COUNTRIES in the climate change firing line got together in Nicosia yesterday to discuss ways of optimising energy use in order to stem greenhouse gas emissions and halt global warming.
Representatives from 39 of the 43 members of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) began a five-day workshop on “Energy Sustainability for Development” at the Hilton hotel.
Many of the attending island states – such as the Solomon Islands and the Cook Islands – face the threat of being wiped off the map as sea levels rise due to melting polar ice caps and the thermal expansion of the oceans.
As well as tackling energy efficiency issues, the AOSIS countries – comprising Caribbean, Pacific and Indian island states plus Cyprus and Malta – hope to draw up a common position ahead of the forthcoming 9th session of the UN Commission for Sustainable Development.
One of the key speakers at yesterday’s all-day session, Professor Albert Binger of the University of West Indies in Jamaica, laid out the dangers of global warming for islands.
“If the greater climate system is not working you will be affected. Coasts and climate will be affected, reducing earnings from tourism, fisheries and agriculture. It will make things very hard. A country cannot be sustainable with climate change,” Binger told delegates.
Though Cyprus does not face the same threat of total inundation as some smaller AOSIS members, rising sea levels could flood low-lying coastal areas such as the site of the Larnaca airport.
“We need to move from the current non-sustainable energy policies to more sustainable energy use,” the Jamaican professor said, pointing the finger at over-dependence on oil as the main problem. Rooftop solar heaters aside, Cyprus is totally dependent on imported oil for its energy needs.
Sustainable energy sources, such as solar or wind power, do not impact on the environment and allow greater dependence on “indigenous” energy sources, Binger said.
The professor spoke of the huge potential of solar power for AOSIS countries: “Every day, the sun provides the energy equivalent to 30,000 barrels of oil on every hectare of our land,” he said.
Binger also said there was an urgent need to increase energy provision in many countries.
“More than 2 billion people on the planet lack access to basic energy services. Quality of life is directly proportional to availability of energy,” he said.
This burning need for more energy made the adoption of efficient and sustainable energy policies even more pressing, Binger suggested.
The AOSIS workshop was opened by Foreign Minister Yiannakis Cassoulides, who, in his speech welcoming delegates, spoke of the importance of co-ordinated efforts to improve energy use efficiency while also making extensive reference to the Cyprus problem.
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