Professor Dr. Petri Talas, Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organization, said that the UAE economy depends by less than 20% on fossil fuels, which represents a very good model in the Gulf region and elsewhere, indicating that this trend towards reducing dependence on energy extracted from fossil fuels is considered It is very vital when talking about success in mitigating the effects of climate change, as countries should follow the example of the UAE and start replacing fossil fuel energy sources with climate-friendly sources.
In statements to the Emirates News Agency, WAM, on the occasion of the country’s hosting of the Conference of the States Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28) at the end of the year, Talas added that the World Economic Forum confirmed that climate change is a major economic problem and could pose great risks to the economy. Global over the next ten years, if we fail to mitigate climate change or take adaptation measures.
Professor Talas explained that on the part of the World Meteorological Organization, it is the one that hosts the International Panel on Climate Change and provides an annual report on the state of the climate, which confirms so far that the indicators are negative, as the percentage of greenhouse gases (gases that cause global warming such as carbon dioxide) has reached ) to a record level, as the organization recorded a significant increase in the rates of warming in the oceans, in addition to an acceleration in the melting of snow, and the rise in sea levels doubled during the last twenty years, and the world also began to witness a significant increase in climate disasters and climatic events such as heat waves in Europe, Asia and the United States, and floods Pakistan is flooding and tropical cyclones are in areas where we’ve never seen that before like Southeast Africa.
Talas pointed out that in addition to that, the organization monitors greater challenges in terms of water availability, drought, as well as forest fires, and all of this has a very negative impact on human life. He said that in the end, there are already clear effects of climate change, but the good news is that a clear vision of how This problem can be dealt with, such as electric cars, low prices for their batteries, and other means.
He stated that the world has already started moving to find a solution, but it is not fast enough yet, with regard to limiting global warming, maintaining an average of 1.5 degrees Celsius compared to 2 or 2.3 degrees, and achieving the goal of the Paris climate agreement, warning that the world will face more problems and challenges if it does not. hastens to achieve this goal.
Regarding his vision for the UAE to host the Summit of the States Parties concerned with climate change at the end of this year and as a Gulf state and a leading country in the world in the field of clean energy, the Secretary-General of the international organization said that he was pleased to visit Abu Dhabi twice this year, as well as to meet with the Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and the designated president of the conference. Parties “COP28”, Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al-Jaber, with whom he held very fruitful meetings.
Professor Talas confirmed that he had already found a common and great understanding of the goal that the organization aspires to at the summit, noting that there will be other meetings and working groups in Abu Dhabi to prepare for the conference at the end of September in order to attract more attention to issues such as climate adaptation, early warning services and better monitoring. greenhouse gas rates in order to draw a picture of what could happen in the future with climate phenomena.
He stressed that the organization is very happy for the steps taken by the UAE, which is to pump more investments in areas such as clean energy and other projects that support the organization’s approach to dealing with climate change issues, as well as to host the headquarters of the International Renewable Energy Agency (Irena), which is a very important organization. In this area.
The Secretary-General of the international organization expressed his hope to see more countries heading towards investing in the fields of clean and renewable energy, as the UAE does.
In response to a question about what the UAE can contribute by hosting the upcoming climate summit, in bringing the views of the participants closer in order to reach the desired goal, the Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organization said that he has very great confidence that the climate problem is understood by the UAE. And neighboring countries and others well, which means following the example of the Emirates in terms of dealing with activities that use fossil fuels in order to be part of the solution to the problem by converting energy systems into systems that use climate-friendly energy.
He stressed that this also represents an opportunity for good projects and investment opportunities and a trend in which the UAE and other countries can help.
He pointed out that with regard to the fact that the UAE is a leading country now with regard to efforts to preserve the environment and how this can help in the success of the conference, the Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organization said that the UAE has succeeded in transforming the economic structure to be dependent in a small part on fossil fuels, and this makes The UAE is a very good example and a model that other similar countries can follow and emulate, especially as the UAE uses its resources to encourage the use of renewable energy, which is highly welcomed by the organization.
2023-06-28 10:10:01
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