Climate and war blue text indicates clickable linksThis week, with Ukraine and Russia still very much on my mind, I read a story in The Guardian by Oliver Milman, linking the war with climate research. By phone Milman interviewed Svitlana Krakovska, Ukraine's leading climate researcher, as she stayed at home in Kyiv with her four children, sheltering from the bombing and shelling. '“This blitzkrieg by [Vladimir] Putin is unbelievable, it is terrorism against the Ukrainian people,” she said.' Parallels
Caught over a barrelAccepting that that this is a 'a fossil fuel war,' what can be done? To further understand the situation I went to a TED story by Bruno Giussani. He is TED's international curator. From that story I noted this paragraph: (the black texts in this paragraph are inherent clickable links) 'Europe relies on Russia for about 40 percent of its gas and about one-quarter of its oil imports. Cutting those flows is dual-edged — it would cripple Russia economically but could also trigger blackouts and chaos across the continent. That helps explain why EU sanctions currently do not extend to Russia’s fossil fuels (The US and the UK import far less and moved to ban oil imports).' What can be done?What can be done? Nothing short term. Europe doesn't want its lights to go out no matter how much it wants to stop using Russia's products. From what I've read, I understand that European countries and Britain are toying with two longer term possibilities of breaking the Russian dependence. One is to further develop their own fossil fuel supplies (more drilling in the North Sea for instance). The other is to turn more and more – even drastically – to renewable sources, including for France, nuclear power and for others, electricity, particularly from wind. Will politicians have the will and the courage? It's a big ask. Another issueThe war has stopped scientists in Ukraine, Russia and elsewhere from continuing with essential climate research. The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists carried this headline: 'Russia’s war has chilling effect on climate science as Arctic temperatures soar.' And here are two key paragraphs from the story, with an impressive photo of Lake Baikal in Siberia to underline the melt. (the black texts in this paragraph are inherent clickable links) 'Earlier in March, temperatures around the North Pole approached the melting point, right around the time of year that Arctic sea ice is usually most extensive. In some places, the Arctic was more than 50 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than average. It’s part of an alarming trend; over the past 30 years the region has warmed four times faster than the rest of the globe. The shift is transforming the Arctic land- and seascape, causing sea ice to melt, glaciers and ice sheets to retreat, and permafrost to thaw. And while the Arctic is particularly vulnerable to climate change, it also has an outsized potential to contribute to global warming, as melting permafrost releases carbon dioxide and methane into the atmosphere.' 'And yet, just when the climate scientists and governments across the eight Arctic states should be working together to understand and address the climate crisis, Russia’s war on Ukraine has forced the Arctic Council, an intergovernmental group of Arctic states and Arctic Indigenous Peoples, to suspend their joint activities in protest of Russia’s unprovoked aggression.' Determined and defiantThe Guardian's story with which I began this post finishes with this: 'In Kyiv, Krakovska has said that she will stay in her home city as the Russian army advances, having declined offers to relocate to foreign research institutions. “I know that’s what Putin wants, for us to flee Ukraine so they can have our beautiful country,” she said. “I have told scientists in other countries I will collaborate with them, but from an independent and free Ukraine. I couldn’t be in another place knowing that Kyiv was in the hands of those barbarians.”' Multiple consequencesWar is an awful happening with multiple consequences isn't it? Until I came across the Oliver Milman story I hadn't thought about any links between climate research amd the war. I see them now. Today, Friday, I've again joined the Lenten fast about the Ukraine-Russian war. Should you want to know more, here is a link to the details. See you next Friday. John □ John McInnes Friday 1 Aprril 2022 ##########
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