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Sharm el-Sheikh, Nov 17 (IANS) Highlighting the growing consensus on oceans being critical to climate negotiations, a new policy brief from The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) was launched at an UN Framework for Climate Change Convention (UNFCCC) official side event at COP27 here, put forth the need for definite goals and indicators, along with institutional and enforcement mechanisms to steer ocean-climate action.
The policy brief 'Oceans-Climate Interface: Implications for Global Commons based Climate Action' was launched on Wednesday at a session on aClimate Action through Innovation, Implementation and Inclusive Multi-level Governance', organized by TERI and TERI School of Advanced Studies in collaboration with New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization, Japan, and Indigenous Information Network, Kenya.
The knowledge document was produced as part of the COP27 Compass component of the Act4Earth initiative launched at the World Sustainable Development Summit in 2022. During the launch at Sharm el-Sheikh, Shailly Kedia, Senior Fellow, TERI, gave a presentation on the Act4Earth policy briefs on COP27 negotiations, internationalizing lifestyles for environment, inclusive energy transitions and ocean-climate interface.
Oceans, which are the largest known carbon sink in the world, were largely omitted from the climate change negotiations until COP21 held in 2015.
The policy brief focuses on the global commons of marine areas beyond national jurisdiction and climate action, and examines the interface between climate and ocean governance.
"The oceans have long been neglected in the climate change negotiations, even though the UNFCCC clearly identified its role as the globe's most important carbon sink. The existing patchwork of agreements on the High Seas, including the UN Convention on Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), scarcely touch upon the role of the High Seas in relation to climate change," said Prodipto Ghosh, Distinguished Fellow, TERI.
The policy brief highlights the gaps in the climate-ocean interface and examines it through the lens of the global commons. Global commons are resource domains that do not fall under the jurisdiction of any single country, and their governance remains contentious since there is no single state or region having complete responsibility over it.
Pointing to the gaps in the present climate regime, Kedia said, "Since climate negotiations are party-driven, climate actions in national jurisdictions have received larger attention and global commons including oceans have not been a focus area in terms of climate ambition and action."
She underscored the need for greater interactions between the climate regime and ocean regime involving UNFCCC and UNCLOS.
The knowledge document observes that problems of ocean equity are often not explicitly stated. "It is a hard fact that till date the distribution of benefits of oceans has been iniquitous and the ocean economy has primarily benefited wealthy nations and firms," it notes.
While oceans have helped in slowing the rate of climate change by acting as a carbon sink, climate change impacts such as acidification, warming, changing circulation patterns and rising sea levels have deeply affected it as well.
Read MoreSharm el-Sheikh [Egypt], November 16 (ANI/NewsVoir): Highlighting the growing consensus on oceans being critical to climate negotiations, a new policy brief from The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) launched at an United Nations Framework for Climate Change Convention (UNFCCC) official side event at COP27 in Sharm el-Sheikh on Wednesday, put forth the need for definite goals and indicators, along with institutional and enforcement mechanisms to steer ocean-climate action.
The policy brief 'Oceans-Climate Interface: Implications for Global Commons based Climate Action' was launched at a session on 'Climate Action through Innovation, Implementation and Inclusive Multi-level Governance', organized by TERI and TERI School of Advanced Studies in collaboration with New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization - Japan, and Indigenous Information Network - Kenya at COP27.
The knowledge document was produced as part of the COP27 Compass component of the Act4Earth initiative launched at the World Sustainable Development Summit in 2022.
During the launch at Sharm el-Sheikh, Dr Shailly Kedia, Senior Fellow, TERI, gave a presentation on the Act4Earth policy briefs on COP27 negotiations, internationalizing lifestyles for environment, inclusive energy transitions and ocean-climate interface.
Oceans, which are the largest known carbon sink in the world, were largely omitted from the climate change negotiations until COP21 held in 2015. The policy brief focuses on the global commons of marine areas beyond national jurisdiction and climate action, and examines the interface between climate and ocean governance.
"The oceans have long been neglected in the climate change negotiations, even though the UNFCCC clearly identified its role as the globe's most important carbon sink. The existing patchwork of agreements on the High Seas, including the UN Convention on Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), scarcely touch upon the role of the High Seas in relation to climate change," pointed out Dr Prodipto Ghosh, Distinguished Fellow, TERI.
The policy brief highlights the gaps in the climate-ocean interface and examines it through the lens of the global commons. Global commons are resource domains that do not fall under the jurisdiction of any single country, and their governance remains contentious since there is no single state or region having complete responsibility over it.
Pointing to the gaps in the present climate regime, Dr. Kedia said, "Since climate negotiations are party-driven, climate actions in national jurisdictions have received larger attention and global commons including oceans have not been a focus area in terms of climate ambition and action." She underscored the need for greater interactions between the climate regime and ocean regime involving UNFCCC and UNCLOS.
The knowledge document observes that problems of ocean equity are often not explicitly stated. "It is a hard fact that till date the distribution of benefits of oceans has been iniquitous and the ocean economy has primarily benefited wealthy nations and firms," it notes. While oceans have helped in slowing the rate of climate change by acting as a carbon sink, climate change impacts such as acidification, warming, changing circulation patterns and rising sea levels have deeply affected it as well.
"The existing international agreements are marked by profoundly unequal treatment between developed and developing countries. It is necessary to move to a more comprehensive agreement or protocol under the UNFCCC that protects and helps enhance the role of the oceans on climate change, and sets out rights and obligations of countries. In doing so the UNFCCC principle of 'common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities' must be fully respected if such an approach is to have a chance at success," asserted Dr Ghosh.
The need to strengthen the interface between climate regime and oceans regime is emphasized in the policy brief. "Presently, the interface largely involves the interactions between the Rio conventions. This needs to be expanded to include UNCLOS, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and various environmental agreements - including those in the polar regions," it observes.
Better integration of oceans and high seas in existing tools and processes under the UNFCCC, the need for reporting on global indicator frameworks to go beyond what is presently reported under Goal 14 of the SDGs, and creating avenues for engagement with local communities and vulnerable countries to bring them and their voices to global platforms are suggested by the authors of the policy brief.
It also moots for improved ocean governance and management, addressing the knowledge gap in ocean governance, and clearly defining the role of the private sector in ocean governance.
Access the policy brief here:
The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), based in India, is an independent, multi-dimensional research organization with capabilities in policy research, technology development, and implementation.
An innovator and agent of change in the energy, environment, climate change and sustainability space, TERI has pioneered conversations and action in these areas for nearly five decades. Headquartered in New Delhi, it has centres in six Indian cities, and is supported by a multidisciplinary team of scientists, sociologists, economists, engineers, administrative professional and state-of-the-art infrastructure.
This story has been provided by NewsVoir. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the article.(ANI/NewsVoir)
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The lung function tests conducted during the study revealed that the majority of respondents (39% sweepers, 33% vehicle drivers and 27% street vendors) had limited lung function.
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Health conditions of outdoor workers were also found to deteriorate because of extreme temperatures in both summer and winter, the IIT study found.(HT Photo)
Prolonged exposure to extreme temperatures and high pollution severely impacts people’s health in the national capital, a study led by scientists from the Indian Institute of Technology Tirupati has found.
People who have to work outdoors for long periods in Delhi complained of health complications, including breathing difficulties or acute lung function impairment, irregular heartbeat and chest discomfort, back, shoulder, and joint pains, eye redness and irritation, skin rashes, headaches, and overall weakness, said the study — Health impact assessment of Delhi’s outdoor workers exposed to air pollution and extreme weather events: an integrated epidemiology approach — released on Saturday.
“Over the years, air pollution in Delhi has become a significant concern. The city’s geographical location renders it particularly vulnerable to air pollution events such as smog, as well as harsh weather conditions in both summer and winter,” said co-author Suresh Jain, professor at IIT Tirupati. “Outdoor workers are among the hardest hit in such scenarios.”
Other authors of the study included Vaishnavi Barthwal, Ayushi Babuta and Chubamenla Jamir from TERI School of Advanced Studies, Dr Arun Kumar Sharma from the University College of Medical Sciences, Delhi University, and Dr Anant Mohan from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences.
Researchers surveyed 283 people for the study, which included auto-rickshaw drivers, street vendors and sweepers, who have to spend the most part of their day outdoors and are constantly exposed to pollution, Jain said. The study also took into account the impact of factors such as age and smoking on lung impairment among the participants so that the actual impacts of high pollution and extreme weather conditions can be analysed better.
As much as 47% of the auto-rickshaw drivers, 47% of street vendors and 48% of sweepers reported major health impacts of prolonged exposure to outdoor pollution levels, the study found. Auto-rickshaw drivers reported the highest incidence of vision related symptoms such as redness of the eye (44%) and eye irritation (36%), while most street vendors reported headaches (43%). This could be attributed to constant exposure to vehicular pollution, the researchers said.
The lung function tests conducted during the study revealed that the majority of respondents (39% sweepers, 33% vehicle drivers and 27% street vendors) had limited lung function.
Sweepers had a higher rate of lung impairment than the other occupational groups due to the nature of their work, which involved frequent exposure to dust and particulate matter, Jain explained. “Dust inhalation during sweeping caused immediate lung function impairment and raised the risk of pulmonary disease progression. The risk increased as the period of exposure increased,” he said.
The findings of the study are important because Delhi is known to record high pollution levels, which worsens during the winter time when the air quality index in the national capital peaks several times higher than the healthy limit.
Toxic air pollution in Delhi cuts people’s lives short by roughly 10 years, making it India’s biggest threat to human health, according to the latest Air Quality Life Index report released in June 2022. Child and maternal malnutrition, in comparison, reduces average life expectancy by 1.8 years, while smoking reduces life expectancy by 1.5 years.
Health conditions of outdoor workers were also found to deteriorate because of extreme temperatures in both summer and winter, the IIT study found.
The majority of these symptoms were common among vendors (75% reported headache and giddiness, 36% rapid heartbeat, and 20% experienced fainting spells), followed by sweepers (60% had headaches, 34% had palpitations and 15% experienced fainting spells), and auto-rickshaw drivers (54% experienced headaches, 27% reported rapid heartbeats and 5% complained of fainting spells).
“We concluded that while personal habits and influencing variables such as age, smoking, tobacco use, pre-existing health disorders, and a lack of usage of acceptable safety measures might raise these workers’ sensitivity to occupational health risks, lack of proper mitigation measures and policies, long working hours, and varying work locations exacerbate their exposure to air pollution and harsh conditions,” said Jain.
Outdoor workers and people who were forced to spend long hours outside were at a greater risk of health problems owing to constant exposure to extreme weather conditions and high temperatures, other experts concurred.
“Poor people are definitely more vulnerable to the impacts of high pollution and extreme temperatures. The more your body is exposed to the toxic pollutants and very high or low temperatures, the sooner it will start showing visible health problems,” said Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director of research and advocacy at the Centre for Science and Environment, an advocacy group. “That is why we keep stressing that government strategies should focus on the most vulnerable.”
