The emerging Corona virus is throwing its weight on the global economy as aviation has slowed and factories have stopped operating, which could lead to an unexpected drop in greenhouse gas emissions … but this good environmental news may not last long, according to Agence France-Presse.
In fact, China, the world’s largest source of greenhouse gas emissions, has experienced a drop in these emissions by at least a quarter between February 3 and March 1, compared to 2019. According to estimates by the Center of Research on Energy and Clear Air. ».
Usually, Lunar New Year holidays on January 25 each year in China witness a decrease in carbon emissions, before quickly recovering again. But this year, the situation is very different in a country that is under a stone and cut off from the world, after the factories stopped or closed, and the consumption of energy produced in the coal plants decreased.
This situation extends to other regions of the world, as there is a noticeable decrease in air traffic, which contributes to 2 percent of global carbon dioxide emissions
Officials in this sector point to a situation “unprecedented” since the global financial crisis in 2008-2009.
This could be good news for Earth, as many countries are struggling to tackle climate change and reduce carbon dioxide emissions. However, the climate emergency requires a significant decline, by 45 percent by 2030 compared to 2010, according to United Nations experts, in order to reduce the devastating effects that threaten the lives of millions of people and ecosystems.
According to researcher Yoweri Ruili, who is involved in the work of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, victory cannot be declared quickly. He says that «reduced emissions linked to the spread of the Corona virus is not structural, and therefore will disappear with the return of the movement of goods and people after the disposal of the epidemic».
In this context, the US central bank unexpectedly cut interest rates in an effort to stimulate the economy, the first time after the financial crisis in 2008. While the G-7 countries, which are the richest economies in the world, are preparing to take measures within their budgets, while Beijing has developed plans Extensive support for small and medium businesses and credit facilities.
Glenn Peters, a climate scientist from the Cicero Research Center, tweeted that the financial crisis of 2008 and 2009 was followed by a “strong recovery in carbon dioxide emissions because of the stimulus measures that governments have followed.”
“The danger is that the health crisis will divert attention from climate change and other long-term problems,” said Michael Oppenheimer of Princeton University, while the climate emergency “requires decades-old attention.”Oppenheimer believes that “the only solution is to get a firm commitment to action” from the major nations.
In fact, things did not go in this direction during the recent climate conference organized by the United Nations in Madrid in December.
Attention is now drawn to the next climate summit in Glasgow in November to see how the new epidemic will hamper preparations for it, especially after it already affected the United Nations Conference on Biodiversity in October in China.
Sebastian Trier, director general of the Institute for Sustainable Development and International Relations, said he was supposed to transfer preparatory negotiations to Rome in February, and that “the crisis prevented China from playing an active key role.”
In addition, Amy Myers-Jaffe of the American Council on Foreign Relations group believes that positive lessons can be learned from this crisis in the long run, especially with regard to “changing habits” and reducing carbon dioxide emissions.And she points out that “80 percent of goods and goods are transported via ships in the world … And if production chains are reduced after the (Corona) crisis, some of the benefits of reducing emissions can be preserved.”
In practice, this crisis is an opportunity for companies to increase the use of labor services and teleconferencing, which may help “to break cultural locks” that prevent many employees from using these technologies, according to Jaffe.
In addition, Li Shu added, “The Corona epidemic is due in part to the health imbalance between humans and nature, and therefore this opportunity should not be missed to restore this balance.” “We are finally in the midst of a climate emergency,” says Greenpeace spokesman.
Source: Al-Sharq Al-Awsat Newspaper
