by Hana Namrouqa | Nov 08, 2012 | 22:24
AMMAN — Climate change experts and renewable energy consultants on Thursday started formulating a national policy for the mitigation of and adaptation to climate change impact in Jordan.
Under the national climate change policy, experts will propose strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in several sectors, as well as measures and projects to minimise the impact of the global phenomenon on the Kingdom.
The national policy will be formulated by the environment ministry in cooperation with UNDP and the Global Environment Fund.
Hussein Badarin, who heads the environment ministry’s monitoring and assessment directorate, said the policy will be developed based on the country’s climate change vulnerabilities, adaptation needs and mitigation potentials, in accordance with international agreements.
“The national policy will focus on vital sectors and areas, such as health, management of water resources, agriculture and food safety, energy, transportation, infrastructure, land use and gender,” Badarin said during a workshop to launch the policy’s consultancy study.
He told The Jordan Times that the Kingdom will be the first country in the region to formulate a climate change policy.
“The policy will also raise public awareness and preparedness for future climate change action,” Badarin highlighted.
He said the consultancy study will be completed within two weeks, adding that policy makers and experts from various fields will start convening to finalise the national policy.
Official figures indicate that climate change has caused a 30 per cent reduction in the country’s surface water resources, as well as a decrease in the volume of rainfall and agricultural production, both of which Jordan and the Arab world rely on heavily.
Analyses of climate change scenarios during the 21st century indicate that the Kingdom will experience more frequent droughts as a consequence of year-round increases in temperature, according to the Fourth World Water Development Report.
The same climate change simulations show little or no change in precipitation to offset these big increases in temperature, the report said.
http://jordantimes.com/national-policy-being-drawn-up–to-mitigate-climate-change-impact