Did you hear that North America and Europe are suffering from record heatwaves these days?
In particular, in western North America, the record for the highest temperature is being broken every day as they are trapped in a heat dome (a phenomenon in which high pressure is stagnant and hot air is trapped on the ground).
The temperature in Portland, Oregon, USA reached an all-time high of 46.6 degrees on the 29th of last month, and the high temperature in Return, British Columbia, Canada soared to 49.6 degrees on the 30th of last month.
This is 4.6 degrees higher than the record for the highest temperature in Canada before the heat wave (45 degrees).
In the future, heat waves caused by climate change are expected to become stronger and longer in duration.
It is predicted that even if countries achieve carbon neutrality by the middle of this century, it will be difficult to prevent a rise in temperature for decades.
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1) <'The Silent Killer' Heatwave...
Corona 19-level disaster due to climate change>, Yonhap News, 2021-07-03
Climate crisis and greenhouse gas reduction, what about the situation in Korea? Lee Yoo-jin, a researcher at the Green Transition Research Institute, points out,
"The greenhouse gas reduction target set by Korea since 2009 has never been achieved, and has endured by changing the enforcement ordinance every time and modifying the target
." This researcher is also a member of the '2050 Carbon Neutrality Committee' under the direct control of the President, which was launched to prepare a carbon-neutral scenario.
On the 20th of last month, SBS representative forum <SBS D Forum> had a conversation with Lee Yoo-jin, a researcher at the Green Transition Research Institute, about the carbon neutrality project.
* This article is part 2 of the interview. Please refer to the article below for part 1 of the interview.
▶ [Report File] Why the World Falls to '0' - Interview with Lee Yoo-jin, Researcher at Green Conversion Research Institute ①
Q. In relation to carbon neutrality, are there any disadvantages that we will receive if we do not keep our promises to the international community?
In fact, you ask a lot of those questions. There was no problem even if I didn't keep it for the past 10 years, isn't it okay in the future? But don't think so, the climate crisis is getting worse than ever. Crisis has become commonplace in Russia, Germany, Canada, and the western United States, with severe heatwaves and droughts.
In the past, if the international community did not
comply
with the
NDC
[Nationally Determined Contribution],
it was called a
'Climate Villain'
and only humiliated it. But, as you can see from international conferences like the fortress G7, climate issues are the top priority. Regulations such as carbon border adjustment, carbon footprint labeling system, and carbon tax are also being institutionalized. Climate issues are expanding beyond environmental issues to economic, industrial, and trade issues. If we do not comply, we will have to endure industrial shocks such as economic disadvantages and unemployment. Is it possible to say that we will go our own way no matter what?
As the government's response to the climate crisis is slow, citizens' voices calling for an urgent response are growing. In Germany, youth and environmental groups have even filed a lawsuit against the constitutionality of the German government's climate change response law, saying that it is insufficient to respond to the climate crisis. It was that the contents related to greenhouse gas reduction after 2030 were not sufficient.
The German Federal Constitutional Court ruled that this was an 'infringement of the fundamental rights of future generations' and made a partial decision unconstitutional. Then, the German government moved the carbon-neutral date from 2050 to 2045.
Above all else, now there is a way if you put your mind to it. It used to be, "Renewable energy? It's expensive." I didn't even consider it, but now I can access it at a much lower cost than before. In fact, as Europe shut down coal power plants and turned to renewable energy, the graph of greenhouse gas emissions began to break.
Q. The Korean government has recently been openly expressing its commitment to carbon neutrality both at home and abroad. As in the past decade, there are voices who are concerned that the commitment will not stop.
President Moon Jae-in's declaration of carbon neutrality in October last year is significant.
Even at this G7 meeting, I realized Korea's status, but sooner or later, the bills that have been delayed for so long will be flying all at once.
'Korea, you are a developed country, you are a G20 country, and you did good quarantine during the corona virus.
We must also take responsibility for the climate crisis.'
Now, we need to reduce GHG emissions not only by establishing a target plan, but also by actually reducing it.
We need to build a foundation to reduce it right now.
At the Korea-U.S. summit in May, the two countries nailed a unique point in terms of carbon-neutral cooperation.
The other cooperation items are quite different from those that only vaguely confirmed the principles.
It was stated that 'Korea will announce an upgraded provisional NDC around early October, and the final NDC will be announced at COP26 (to be held in Glasgow, UK in November this year).' ?
In fact, our national media did not cover this part.
Many people say, "The carbon-neutral policy that is being talked about now is only valid during the Moon Jae-in administration's term. It may be unprecedented in the next administration." Currently, policies related to carbon neutrality have become a top priority in the international community and are led by the EU and the US. How can it be valid only for the current government? Biden's presidency has just begun. When the next government takes office, it cannot be said, 'The Paris Agreement and carbon neutrality are the stories of the previous government, but we do not know'.
Q. To reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the electricity generation structure must be switched to renewable energy. It cannot be done in a short period of time, so where should I start?
First of all, the electricity demand itself must be reduced.
Demand management and energy efficiency can play the biggest role in reducing GHG emissions. To achieve this, energy prices including electricity rates and taxation must be reformed.
Current electricity rates in Korea do not properly reflect the increase in fuel costs.
If the environmental cost due to greenhouse gas emissions or fine dust is reflected in the electricity rate, the benefits for society as a whole increase. Investment in energy efficiency industries and technologies will increase, and unnecessary power consumption will be reduced. It is necessary to openly disclose the cost of electricity bills and talk openly about how it is desirable to adjust each voltage for each application.
Currently, 87% of Korea's greenhouse gas emissions come from the energy sector.
The key to responding to the climate crisis is energy conversion, and energy conversion incurs costs. To solve a problem, you must honestly share the current situation and come up with a solution by consensus.
Gone are the days when we could reduce greenhouse gas emissions through campaigns. Now, it is difficult for an individual to use less plastic and carry a tumbler.
The time has passed when people are told to change, leaving the core changes in society, and being able to do that. One of the really sad rhetoric is 'We have to solve the climate crisis for our children and descendants'. The climate crisis is no longer a sci-fi event in the distant future, or a story about our children's generation 30 years from now. That's our problem right now.
And to make this happen, we have to keep asking the question, what are we going to prioritize? In early October of this year, if the 2030 GHG reduction target is raised, this will become a target that must be followed. We need to close coal power plants sooner and rebalance the greenhouse gas emissions allotted to companies. It is also necessary to take measures against industry and job shocks, and expand the power grid while increasing the amount of renewable energy.
The government, which will be launched next year, will have to play a really important role in responding to the climate crisis in Korean society and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. It is also necessary to ask the presidential candidates what specific plans they have and get answers.
When examining the presidential candidates at the time of Trump and Biden last year, it is said that 'response to the climate crisis' was the criterion for selection for the younger generation.
The leadership elected in next year's presidential and local elections will determine our country's climate crisis response policies in the future. In the future, extreme weather events will be discovered more frequently, and the carbon control policy of the international community will be implemented one after another. We must start the process of asking questions and finding answers to how to solve this problem to us who will live in that era and to those who want to become leaders in Korean society. (End)
The international community is emphasizing a 'just transition' in relation to carbon neutrality these days.
This means that we should come up with measures for workers who will lose their jobs in the process of reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
It can be understood in the same context that the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change emphasizes 'shared and differentiated responsibility'.
Developed countries are not only responsible for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, but also have an obligation to provide financial support for developing countries to respond to climate crises.
This would mean that we should not force either party to make sacrifices in the name of achieving the goal.
There seems to be a lot of discussion that we need to start right now.
* This article was introduced in SDF Diary, a newsletter sent every Wednesday morning.
The SDF diary is prepared by SBS News Headquarters Future Team members preparing for .
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