By Sonny Atumah

The annual Conference of Parties (COP) to the United Nations global treaty on climate change starts on Monday, November 30 to December 11, 2015 at Le Bourget in beleaguered Paris in the aftermath of the multiple terror attacks where 129 people were killed a fortnight ago. The COP is the supreme body of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to make nations have a legally binding and universal agreement on climate to keep global warming below 2p  C.

The French President Francois Hollande, addressing security concerns on the Paris COP 21 with expected 50,000 participants (including government official and civil society delegates ) in a joint session of his country’s parliament, assured it would go ahead to show that the world must stay united against terrorism. Growing concerns on global warming have led to calls for reduction of greenhouse emissions into the atmosphere. Greenhouse gases act like blanket around the earth, trapping energy in the atmosphere and causing it to warm. This warming of the earth’s surface as a result of atmospheric pollution by gases is the greenhouse effect.

Although the greenhouse isnecessary to support life on earth, rising global temperatures have caused polar icecaps melting, oceans warming and sea levels rising with changes in rainfall resulting in floods, droughts or intense rain as well as frequent and severe heat waves. Warm climate affects water supplies, agriculture, power and transportation systems, health, safety and environment.

From the United States Environmental Protection Agency human activities over the past century have released a lot of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and fluorinated gases into the atmosphere with dangerous effects on human health and ecosystems and indeed the ozone layer depleted. Scientists discovered the hottest years of the last century came after 1990 with the hottest being 1998. A lot of greenhouse gases come from burning fossil fuels (coal, oil and natural gas) to produce energy. Industrial processes, deforestation, solid waste, and some agricultural processes also emit gases into the atmosphere.

The international climate negotiations are to reduce carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases linked to climate change. The discourse is the reduction of fossil fuels for energy and replaced with renewable energy sources to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions. Renewable energy like biofuel (ethanol and biodiesel), biomass, geothermal, solar, hydropower and wind are naturally generated energy. The International Energy Agency (IEA) predicts that by 2030, renewable energy could become the world’s largest source of electricity ahead of conventional sources of coal, natural gas, oil and nuclear power.

The Group of 7 (G7) industrialised nations summit in Bavaria, Germany on June 8, 2015 pledged to rid the global economy of fossil fuels by the end of the 21st century. German Chancellor and G7 summit host Angela Merkel had told reporters they are committed to the decarbonisation of the world economy.

Observers believe the joint declaration may not have the bite considering the scramble for global oil by super majors from countries discouraging petroleum energy usage. Would the United States yet to sign the 1997 Kyoto Protocol ratify any treaty to reduce carbon dioxide emissions? Three heavy global emitters of carbon dioxide: China (27.6 percent), United States (14.5 percent), and India (6.7 percent) have not accepted the Lima 2014 legal framework that would obligate them to pay for CO‚  emissions.

However, natural gas with low carbon dioxide emissions is now preferred to coal. China which heavily relies on coal, is now bowing to internal pressure on the dangers of smog in Beijing and 15 major cities making her to increase renewable capacity in solar energy. Last June, Norway reacted with plans to divest its $890 billion sovereign wealth fund from coal assets.

Technologies developed in energy sources including renewables may soon render liquid fossil fuels useless. One’s concern is on climate change but one’s greater worry is the socio-economic implications on economies that are heavily dependent on fossil fuels. Some OPEC members’ survivals hang on petroleum with some respected global institutions using global warming reduction as bait to push for fossil fuel subsidies withdrawal. These may fuel global political destabilisation owing tensions if not properly addressed.

The United States is already producing flexible fuels vehicles E85 and M85 that run on (ethanol 85 percent and gasoline 15 percent) and (methanol 85 percent and gasoline 15 percent) respectively. Saudi-led OPEC oil embargo of 1973/74 destabilised American economy that in four decades she developed technologies that are reducing production costs thus culminating in present oil glut.

U.S. researchers are recording breakthroughs in artificial photosynthesis that seeks to mimic the action of plants in capturing energy from the sun to produce biomass by breaking down water and combining it with carbon dioxide to power vehicles, planes and ships, reports Darrell Delamaide of Oilprice.com. Number one auto maker, Toyota plans to transform its product line with the goal of selling very few if any conventional gasoline vehicle by 2050.