Climate Change
UN Environment statement on US decision to
leave Paris Agreement
PRESS RELEASE
UN Environment chief Erik Solheim released the
following statement on the US decision to withdraw from
the Paris Agreement on climate change.
effort. UN Environment urges all parties to redouble
their efforts. We will work with everyone willing to make a
difference.
Climate action is not a burden, but an unprecedented
opportunity. A shift to renewable energy creates more jobs,
better paid jobs and better quality jobs. Decreasing our
dependence on fossil fuels will build more inclusive and
robust economies. It will save millions of lives and slash
the huge healthcare cost of pollution.
Photo Credit: Brian Solis CC
“The science on climate change is perfectly clear: we need
more action, not less. This is a global challenge. Every
nation has a responsibility to act and to act now.
The US decision to leave Paris in no way brings an end to
this unstoppable effort. China, India, the European Union
and others are already showing strong leadership. 190
nations are showing strong determination to work with
them to protect this and future generations.
There is incredible momentum on climate action from
individual states, cities, the private sector and citizens. A
single political decision will not derail this unparalleled
Committing to climate action means helping countries
like Iraq and Somalia on the front line of extremism and
terrorism. It means helping coastal communities from
Louisiana to the Solomon Islands. It means protecting
food security and building stability to avoid adding yet
more refugees to what is already an unprecedented global
humanitarian crisis.
The Paris Agreement is founded on clear evidence, solid
science and incredible international collaboration. It will
put aside differences to tackle a common, monumental
challenge. The reversal of damage to the ozone layer
proves that such a global effort can succeed. Ultimately,
this is an investment in our own survival that no-one can
afford to abandon.”
Climate change brings more Sahel storms
Climate change is upsetting rainfall patterns
and the frequency of flooding in West Africa as
it makes the region’s Sahel storms three times
likelier.
Climate change has already made a difference
to life in the West African Sahel, the arid belt
of land stretching from the Atlantic to the Red
Sea which separates the Sahara desert from
the African savanna. It has made catastrophic
storms three times more frequent.
Driving into the storm in Tapoa Province, Burkina Faso in 2008. Meteorologists have
detected more intense storms in the region in recent years which they believe are resulting
from global warming. Image: Eric Haglund, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
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Africa Water, Sanitation & Hygiene • July - August 2017
And, according to a new study in the journal
Nature, Sahel storms are among the most
powerful on the planet. In 2009, one vast
downpour deposited 263mm of rain over
Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso,
claiming eight lives, flooding half the city and
forcing 150,000 people out of their homes.