Witoubou Newmai
In discussing the issue of Climate Change or Global Warming, one seldom misses discussing the ‘familiar’ topic of planting more trees.
However, campaigns on planting more trees to fight greenhouse gas emissions do not make the mission to save our environment more secure or valid unless we also focus on the flip side question of ‘what or who destroy our environment’.
As coming to ask as to ‘who or what destroys our environment’ gives us a sound template for making more relevant arguments in the campaign, one locally relevant campaign can be also on the prevention of fire break-outs among the many detrimental causes which destroy our environment.
It may sound too minuscule a topic such as ‘fire prevention’ when attached to a global issue such as Climate Change or Global Warming, there is not much choice when it comes to relevancy for a small society, or for that matter, in a local level, to include it (fire prevention).
This editorial is about how the world has been missing much in the campaigns against Global Warming or Climate Change and on carbon markets. It is also about how the recent incidents such as great Amazon Rainforest Fires and Australian Fires did on the face of those campaigns.
These great fires on global scale came amidst the talks of “12-year” catchphrase, which is considered a deadline counting from 2018, to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases. The emissions of greenhouse gases have to begin dropping well before 2030.
We may recall a report in the ‘Scientific American’ published few months ago saying that “Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) working groups with 91 authors and editors from 40 countries examined 6,000-plus scientific studies and called for ‘global carbon dioxide emissions (to) start to decline well before 2030’ to avoid the most severe consequences of Global Warming”.
It is also quite worthwhile to mention the “longest United Nations’ climate talks ended with no deal on carbon markets” in Madrid a couple of months back. Delegates from around 200 countries had participated in the Madrid talks. And we noticed how the collective global conscience is swayed by such talks, but never bother to come down to the ‘minuscule’ issue such as ‘fire prevention’ in local level or community level.
The impressive ‘fire prevention’ campaign on a small level as done in Mizoram should also be considered as an exemplary case.
From February 10, Mizoram has begun observing 'Fire Prevention Week' to spread awareness about the hazardous effects and environmental damage caused by both house and forest fires. As it kicked off the campaign, the Mizoram State Government has come out with data on the losses caused by fire incidents in the past five years. The campaign also talks about our responsibilities. Such is the way forward.
