*[Enwl-eng] CAN EECCA Newsletter: War makes heat wave deadlier, Problem of Karaganda coal basin, COP28 Presidency
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Tue May 23 17:58:36 MSK 2023
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Climate Action Network
Eastern Europe, Caucasus and Central Asia
Digest of news on climate change, energy
issues
www.caneecca.org
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Climate chronicle of the war
Russia’s War in Ukraine Is Making the Heat
Wave in Asia Even Deadlier
A study by Energymonitor.ai last year found
Asia has invested at least $490 billion in new gas infrastructure, led by
Vietnam and China. The continent is the largest exporter and importer of
LNG. Because of its relatively lower emissions compared to coal or oil, the
gas is considered a “bridge fuel,” lowering the dependence on traditional
fossil fuels like coal and oil. But the Russia-Ukraine conflict has upended
the LNG market. Europe was in desperate need of energy as winter approached
but struggled to secure a necessary alternative even as it cut off piped gas
from Russia. Despite lacking sufficient infrastructure, Europe started to
dip into the LNG supply that would have gone to Asia, raising the demand and
causing prices to jump nearly 10 times the average.
Ukraine Is Planning Its Green
Reconstruction Even as War Rages On
Ukrainian activists, scientists and
architects are pushing for a postwar recovery unlike any in history, with a
focus on climate resilience and clean energy. Thinking about rebuilding in
the middle of a war, with a new offensive against Russia in the works, might
seem far-fetched. But for Ukraine, green reconstruction is not just good for
the planet. It’s essential to the country’s economic recovery and national
security. Russian attacks caused damages worth $8.1 billion in Ukraine’s
energy sector during the first year of war, the Kyiv School of Economics
estimates. The average Ukrainian household endured 35 days without power
last winter.
Russia’s War in Ukraine: Green Policies in a
New Energy Geopolitics
Russia’s brutal aggression has wreaked
devastation in Ukraine for more than a year. It has also forced a
fundamental rethink of geopolitics. Central to that new thinking is the role
of energy security and how to manage the insecurities created by the
lopsided dependencies exposed by the conflict. For decades, energy security
was perceived as a matter of physical, temporal, and geographic realities.
It was about not only where fossil fuel resources were located but also how
oil and gas coursed through pipelines, or was shipped on tankers, across
borders and into markets.
G7 agrees to short-term gas investments
amidst Russia-Ukraine war
The G7 leaders on Saturday agreed to
stronger language on short-term gas investments in the context of Russia's
ongoing war against Ukraine and the resulting energy crisis. "We stress the
important role that increased deliveries of LNG can play, and acknowledge
that investment in the sector can be appropriate in response to the current
crisis and to address potential gas market shortfalls provoked by the
crisis," reads the text. The text makes clear these investments must be
limited to "the exceptional circumstance" given the Russian-driven energy
shock and "as a temporary response."
Ukrainians will be able to monitor the
radiation background of the Zaporizhia NPP online
Ukrainians will be able to monitor the
radiation background level at the Zaporizhzhia NPP in Energodar online on
the Saveecobot platform. Measurements of the radiation background are
carried out every day directly on the industrial site of the station,
reports the public organization SaveDnipro on Facebook. So, as of May 17 at
3:30 p.m., the radiation background level was 90 nSv/h with a permissible
value of 300 nSv/h. The Saveecobot map is available at the link.
Ukraine found an unlikely tool to resist
Russia: Solar panels
Russian airstrikes on Ukraine’s power grid
plunged many parts of the country into darkness last fall, but one water
company was able to keep its pumps going. Its field of solar panels,
installed as an environmentally friendly measure before the war, turned into
a tool to resist the Kremlin’s attacks. Now a growing number of Ukrainian
hospitals, schools, police stations and other critical buildings are racing
to install solar power ahead of what many expect will be another hard winter
later this year.
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Regional and world news
Karaganda coal basin is swallowing
Kazakhstan’s climate
The Karaganda coal basin, located in
Kazakhstan, is one of the world’s largest coal basins, with coal reserves
ranking third in the EECCA region. Unfortunately, the coal mining operations
in the region have led to devastating environmental and social impacts,
including air and water pollution, deforestation, and land degradation.
These issues have caused health problems and displacement of local
communities. To raise awareness about the situation, CAN EECCA has released
a new short film titled “Karaganda Coal Basin is Swallowing Kazakhstan’s
Climate” as part of our #WorldWeWant campaign. The film features interviews
with residents and activists who speak out against the harmful effects of
coal mining and advocate for a transition to renewable energy sources such
as wind and solar power.
Trick the Climate. Where will Kazakhstan’s
new low-carbon strategy lead?
CAN EECCA and Ecostan News share their
reaction to the adopted strategy and updated Nationally Determined
Contribution (NDC) of Kazakhstan. We also present some remarks voiced by
Kazakhstani eco-activists that were not taken into account by the
developers. On February 2, 2023, President Tokayev approved the country’s
low-carbon development strategy. Its official title is “Strategy for
Achieving Carbon Neutrality of the Republic of Kazakhstan by 2060.” The
Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources initially developed the strategy,
followed by the Ministry of National Economy of Kazakhstan. The draft
strategy went through several rounds of public discussion; however, the
public’s comments were not significantly considered.
Greenpeace International has been declared
undesirable in Russia
Greenpeace International has been declared
undesirable in Russia, a decision that makes us wonder what is really
undesirable. Protecting nature or harming it and human health through
pollution, deforestation and ignoring the climate crisis? "We believe that
Greenpeace International's declaration as an undesirable organization is due
to the fact that through our work we have tried, in stopping environmentally
destructive plans. Every time we have spoken out against such plans, we have
had to overcome fierce opposition from those who want to turn nature into a
source of income, who do not want to think about the future of our country,
and who accuse us of acting against Russia's interests," Greenpeace said in
its statement.
Managing disaster risks and water under
climate change in Central Asia and Caucasus
Climate change is expected to have profound
impacts on water resources and natural hazards in Central Asia and South
Caucasus. This has serious implications for the management of water
resources and natural hazards in both regions. This publication is the
result of a joint learning journey involving three thematic networks of the
Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) – Climate Change and
Environment, Disaster Risk Reduction, and Water – and interested SDC offices
and partners. The basic idea was to create the opportunity for participants
to address common challenges in a collaborative manner while focusing on a
specific region or context.
Global warming set to break key 1.5C limit
for first time
Our overheating world is likely to break a
key temperature limit for the first time over the next few years, scientists
predict. Researchers say there's now a 66% chance we will pass the 1.5C
global warming threshold between now and 2027. The chances are rising due to
emissions from human activities and a likely El Niño weather pattern later
this year. If the world passes the limit, scientists stress the breach,
while worrying, will likely be temporary. Hitting the threshold would mean
the world is 1.5C warmer than it was during the second half of the 19th
Century, before fossil fuel emissions from industrialisation really began to
ramp up.
World’s largest lakes are shrinking:
Scientists say global warming and overuse of water are to blame
Satellites were used to track how lakes
around the world, from the Caspian Sea to the Great Salt Lake, have changed
over the last three decades. More than half of the world's largest lakes and
reservoirs are drying up, a new study has found. Climate change's hotter
temperatures and society's diversion of water have been shrinking the
world's lakes by trillions of litres of water a year since the early 1990s.
A close examination of nearly 2,000 of the world's largest lakes found they
are losing about 21.5 trillion litres a year.
Fossil fuel boss picked as President of the
COP28
In January, the UAE confirmed that Sultan Al
Jaber had been appointed as the president of COP28. Jaber is the CEO of the
Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC). the biggest oil producer in the
country and the 12th biggest in the world. His appointment hasn’t come
without controversy. Climate leaders and campaigners have voiced a number of
concerns calling it a “blatant conflict of interest”. “You wouldn’t invite
arms dealers to lead peace talks. So why let oil executives lead climate
talks?” Alice Harrison, fossil fuel campaign leader at Global Witness, said
at the time. Al Jaber says he is approaching COP28 with a “strong sense of
responsibility and the highest possible level of ambition.”
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Sent: Tuesday, May 23, 2023 1:44 PM
Subject: 🌏 CAN EECCA Newsletter: War makes heat wave deadlier,
Problem of Karaganda coal basin, COP28 Presidency
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