Iraq’s climate conundrum: Oil reliance versus vanishing water
Despite continuing political instability, pressure from Iranian and US influence, and a resurgent ISIL (ISIS) presence, Iraq faces its most significant challenge elsewhere: climate change. The environment is increasingly becoming an issue for the country, with the future habitability of vast areas now in question. The Euphrates and Tigris Rivers are historically considered the lifelines of Iraq’s fertile land. However, climate change and associated drought are wreaking havoc of unprecedented proportions. Agriculture remains the livelihood for most people across the country, but Iraqi farmers are increasingly faced with the frightening reality that water supplies are quickly drying up. The World Bank recently warned Iraq would be hit particularly hard by climate change, with a significant effect on the economy and employment. The country could suffer a 20 percent drop in water resources by 2050, with nearly one-third of the irrigated land in Iraq left parched. “Without action, water constraints will lead to large losses across multiple sectors of the economy and come to affect more and more vulnerable people,” said the World Bank’s Saroj Kumar Jha. George Zittis, associate research scientist on climate change impacts at the Cyprus Institute, said over the last 40 years Iraq and surrounding areas have witnessed accelerated warming of about 0.4 degrees Celsius (0.7 degrees Fahrenheit) per decade. “These regional warming rates are greater than the global ones,” Zittis told Al Jazeera. “The country has also experienced more frequent and extreme heatwaves. Particularly in the last decade, several temperature records have broken … Hydrological and agricultural droughts are affecting several activities, including agriculture and food production.” He noted Iraq and the broader Middle East region are considered the most prominent climate change hotspots in the world with “limited resources for adaptation”.
India targets net-zero carbon emissions by 2070, says Modi
India’s economy will become carbon neutral by the year 2070, the country’s prime minster has announced at the COP26 climate crisis summit in Glasgow. The target date is two decades beyond what scientists say is needed to avert catastrophic climate impacts. India is the last of the world’s major carbon polluters to announce a net-zero target, with China saying it would reach that goal in 2060, and the United States and the European Union aiming for 2050.
COP26: What climate summit means for one woman in Bangladesh
China's carbon emissions are vast and growing, dwarfing those of other countries. Experts agree that without big reductions in China's emissions, the world cannot win the fight against climate change. In 2020, China's President Xi Jinping said his country would aim for its emissions to reach their highest point before 2030 and for carbon neutrality before 2060. His statement has now been confirmed as China's official position ahead of the COP26 global climate summit in Glasgow. But China has not said exactly how these goals will be achieved.
Why China's climate policy matters to us all
China's carbon emissions are vast and growing, dwarfing those of other countries. Experts agree that without big reductions in China's emissions, the world cannot win the fight against climate change. In 2020, China's President Xi Jinping said his country would aim for its emissions to reach their highest point before 2030 and for carbon neutrality before 2060. His statement has now been confirmed as China's official position ahead of the COP26 global climate summit in Glasgow. But China has not said exactly how these goals will be achieved.
Deliver on promises, developing world tells rich at climate talks
A crucial U.N. conference heard calls on its first day for the world's major economies to keep their promises of financial help to address the climate crisis, while big polluters India and Brazil made new commitments to cut emissions. World leaders, environmental experts and activists all pleaded for decisive action to halt the global warming which threatens the future of the planet at the start of the two-week COP26 summit in the Scottish city of Glasgow on Monday. The task facing negotiators was made even more daunting by the failure of the Group of 20 major industrial nations to agree ambitious new commitments at the weekend.