With support from UN-Habitat:

Lanka goes for new climate change policy

by Uditha KUMARASINGHE

The Environment Ministry has taken steps to formulate a National Climate Change Policy (NCCP) with support from the UN-Habitat.

A team of consultants has been selected and agreements have been signed to formulate the NCCP. The NCCP framework was prepared and finalised following several meetings with Ministry officials and other stakeholders, a Ministry spokesman told the Sunday Observer.

He said that climate change is a complex challenge. The absence of a national policy on climate change has become a major obstacle in the country in implementing activities related to climate change in Sri Lanka.

One of the main objectives of the Climate Change Secretariat is to facilitate climate change related research and distribution of research results to trigger policy reforms and actions, he said. According to a spokesman four research studies were identified by 19 research proposals submitted to the Climate Change Secretariat. They were studies on carbon sequestration by coconut plantations in Sri Lanka, establishing the solar radiation potential in regions where tea processing factories are located, investigation on climate change trends in different Agro-Ecological Regions of Sri Lanka and mapping and establishing an inventory within the vulnerable areas of the one metre sea level rise along the Western coast from the Kelani River to Negombo.

Of these the first, second and third studies have already been completed and the fourth is in progress, he said.

Meanwhile, the Environment Ministers of all eight nations of SAARC have adopted a three-year Action Plan on Climate Change.

This plan was adopted at the SAARC Ministerial Meeting on Climate Change, which was held in Dhaka from July 1-2, 2008.

The action plan, covering 2009-2011 focuses on seven thematic areas-from adaptation of climate change to the regional stance for international negotiations, he said.

He said the action plan has emphasised policies and action for climate change mitigation, technology transfer, financing and investment mechanism, education, training and awareness, monitoring, assessment and management of impact risks due to climate change, the spokesman said.

The Cabinet of Ministers has granted approval to implement national obligations under the SAARC Action Plan on Climate Change in collaboration with the relevant line Ministries and other agencies, the spokesman said.