China News Service, October 30. According to the Greek "China Greek Times" report, from summer wildfires to autumn floods, coupled with the drought that has been affected since last year, Greece’s recent extreme weather seems to be on the rise. It has a huge impact.

Facing the climate crisis, how does the Greek government respond?

At the United Nations Climate Conference (COP26), where leaders of all countries are about to gather, what plans and measures to deal with climate change are worth looking forward to?

Data map: Wildfires are raging on Evia, the second largest island in Greece.

Mountain fires exacerbate flood disasters

　　"Welcome to Greece in the Middle Ages or 2021." On social media, a message was posted below a video of the disaster in northern Athens.

In the video, students use tables and chairs to build a small bridge to escape from the flooded school...

　　Since the storm "Balos" landed in Greece on October 15, many places have been severely affected.

The fire department estimated that nearly 2,000 houses across the country were flooded, streets became rivers, hundreds of cars were washed away, and many villages and fields were flooded.

According to media reports, as with the response to forest fires and the new crown epidemic, the Greek government’s emergency response mechanism is full of omissions, exposing obvious deficiencies in response to disasters.

　　Scientists have predicted that there will be a lot of rain and floods in autumn. Therefore, the disaster is completely predictable, but the violent wildfires caused by the record high temperature in summer destroyed a lot of vegetation that could hinder and restrict water flow.

Dimitris Pirounakis, a Greek environmental expert, said in an interview that one of the major impacts of climate change on Greece is more droughts caused by long periods of no rain.

Once it rains, the intensity will increase, causing more floods.

On August 11, local time, on the second largest island of Greece, Evia, the shepherd found a charred goat in a burnt forest.

Poor water management + huge losses in drought agriculture

　　Greece is facing the enemy.

On the one hand, there are floods, and on the other, there is a drastic reduction in agricultural production due to insufficient water resources.

　　The high temperature in July last year caused power outages in the Ampelonas area in central Greece, which affected the irrigation of crops, and now there is almost no harvest.

It is reported that the government finances in this area are mainly used for the cost of electricity pumping irrigation.

And Thessaly, where Ampelonas is located, is the largest agricultural area in Greece. Climate change has exacerbated the consequences of poor water management and unsustainable agricultural operations.

Improving local water resources management issues is imminent.

According to previous estimates, if no action is taken to combat or mitigate the effects of climate change, the Greek economy will decline by 2% by 2050 and by 6% by the end of this century.

　　At the same time, drought is also exacerbating water shortages.

Some reports predict that in the worst case scenario, from 2091 to 2100, the average temperature in winter and spring will rise by 3.9 degrees Celsius, fall by 4.7 degrees Celsius, and summer by 5.4 degrees Celsius.

Greek government commits to energy transition

　　In the face of increasing extreme weather and global climate change, the Greek government has also made a commitment.

　　Greek Prime Minister Mizotakis recently stated that Greece is committed to becoming Europe’s first climate-neutral country by 2050.

Among them, the most important measure is to ensure that coal power generation is stopped by 2028, and work hard to increase the utilization rate of renewable energy.

　　Mizotakis said that he hopes that Greece will become the first Mediterranean country to introduce a specific framework for offshore wind power generation. The relevant legal documents are expected to be issued within a few weeks to solicit public opinions.

　　He also said that if it wishes, Greece will also become the first country to welcome hydrogen exports and ensure that the hydrogen is transported to the European market.

On September 4, local time, the Greenland ice cap under the lens melted in a large area.

The Climate Conference needs bolder and specific policies

　　Responding to climate change has never been a matter of a single country. How the world unites and cooperates is of utmost importance. Therefore, the upcoming United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow, UK has attracted much attention.

　　United Nations Secretary-General Guterres stated on the 26th that COP26 will be a critical moment. Although the alarm bell rings, the actions of governments so far "have not reached the level it should be."

　　Guterres stated that leaders must set bold goals and come to the meeting with new concrete policies.

"If governments, especially the governments of the G20 countries, do not stand up and lead this effort, we will head towards terrible human suffering."

　　Ye Min, vice minister of China's Ministry of Ecology and Environment, said on the 27th that the "Paris Agreement" has been reached for nearly six years, but there are still some implementation details that have not yet been negotiated.

The General Assembly should actively promote the completion of the negotiation on the core remaining issues of the implementation rules of Article 6, which is the basis and prerequisite for the full and effective implementation of the "Paris Agreement" by all parties.

　　The specific goal of "controlling global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius" is also critical.

According to the United Nations, the world is still on the orbit of a global temperature rise of 2.7 degrees Celsius, far from reaching the 1.5 degrees Celsius target.

However, according to British media reports, officials and observers said that the summit is unlikely to receive a commitment to control global temperature rise within 1.5 degrees Celsius within a week.

　　The report also said that politics and the epidemic have exacerbated tensions between some countries, and the climate summit may be difficult to achieve the goal.

(Ye Qing)