On the same day that the Leaders’ Summit of the 30th United Nations Conference on Climate Change (COP30) ended, a tornado hit cities in Paraná, causing six deaths and left 750 injured. Experts consulted by Brazil Agency said that the phenomenon is further proof of the need for concrete actions and investments to deal with climate extremes.
According to Carlos Rittl, global director of public policy for forests and climate change at the Wildlife Conservation Society (international non-governmental organization), recent events are pushing for more effective commitments at COP30.
“We had the hurricane that hit Jamaica. A typhoon that passed through the Philippines, causing more than 180 deaths. And, later, the same with Vietnam. We are living in an era of extremes. And this imposes a very great responsibility on Brazil in the presidency of COP30, as well as on the other negotiators, to provide answers”, said Carlos.
“On the one hand, it is recognizing that action is slower than necessary in cutting greenhouse gas emissions. And the main reference continues to be the Paris Agreement, to limit global warming to 1.5ºC in relation to pre-industrial levels. We need to prevent human interference in the climate system from exceeding dangerous limits”, he added.
One of the common criticisms among environmental organizations is that the topic “adaptation” receives less attention and investment than “mitigation”. Reducing greenhouse gas emissions is essential, but cities need urgent investment to increase their capacity to deal with increasingly common extreme events.
“I’m in Belém, about to start the COP30 general event and it is necessary to put it on the table of politicians that this mapping has already been done by scientists. All projections point to the need to prepare the cities. And to carry out this preparation, it is mandatory to have financial resources”, said Everaldo Barreiros, professor of meteorology at the Federal University of Pará (UFPA).
Barreiras explains that the COP in Belém will discuss this financing so that the countries most vulnerable to extreme climate change events can be prepared and know how to deal with these impacts. “They are inevitable. We need to prepare cities to reduce these losses and, above all, protect life”, he added.
The director of Wildlife Conservation Society reinforces that external investments must be aligned with the implementation of climate adaptation measures by municipalities themselves. Each region experiences impacts differently and needs to establish methodologies specific to local challenges and vulnerabilities.
“At this COP, one of the agendas is to triple the resources available to support developing countries in their adaptation actions and reduce their vulnerabilities to the impacts of climate change,” said Carlos Rittl.
The expert emphasizes, however, that each municipality must think about establishing its own adaptation strategies. “We had severe rains that hit Rio Grande do Sul. In the last two years, here in the Amazon, we had a very severe drought, which worsened the fire situation. These are examples that show that this local action is necessary.”
