Pacific way of life at stake, time’s running out

Kosi Latu




 

At the time of writing this article, another set of informal consultations on the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has just concluded in Bonn.
And the news is not good. In his press statement on the last day of these consultations, UNFCCC Executive General, Yvo de Boer, stated that “if we continue at this rate, we are not going to make it” and that a climate deal in Copenhagen this year “is an unequivocal requirement to stop climate change from slipping out of control.”
de Boer’s sentiments are echoed across the planet by the less developed and less industrialised nations, not least, here in the Pacific islands. It may sound like a cliché, but time is running out for us. 
Our small islands are already experiencing more frequent cyclones, salt water inundation of water lenses and the soil in low-lying atolls, and, in some instances, the entire islands are being washed under as tidal high water marks encroach further on their shores.
These threats are expected to get worse if global temperatures continue to rise due to increasing emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
We have few meetings left at which we can negotiate a global agreement on climate change that will have the impact required to prevent the earth’s temperature rising beyond manageable rates. As I write, there remains less than 20 negotiating days to come to an agreement on the 200-page long document currently on the table for discussion.
Parties to the UNFCCC will meet at the 15th Conference of Parties (COP) in December in Copenhagen to finalise this global agreement. 
This monumental agreement, we hope, will secure the survival of our small islands nations and ensure a better future for our people.
The Alliance of Small Islands States (AOSIS) of which the Pacific Islands region is a member, is calling for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 40-45% of 1990 levels by 2020.
This is the level of emission reduction that is required to prevent global temperatures from rising beyond 2 degrees Celsius.
For our Pacific communities, the urgent need for this strong position to be reflected in the global climate change agreement is about our lives, our homes and the birthright of our children. Many Pacific communities are already struggling to deal with the impacts of climate change.
In some islands, people have to work harder to obtain safe drinking water while taro, the staple root crop of many of our communities, must be grown in containers due to soil becoming too salty. But while it is human nature to adapt to change, we fear for our ability to cope beyond this.
How much worse can it get for us? The 4th Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change paints a dismal picture of the future of small islands states as a result of climate change. This is further darkened by the more recent forecasts that the actual impacts will be a lot worse than what we’ve been told.
As we head into the final days of negotiations for a global agreement on climate change, it is time for the leadership of developed countries to step up and look past the perceived economic and other barriers that hinder their support for strong emission cuts. There is also a need for developing countries with rising emissions to take measures to reduce these.
There is very little justice in the fact that the continued existence of our Pacific people, communities and cultures depends upon the decisions made by those in developed nations.However it is somethingwe must live with and continue to stand strong as we negotiate for our human right to life as we know it. 
We ask that global leaders use the remaining days of negotiation to appreciate that the fight we have on our hands is bigger than all of us.  We are negotiating for our Pacific way of life as we know it in our home islands.
It is in this context that we view the importance of the AOSIS call for a reduction of global greenhouse gas emissions by 40-45% of 1990 levels by 2020. 
Our Pacific future depends upon it.

• Kosi Latu is the acting Director of SPREP and he is based in Apia, Samoa.