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CLIMATE CHANGE
@green | July-August, 2020
What is
climate
change,
and what
can we do
to stop it?
There will be heightened
demand for sustainable, responsible
and impactful investing over the
coming years
History has shown us that human
impact on the environment is not
something to be denied. We have seen
environment degradation and records
of flora and fauna extinction as proof.
We are all living in one small village,
EartH. The pandemic clearly
showed any detrimental impact in any
part will impact others too — the same with our climate.
It is not concerned about whether pollution originated
in Bario, Budapest or Beijing. As long as there is emission,
they will impact global wellbeing.
The Covid-19 pandemic is probably another sign for us
all to take heed of our impact on the environment.
As if to show what can be done, closure of factories
and fewer cars on the road during the Covid-19 outbreak
caused a significant drop in smog levels and air pollution
in most cities and pictures of clear, clean rivers went viral
through social media.
Air pollution includes greenhouse gases
Greenhouse gases are a group of compounds that can trap
heat in the atmosphere. The primary greenhouse gases are
carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O)
and fluorinated gases.
Carbon Dioxide (CO2) is by far the most common
Greenhouse Gas, and as a result, it is common to measure
the other GHGs to CO2. It is measured as CO2e (the “e”
stands for equivalent), and the typical unit is tonne CO2e.
The ability of these gases to trap heat is what causes the
greenhouse effect. So the more greenhouse gases you have
in the atmosphere, the more heat is trapped.
This process is very similar to the way a greenhouse
works and that is the reason gases that can produce this
effect are collectively known as greenhouse gases.
The increase in greenhouse gases in the atmosphere
enhances the greenhouse effect, which creates global
warming and consequently, climate change.
According to United Nations Framework Convention
on Climate Change (UNFCCC), “climate change” is “a
change of climate which is attributed directly or indirectly
to human activity that alters the composition of the global
atmosphere and which is in addition to natural climate
variability observed over comparable periods”.
In layman’s terms, climate change is the scientific
consensus that our average surface temperatures are
increasing year-on-year and have been since the onset of
the Industrial Revolution.
This change in average temperature is generally agreed
to be the driver for an increase in extreme weather events,
Sg Kuyoh is in Federal Territory:
The dirty river water on March
14, 2019 while the other one was
taken on May 21, 2020.
— BPS, JPSKL
SMART
FOOTPRINT
By Mohd Iskandar Majidi
Mohammad Iskandar
Majidi started his career
insustainability sector in 1998.
Since then he has acquired
vast experience in energy
management, renewable energy
and carbon management. He
has collaborated with various
international consulting firms
working for various international
donor agencies such as
Danish’s DANCED & DANIDA,
UNDP and UNIDO on EE, RE
and carbon reduction activities.
He graduated in Bachelor
of Engineering (Marine) from
Newcastle University, UK.
He is a Registered Electrical
Energy Manager with Energy
Commission (PTE-0086-2010),
a certified trainer with HRDF
(Certificate No. TTT/7090),
a UNIDO certified Energy
Management Expert, a Certified
M&V Professional, a Certified
Thermal & Solar Thermal expert
and a Certified Energy Auditor
by the Association of Energy
Engineers, USA. He is an elected
committee member of the
Malaysia Association of Energy
Service Companies (MAESCO) in
charge of Training Portfolio.
rising sea levels, acidification of oceans, accelerated loss
of flora and fauna, drought, famine etc.
Humans are causing climate change by burning fossil
fuels, intensive livestock farming, industrial processes,
sending waste to landfill and deforestation.
These activities result in more Greenhouse Gases entering
our atmosphere, where they absorb solar radiation
resulting in global warming.
We can do something about climate change by accepting
responsibility for the Greenhouse Gases we created.
We must track our carbon emissions, often referred to as
carbon footprint and identify ways to reduce them. This is
called carbon management.
Every activity we do, such as every drop of fuel or kWh
electricity we use, every gram of food we consume or waste,
has carbon emission related to them. Energy use is one of
the largest sources of carbon emission in any organisation.
As an example, 1kWh of electricity consumed in Peninsula
Malaysia will result in 0.585kgCO2e of discharge (based
on 2017 electricity generation mix).
To reduce our impact on the environment, we have to
reduce the impact of our activities on the environment.
This can be achieved by being more efficient in our
consumption or identifying a cleaner way of doing our
business.
Walk, cycle or use public transport rather than taking
the car, use cleaner fuel (natural gas instead of diesel or
coal) or use renewable energy instead of fossil.
For the commercial and industrial sector, to be efficient
in energy consumption is one of the surest ways to reduce
carbon emission.
Realising the impact of carbon emission and their
commitment to the international agreement such as Kyoto
Protocol, governments around the world are under pressure
to reduce CO2 emissions.
Because of their commitment to reducing emission,
governments in Europe are engaging large companies or
carbon emitters to report on their carbon footprint and
their carbon management plan.
As more emphasis is placed on the environment, social
and governance (ESG) of doing business more companies
are voluntarily reporting on their carbon emission to
engage with their customers and show their commitment
to doing business responsibly.
The requirement to track CO2e emissions is here to stay.
Malaysian companies should start engaging with their
employees and stakeholders to have a grip on their carbon
footprint before their supply chain, and their investors start
requesting information on their CO2e emissions.
The coronavirus pandemic and its economic fallout
are not expected to dampen any requirement for sustainable
reporting but anticipated to heighten the demand for
sustainable, responsible and impactful investing over the
coming years. — @green