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Climate Change: Its Impact on Panama, Protest Activities, Establishment of Second HQ for Green Climate Fund, The UN's Convention on Climate Change, etc.


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Business group applauds young people climate  change initiative

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Posted 16/02/2020

Panama’s Chamber of Commerce has endorsed the declaration of Network of Young People in the face of Climate Change in Panama, which urges “that public and private organizations recognize climate change as a reality and threat e for the country and for the Canal.

This threat must be faced through "a good interrelation of actors." said the Chamber and the implementation of a culture of water-saving, should be a concern of all as a country.

On the way to the creation of that culture, the guild mentioned that other pitfalls that affect the reliable functioning of the interoceanic route must be remedied.

One of those problems is the failed management for decades of the administration and supply of drinking water by the Institute of National Aqueducts and Sewers (IDAAN), The country requires a transformation of this institution, through a comprehensive review that allows all Panamanians to have access to it.

The Chamber reiterated to the Panama Authority that the country relies on the capacity in experience and visionary leadership of those who today manage the interoceanic route.

Chamber president Jorge Juan de la Guardia, said that last week he held talks with the administrator of the Panama Canal, Ricaurte Vásquez, who reiterated that “the entity works tirelessly in the search for solutions that ensure the availability of water for the reliable operation of the route”

He explained that the task of the ACP, includes the study of alternatives of both water sources and technologies that allow the country to ensure over time the continuous operation of its most strategic resource, which includes the use of our privileged location in the region.

 

https://www.newsroompanama.com/environment/business-group-applauds-young-people-climate-change-initiative

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ENVIRONMENT: Climate change making nights warmer

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Posted 01/10/2020

Nights are warming at a faster rate than daytime temperatures across vast swaths of the world, which could affect weather patterns and make it difficult to adapt to climate change report the journal Global Change Biology.

Scientists say that the asymmetry in warming between night and day has consequences for plants and wildlife, with the potential to change the way energy is consumed in markets.

"Species that are only active at night or during the day will be particularly affected," said lead author Daniel Cox of the Environment and Sustainability Institute at the UK’s Exeter University.

More than half of the earth's surface had nights whose temperature increased an average of more than 0.25 ° C above daytime temperatures in the last three decades.

Areas most affected by warmer nights show higher rates of cloud cover, humidity, and precipitation. Fewer clouds and droughts characterized patterns in places where daytime temperatures exceeded nighttime ones.

"Warmer nights erode the night's ability to act as a 'heat shelter' where organisms can recover from heat stress during the day," the report says.

 

 

https://www.newsroompanama.com/environment/environment-climate-change-making-nights-warmer

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Cortizo joins continental leaders to discuss climate change

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President Cortizo

Posted 09/09/2021

President Lorentino Cortizo  joined  the leaders of several  countries of the American continent on Wednesday, September 8, in the High-Level Dialogue on Climate Action in the Americas, a meeting, prior to the COP26 Climate Summit to be held in Glasgow, United Kingdom, November 1 to 12,

Through a virtual platform, the presidents of Colombia, Iván Duque; Carlos Alvarado Quesada, from Costa Rica;; Luis Abinader, from the Dominican Republic; Mario Abdo, from Paraguay and Guillermo Lasso, from Ecuador, agreed to reduce emissions and promote activities that reduce the carbon footprint. Also participating were the Prime Minister of Barbados, Mia Mottley, and the United States' special climate envoy, John Kerry.

Cortizo said that the November conference was “ perhaps the most important meeting since World War II to avoid a catastrophe of global proportions. The commitments made there may be the last chance for future generations, to inherit a healthy planet for life, a great responsibility for us world leaders ”.

He added that “that meeting cannot fail, that is not an option. Panama is one of the only three countries in the world classified as carbon negative, in addition, we recently reached the category of a blue world leader, complying with the initiative to protect 30% of the oceans ”.

Alok Sharma, president of COP26, said that rapid action is required to limit the increase in temperature by 1.5 degrees Celsius on the planet, as agreed in the Paris Agreement. "What we need now are actions to reduce emissions globally and protect people and nature from climate change, as well as taking the benefits that moving to green and resilient economies offers,".

He said that wind power generation plants are cheaper than coal-fired plants and can generate more jobs.

Alberto Fernández, president of Argentina, acted as moderator of the debate.

 

https://www.newsroompanama.com/environment/cortizo-joins-continental-leaders-to-discuss-climate-change

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ENVIRONMENT: The reality of climate change in Panama

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Posted 30/10/2021

The effects of climate change is a reality in Panama and a report prepared by the Ministry of the Environment identifies  the areas of greatest vulnerability are the province of Bocas del Toro, the Ngäbe Buglé region, the north of Veraguas, the southwest of Darién, and the Guna Yala region.

Also on the list are the south and east coast of the province of Los Santos, the eastern coast of Herrera, the Gulf of Montijo in Veraguas, the south coast of Coclé, the south coast of the province of Panama, and some townships of Chiriquí.

It is specified that Bocas del Toro, the Ngäbe Buglé region, Panama, Guna Yala, and Darién present “high exposure” conditions due to a higher frequency of floods.

Logging in reserves
The report also qualifies as a "sensitive area" the border between Bocas del Toro and Chiriquí, since it has one of the most important protected areas, such as La Amistad International Park, which has a certain degree of deforestation.

The north of Coclé, Veraguas, and the west of the province of Colón, has a valuable percentage of the protected area, but deforestation is gaining momentum.

Likewise, reference is made to the loss of forest cover of other ecological reserves, such as the Chagres National Park, in the canal basin, Coiba in Veraguas, the wild area in Narganá de Guna Yala, Darién and the Emberá region.

For ecologists, in the case of Panama, it is vital to conserve forest cover since tropical forests are home to most of the planet's biodiversity and where adaptation strategies against global warming must give top priority, to ensure the land and water.

A setback
This week, organizations such as the Center for Environmental Advocacy and the Alliance for Conservation and Development described Executive Decree 141 of October 26, as a "setback", through which land use certifications in protected areas will be granted. —To those who prove they were there before being declared a reserve—, considering that it will accelerate the destruction of the country's ecological reserves.

"The modern international trend entails an expansion of the coverage and standards of environmental protection, however, here we are in the presence of a not very encouraging scenario in the face of these regressions with the new regulations," said Susana Serracín, of the Alliance for Conservation and the development.

One of the aspects raised by the study is that the regions with the greatest poverty have a “reduced” capacity to respond to the adverse effects of the climate.

 

https://www.newsroompanama.com/environment/environment-the-reality-of-climate-change-in-panama

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Climate entering “unchartered territory” – 7 years warmest on record

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Posted 31/10/2021

The seven years between 2015 and 2021 will likely be the warmest on record to date, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) announced on Sunday, in a report warning that the climate is entering "uncharted territory."

The annual report on the state of the climate "is based on the latest scientific data that shows that the planet is changing before our eyes," said UN Secretary-General António Guterres, quoted in the text.

"From the deep ocean to the mountain tops, from melting glaciers to relentless extreme weather events, ecosystems and communities around the world are being destroyed," he added.

The text, prepared from observations on the ground and through satellites of meteorological services from around the world, is published at the beginning of the UN climate change conference, COP26, this Sunday.

The Scottish city of Glasgow hosts this key conference, in which the international community must step up its fight to limit global warming and ideally bring it to a maximum of + 1.5ºC.

COP26 "must be a turning point for people and the planet," said Guterres.

The report is based on the historical records of temperatures on the planet, and in particular, uses the period 1850-1910 that the UN climate experts (IPCC) use as a basis to compare with today.

Humanity is currently emitting much more than twice the greenhouse gas emissions compared to that time.

However, these historical records do not take into account previous meteorological phenomena, which are recorded thanks to climatic paleontology.

Alarming tone
The tone of the WMO report is alarming, linking droughts, forest fires, major floods in different regions of the planet with human activity.

“2021 is less warm than recent years due to the influence of a moderate La Niña episode that occurred at the beginning of the year. La Niña has a temporary cooling effect on the global average temperature and affects regional meteorological and climatic conditions. In 2021, the La Niña seal was clearly observed in the tropical Pacific, ”the text recalled.

However, the average temperature of the last 20 years exceeds the symbolic barrier of + 1 ° C for the first time.

"The persistent above-average rainfall during the first half of the year in some parts of northern South America, especially in the northern Amazon basin, caused severe and long-lasting flooding in the region," he added. the text.

And at the same time, “for the second year in a row, there were major droughts that devastated a large part of the subtropical region of South America. The precipitations were very inferior to the average in most of the south of Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay and the north of Argentina ”.

 

https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/climate-entering-unchartered-territory-7-years-warmest-on-record

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Environment Ministry leads with public consultation others should follow

Posted 23/12/2021

The initiative of the Ministry of Environment to carry out a public consultation in order to adopt the National Environmental Strategy for the coming years (2021-2031) is something that must be done with everything: health, education, transport, energy, justice, technology, infrastructure, poverty, etc. Only in this way will we go from the proverbial improvisation of governments to executing properly planned projects with funds allocated for them. And although organized civil society and the public sector are part of this consultation, the only way for projects like these to have the expected success is with the participation and commitment of all political parties. The reason for this is that, if there is a change of government, the excluded political sectors will not feel committed to the project, since they were never part of it. And this government has given many proofs of this, by refusing to continue with infrastructure projects in which they did not take their opinion. If the government is truly committed to executing a national environmental plan for the next few years, it should not exclude anyone from the dialogue, since the country belongs to everyone and everyone must make the commitment to comply with it or, once again, it will be a failure – LA PRENSA, Dec. 23.

https://www.newsroompanama.com/opinion/environment-ministry-leads-with-public-consultation-others-should-follow

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