$43 mn Green Climate Fund to support Coastal resilience

This project will be implemented in Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra for Mangrove restoration, building community resilience and other aspects for 6 years to support India's Paris Goals.

More here: http://adaptation-undp.org/green-climate-fund-approves-us43-million-undp-supported-project-boost-climate-resilience-millions

Ranjan Panda
Convener, Combat Climate Change Network, India

Email: ranjanpanda@gmail.com

Tweets @ranjanpanda
Tweets @MahanadiRiver

Titli Update: Storms and aftermath - pollution of the Sea - Ranjan Panda

(Image: FB page of Special Relief Commissioner, Odisha)

The Very Severe Cyclonic Storm "Titli" has done a lot of damage to Odisha coasts, with high speed wind and the extreme rainfall that followed.  Titli crossed the coast near Palasa in Srikakulam district of Andhra Pradesh to the southwest of Gopalpur with estimated maximum sustained surface wind speed of 140-150 kmph gusting to 165 kmph between 0430 and 0530 hours IST of 11th October 2018.

Like the Phailin in the same time of the year, back in 2013, the rainfall in the aftermath caused floods and other devastation that the government had not anticipated well.  About 24 human deaths and more than 24000 livestock casualty recorded so far.  The actual figure may be more.  There is no estimate available for the casualty suffered by wildlife. A television news channel report this morning showed how elephants were being washed away due to heavy floods in Mahanadi but I could not confirm the details as yet. 

The heavy downpour that followed the landfall of Titli flooded the Rushikulya and Vanshadhara rivers affecting 16 districts of Odisha.  As per reports shared by the Special Relief Commissioner of the state, more than 5.7 million people in 7229 villages of these districts have been affected by the rainfall and the floods.  Agriculture in these villages has received a heavy jolt as more than 2.3 hundred thousand hectare of crop fields have been damaged.    

Going beyond politics, some real questions need to be asked -

Odisha's opposition parties are already criticising the state government for not being able to keep its promise of 'zero casualty' but the government seems to have given more attention to the relief and rehabilitation works, rightly so. 

The political debate will not settle soon. We will all participate in that, to understand where the failure lay and how to change our plans in future. Did the weatherman fail in proper predictions of the aftermath? Did the government fail to gauge the gravity of the predictions?  Did the local administration not act in line with the Disaster Management Plan? Did the local Disaster Management Committees (supposed to have been formed and trained by the government and other agencies) failed in carrying out the due procedures?  All these questions will haunt the state of Odisha that's currently engaged in relief and preliminary rehabilitation efforts.

The Debris that go into the sea –

In this post I am trying to flag an important issue that is normally not discussed as a major issue in such storm stroke aftermaths.  I am talking about the debris that is washed away from the inlands to the sea.  Today morning Himanshu Thakkar of SANDRP twitted to me a video https://youtu.be/9wazyFvJZbU that shows how the mouth of Rushikulya river has received loads of garbage and other debris due to Titli and floods. 

(Image: Screen shot of YouTube Video by Times of India)

We often forget that our rivers are carriers of all our wastes into the sea throughout the year, more so during the monsoon months.  Disasters such as this add to the force of the water that go into the sea and bring along more of our wastes into the sea.  Earlier I have already written extensively how plastic pollution of the sea is causing huge damage to the oceans as well the earth.  http://bit.ly/2QRjOEB

(Image: Screenshot from my article published in www.sixdegreesnews.org)

Time our disaster planning factors in these menaces along with other damages being done.  Climate change is already causing more storms and aggravating the damages.  Some studies point out that the frequency of storms in the Bay of Bengal is increasing, more than any other bay, due to climate change. 

We need to combine our brains on this and have more discussions, studies and action plans. 

Ranjan Panda

Convenor, Combat Climate Change Network, India

Email: ranjanpanda@gmail.com

Skype: ranjan.climatecrusader

Tweets @ranjanpanda

Tweets @MahanadiRiver  

Finding a friend in a stray dog

Coco (as Khushi, my daughter,has named her) is now a regular visitor to us. She is a stray dog and was very weak when we first saw her. She feared everything, and was scared even to eat something we would offer. We had to leave the food a few yards away from our main gate and close it. Initially she watched us and the food from several yards away and after about 10 minutes of our invisibility she used to come and eat. In about 10 days she is now a friend and eats from Khushi's hands. That's an improvement. Hope she will continue to grace us with her acceptance of our friendship!

Ranjan Panda

Nothing is insignificant in Mother Nature's scheme of things

Good Morning!

Festive season wishes with a thought on Mother Nature

Today is the day of prayer, of building hope that we can tide over the storm and also of confirmation that real God is Mother Nature; and that, she doesn't stay in the glitzy and lavish pandals...

Good morning!
Have a great Sunday & Festive Week ahead!!

Inequality Index - India in bottom 15 rank

Oxfam's Inequality rank has this bad news for India. While we claim to be among fastest growing economy, the growth seems to be happening only for the super rich.

The index ranks 157 countries on their policies on social spending, tax, and labour rights. As per the report, countries such as South Korea, Namibia and Uruguay are taking strong steps to reduce inequality. However, countries like India and Nigeria did very badly.

https://www.financialexpress.com/india-news/inequality-index-india-ranks-in-bottom-15-out-of-157-countries-on-efforts-to-reduce-disparity/1342770/

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Ranjan Panda
Convenor, Combat Climate Change Network, India

Email: ranjanpanda@gmail.com

Tweet @ranjanpanda
Tweet @MahanadiRiver

The peace dialogue over Mahanadi river must continue: Ranjan Panda

Good #MahanadiTribunal is all set to start hearing, however #dialogue must continue.

#MahanadiPeaceInitiative

Mahanadi tribunal hearing to begin tomorrow

Read #MahanadiPeaceInitiative views as the #MahanadiTribunal starts hearings on the dispute between Odisha and Chhattisgarh on Mahanadi river water sharing.

Commons help us fight extreme precipitation events!

#Commons help us adapt to #extremeprecipitation caused flash #floods & related woes. Let's protect them in both #urban & #Rural areas...

#CommonsAwarenessWeek #CAW

Chilika lake under increased risk of climate change!

As the state of Odisha engages itself with relief & rehabilitation activities, some larger challenges need to be addressed. Increased #stormsurges are caused in the #BayOfBengal by #climatechange.
Severe #CyclonicStormTitli

Ranjan Panda
Convenor, Combat Climate Change Network, India

Email: ranjanpanda@gmail.com

Tweet @ranjanpanda
Tweet @MahanadiRiver

8 killed in AP: Severe Cyclone Titli update

Severe #CycloneTitli updates!

https://m.hindustantimes.com/india-news/eight-killed-lakhs-without-power-as-cyclone-titli-slams-andhra-odisha/story-8bBZjpA2VrzU4hC6nOuE1N_amp.html?__twitter_impression=true

Water commons and migratory birds: the intricate links!

Many #watercommons keep us in global maps for better reasons, besides being very important locally. #Chilika is such an example!

#CommonsAwarenessWeek #CAW

Know the corporates with max plastic pollution footprints

This DTE piece shows you the details:

https://www.downtoearth.org.in/news/water/coca-cola-pepsico-nestl-worst-plastic-polluters-in-global-cleanups-brand-audits-61834

Conserve commons to fight disasters: Ranjan Panda

Commons help us fight impacts of #disasters. Let's conserve #commons for our own survival and progress...
#CommonsAwarenessWeek #CW

My response to IPCC 1.5 Deg C Report: Indigenous People, Natural Solutions key - Ranjan Panda

Indigenous Communities and Natural Solutions key to achieve 1.5 Deg C target: My quick response to IPCC SR15 – Ranjan Panda

Just released: The much awaited IPCC report on climate projections at 1.5ºC level as against the previous estimations that had been done keeping in view the 2ºC level.

The report, known as The Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5 ºC or SR15, highlights a number of climate change impacts that could be avoided by limiting global warming to 1.5ºC compared to 2ºC, or more. For instance, by 2100, global sea level rise would be 10 cm lower with global warming of 1.5°C compared with 2°C. The likelihood of an Arctic Ocean free of sea ice in summer would be once per century with global warming of 1.5°C, compared with at least once per decade with 2°C. Coral reefs would decline by 70-90 percent with global warming of 1.5°C, whereas virtually all (> 99 percent) would be lost with 2ºC.

“In model pathways with no or limited overshoot of 1.5°C, global net anthropogenic CO2 emissions decline by about 45% from 2010 levels by 2030”

The three years of research, referring more than 6000 scientific studies, had to face challenges to get through the brains of policy makers during a week long discussion that was held at Incheon, Republic of Korea, last week.  The scientists reportedly tried to push their points with regard to devastating impacts that we are already facing throughout the globe due to increased global warming, but the government representatives tried to hard sell their views on how it was important to go ahead with the current model of economic progress and living standards even if it meant a compromise on vital issues such as ecology. 

The Summary for Policymakers has been able to survive the policy makers’ challenges, even though some compromises might have been inevitable, suggest reports. It is now clear that the world is heading towards a catastrophic global warming level of 3ºC if business as usual continues.  The IPCC has said, “Limiting global warming to 1.5ºC would require rapid, far reaching and unprecedented changes in all aspects of society. With clear benefits to people and natural ecosystems, limiting global warming to 1.5ºC compared to 2ºC could go hand in hand with ensuring a more sustainable and equitable society.”

The report finds that limiting global warming to 1.5°C would require “rapid and far-reaching” transitions in land, energy, industry, buildings, transport, and cities. Global net human-caused emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) would need to fall by about 45 percent from 2010 levels by 2030, reaching ‘net zero’ around 2050. This means that any remaining emissions would need to be balanced by removing CO2 from the air.

My take -

According to me, IPCC has tried to make a balanced view (in the summary for policy makers) on several alarming aspects even though it needed to be bolder.  Still, the message is clear.  Global warming cannot be ignored any further, despite of the USA pressure and deliberate ignorance, and that the real solutions needs to be emphasised upon more forcefully than ever before. Many efforts to limit global warming are underway and there are many positives, as the IPCC mentions.  However, the fight against climate change needs to integrate the role of ecosystems and local indigenous communities in much solid ways than at present. 

The IPCC report says, “Allowing the global temperature to temporarily exceed or ‘overshoot’ 1.5ºC would mean a greater reliance on techniques that remove CO2 from the air to return global temperature to below 1.5ºC by 2100. The effectiveness of such techniques are unproven at large scale and some may carry significant risks for sustainable development.”

I have been maintaining for quite some time now that Nature is the primary, original and supreme technology.  All other man-made technologies can cater only to some aspects of the fight against global warming.  However, working with natural solutions would be the first and foremost requirement if we want to limit global warming to 1.5°C.

And when we talk about natural solutions, the role of local and indigenous communities is key.  All across the world these communities have proven to be the best stewards of the local natural resources and have shown real ‘carbon neutral pathways’ in their socio-cultural and economic practices.  What the governments now need is to seriously integrate their knowledge, wisdom, practices and institutions in plans to fight against climate change. 

For that, their customary and other rights (provided under laws of the land) need to be recognised over the local resources and all possible safeguards be provided to them against the powerful people& corporates who are destroying our natural forests, rivers, mountains and all other natural resources.  Many activists are being subject to harassment, abuse and even death during their fight to save their local natural resources.

If we are serious about science in the IPCC report, then we have to be serious about the supreme science that is Nature.  Nature and nature alone can save us from the climate onslaught.  And local indigenous communities can lead us in this fight.  They have proven it.  Now we need to support them.

(We will write more pieces on this report http://bit.ly/2y2DnTx later).

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Ranjan Panda

Convenor, Combat Climate Change Network, India

Email: ranjanpanda@gmail.com

Skype: ranjan.climatecrusader

Tweets @ranjanpanda

Tweets @MahanadiRiver  

Unsustainable urbanisation is leading to farmer distress in India: Ranjan Panda

(Image: NASA Earth Observatory)

Yesterday, on International Day of Peace (celebrated on birth day of Mahatma Gandhi, Father of Nation), the Delhi police used blatant and open non-violent methods to stop 70, 000 farmers. http://bit.ly/2Ozb5td    Farmers in this country are not only facing an aggressive assault on their croplands but serious governmental apathy as a result of which they have been a distressed lot, and have to resort to such agitations (always peaceful) like the yesterday’s ‘peace march’ to demand better price for their crops, better crop insurance, basic amenities, better and humane treatment by the policy makers. While the debate around farmers normally centre on the plight of the farmers at their place of habitation, what we forget that the growing urbanisation is adding to their woes the most.

Indian farmers are facing the worst ever distress. (Image: Social Media)

India has been building its cities at the cost of the farmlands, forests, rivers, waterbodies, farmers, forest dwellers, fisher folk and other indigenous and local communities.  The urbanisation is rapid, rampant, aggressive and often destructive to all of the above entities we described. And then we seem to have lost the vision of making our cities sustainable and inclusive.  A recent image by NASA Earth Observatory is a case in point.

The just released image, that compares Delhi and its periphery between December 5, 1989 and June 5, 2018, shows how vast areas of croplands and grasslands are being turned into streets, buildings, and parking lots, attracting an unprecedented amount of new residents. https://go.nasa.gov/2Nk4GNK

This image shows that most of the expansion in Delhi has occurred on the peripheries of New Delhi, as rural areas have become more urban. The geographic size of Delhi has almost doubled from 1991 to 2011, with the number of urban households doubling while the number of rural houses declined by half. Cities outside of Delhi—Bahadurgarh, Ghaziabad, Noida, Faridabad, and Gurugram—have also experienced urban growth over the past three decades, as shown in these images.

There are many problems of such fast and unsustainable urbanisation.  So far, in India, urbanisation has been happening in an unsystematic way. It’s a trap for the farmers.  They are forced to migrate to cities because of distress and then the city grows to grab more of their remaining land.  Most of the farmers turn into workers and live in slums, unorganised settlements and in unhygienic locations.  While their rate of economic growth is marginal, the city grows at the cost and then destroys lot of the ecological resources which earlier provided the back-up services if they wishes to go back to their villages.

India seriously needs to debate this and see to it that urbanisation is inclusive and equitable and does not destroy the rural people and their resources. Delhi needs to show the way. 

Ranjan Panda

Convenor, Combat Climate Change Network, India

Email: ranjanpanda@gmail.com

Skype: ranjan.climatecrusader

Tweets @ranjanpanda

Tweets @MahanadiRiver  

Integrity of IPCC will determine if it can meet hopes of LDCs: Ranjan Panda

As the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) prepares to release its 1.5°C special report on Monday 8 October, expectations are there that the IPCC will make a clear case for limiting the global warming to 1.5 degree C and suggest strong actions. 

The Chair of the Least Developed Countries Gebru Jember Endalew, in a release, has said that “It will be important that the report and the Summary for Policy Makers clearly sets out the scientific necessity of limiting global warming to 1.5° C as opposed to 2°C to protect people and the planet, and highlights the vast discrepancy between this goal and our current global emissions pathway .In doing so, the report will shine a spotlight on the scale of the challenge the international community must rise up to meet. A future where warming is limited to 1.5°C is a brighter future for all.”

Governments across the world need to take the report seriously and we need a fair and ambitious action plan to limit warning below 1.5° C, said the release.  The current plans are not enough, as we all know and Gebru too apprehends.  http://bit.ly/2RdNGfv  

From other reports we have seen how the US is trying to exert pressure on IPCC to dilute the report. http://bit.ly/2OA4bno The US has always played such tricks with the climate goals and actions in the international negotiation process.  The IPCC needs to stick to science and integrity!

Ranjan Panda

Convenor, Combat Climate Change Network, India

Email: ranjanpanda@gmail.com

Skype: ranjan.climatecrusader

Tweets @ranjanpanda

Tweets @MahanadiRiver  

India needs better rainfall predictions: Ranjan Panda

As the monsoon season gets over, the debate over monsoon predictions get louder.  This time the India Meteorological Department (IMD) had forecast a normal monsoon, predicting a 97 percent rainfall (countrywide) of the long period average (LPA).  The monsoon season however ended, on 30^th June, with a 9.4 percent deficit of this projection, making the IMD forecast off more than 4 percent margin of error. 

This also means, the projection of ‘normal monsoon’ did not come out true as the monsoon ended up being ‘below normal’.  Less than 10 percent of LPA is considered ‘deficient.’  This year’s monsoon has been almost a ‘deficient’ one.  It is argued that private weather forecast agencies such as SkyMet have been more accurate this time on certain counts.   http://bit.ly/2O0i3YT

We certainly need more accurate rainfall projections so that farmers can adapt to the variations.  IMD’s region wise projections have come up more accurate than others.  However, that does not really mean that farmers benefit a lot.  Take for example the crop failure and insurance claims against that.  The farmers are still at mercy of an ineffective system of monitoring, that deprives them of their genuine claims. India has miles to go on this.

Ranjan Panda

Convenor, Combat Climate Change Network, India

Email: ranjanpanda@gmail.com

Skype: ranjan.climatecrusader

Tweets @ranjanpanda

Tweets @MahanadiRiver