Officials formulate climate change policy
Belmopan farmers are one group who will have to deal with the effects of global changes in climate. This week a workshop is underway to outline policy options for dealing with what could be one of the major environmental challenges of the new millenium.
Ann-Marie Williams, Reporting
Chief Meteorologist, Carlos Fuller says climate change affects all sectors of our economy
Carlos Fuller, Chief Meteorologist
“We saw last year with the pine beetle infestation that things that affect one area can be attributed to climate changes. For example, we know that infestation was aggravated by high temperatures, low humidity; dry conditions. So if we have taken mitigation measures to monitor temperatures up there, have fires paths ready so that the beetle will not have propagated so quickly, then we may have mitigated some of the effects of the beetle. Other things can be done in other sectors of the economy. We know our agriculture could be affected by climate change. Studies that we have done show that rice, beans and corn production will fall ten percent by only a one degree rise in temperature.”
Fuller says an issues paper has already been created where consultants examined topics they felt were of national importance, such as health, agriculture and forestry. However, during the plenary sessions participants will make additions to complete the climate change policy, which will then be presented to government.
Ann-Marie Williams
“What are we doing in terms of a Caribbean link? A lot of these issues at home impact largely on Caribbean territory.”
Carlos Fuller
“In fact that is where Belize is again in a great position. The Prime Minister of Belize has been given the mandate to coordinate all activities in the Caribbean in climate change and sustainable development. So in this quasi Cabinet, he’s going to play the key role to ensure that what happens in Belize is also occurring throughout the Caribbean and that we then speak with a unified voice so we don’t have national project, but regional projects.”
And according to U.K. presenter, Merylyn Hedger, regional projects reflect a global interest.
Merylyn Hedger, U.K. Consultant
“We’ve had some traumatic floods last November. I don’t know if you heard about those, but that’s had an impact on people. That’s raised all sorts of questions about where houses are built because a lot of new houses had been built in flood prone areas, and it was the new houses generally that were flooded. So we’re reviewing all the planning laws now to look at where houses are built. There’s the question of how structures are built and if we’re going to have a lot more winds and rainfall, we’ve got to have houses to withstand dampness.”
“One mild form of malaria could get re-established in the U.K.. Not the most dangerous one, but of course that raised a lot of consternation. There wasn’t malaria in the U.K. until quite recently. There’s also lots of health impacts like increase food poisoning and maybe vector borne disease like Lime Disease and Nile River Virus.”
Ann-Marie Williams for News 5.
The national climate change policy document is being funded by the UN’s Global Environment Facility. The two-day climate change workshop ends Friday at BIM.
