringent but practical environmental regulations
to ensure environmental protection and make remarkable improvement in
lowering our carbon footprints, which is recorded to be one of the
highest in the world.
With the failure of the United Nations Conference of Parties (COP 17)
in Durban, South Africa last year to forge a binding agreement to set
a limit on worldwide CO2 emissions and substitute the Kyoto Protocol,
it has become incumbent upon independent governments to make
conscientious efforts in lowering their CO2 emissions.
Recent scientific studies show that by 2050, global temperature will
increase from 2 to 3 degrees Celsius. With this scenario, the majority
of the world’s population especially the people from developing
countries will experience grave climate change at a larger scale and
greater intensity.
Last year, we’ve also witnessed heavy flooding in China, a massive
earthquake and destructive tsunami in Japan, volcanic explosion in
Chile, forest fires in Arizona and New Mexico, severe drought in East
African region, severe tornadoes in the US, and fish and bird kills in
various parts of the world. Summers across the world have also become
hotter than ever with temperatures in the UAE going above 50 degree
Celsius. These are all strident wake-up calls from Mother Earth that
we must take heed.
We need to be more aggressive in promoting green thinking and
sustainable lifestyle among our residents. One area that we need to
improve on is proper waste management. Consider for example the
estimated 500 million canned beverages consumed every year in the UAE.
Out of these, only five per cent are sent for recycling as compared to
a world-wide average of 63 per cent. If we increase our average, we
put less pressure on our environment and consequently we lower our
carbon footprint.
On a wider scale, we need to mount pressure on local and international
policy makers and business decision makers to create practical and
sustainable solutions to global energy needs with the aim of
conserving our finite resources and preserving the environment.
We can join environmental organisations like the EEG to educate
ourselves on environmental issues and to take part in various
campaigns that promote a cleaner and healthier environment. We can use
as a springboard the Earth Day celebration in April and organise a
global coalition of environmental, inter-faith and civil rights groups
that will take action in the next UN Conference on Sustainable
Development (Rio +20) which is slated for the middle of the year.
The UAE is host to 202 nationalities, technically more than the entire
membership of the UN. If each of us will become an environmental
activist and take to task our respective governments to take care of
our environment, we will make great strides in giving justice to those
who have fallen victims of environmental disasters.
Mrs. Habiba Al Marashi is the Chairperson of Emirates Environmental
Group (EEG) and Board Member of the United Nations Global Compact
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