By Pius Alabi
The 2021 Glasgow Climate Pact called on all Government Heads to revisit and strengthen their Net-Zero carbon emission targets and back their respective commitments with credible actions.
The commitments were adopted by 196 parties at COP 21 in Paris as a legally binding international treaty on climate change with the goal to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius.
The Federal Government of Nigeria commits to achieve the Net-Zero carbon emission by 2060. However, her actions and approach towards the goal have been counterproductive. It’s like a house divided against itself that can never stand.
Let me speak on the Pool of Bethesda. An impotent man was at the Pool for 38 years waiting for Angelic troubling of the water to be healed all to no avail until Jesus showed him mercy. Its 38 years to Nigeria’s 2060 commitment to Net-Zero carbon emission but the nation through the Ministry of Environment has been waiting like the impotent man.
Could it be the Federal Ministry of Environment is only aware of the present realities of Nations and businesses departing from fossil fuel but lack the strategy and technical know-how of achieving the Net-Zero carbon emission targets?
The green hydrogen for instance is an innovation that has come to stay and gradually gaining acceptance across the globe as it helps eliminate emissions and reduce climate change effects.
The first-world countries like Japan, Germany, United States, United Kingdom, China and even Saudi Arabia have started developing creative strategies, making significant investments and leading projects in green hydrogen and the other alternative sources of energy to make their departures from fossil fuel a reality.
Recently, I read in the newspaper, a public notice placed by the Federal Ministry of Environment titled “Public Display Exercise on the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the proposed Seven-Up Bottling Company Limited, Abuja plant expansion project at Idu Industrial Estate F.C.T. Abuja by Seven-Up Bottling Company Limited”, and I was taken aback to the Nation’s commitment to limiting global emission to 2 degrees Celsius.
The details of the public notice entails Seven-Up increasing their 35,000 BPH RGB and 15,000 BPH PET plant capacities to 63,000 BPH PET with the addition of 4 PET line that has the capacity of 48,000 BPH. Haba! What happened to our climate change actions? The Paris Agreement? Our National Energy Transition Plan? The Climate Change Act?
Let’s break it down; BPH means Barrel per Hour while PET is Polyethylene terephthalate; a derivative of crude oil. It means Seven-Up wants to increase their production capacity in Abuja five time more than what they have at the moment using petroleum and the Ministry of Environment is requesting for information and comments on the draft Environmental Impact Assessment report on the obvious.
What we should be discussing is the submission of corporate development and implementations plans for energy transition. There should be a long, medium and short term strategies on energy transition towards Net-Zero carbon emission by 2060 for both private and public institutions. There should be monitoring and compliance unit that must give a yearly report to the government for appropriate actions.
Thirty-Eight years to the 2060 target seems a longtime, but it is what we do today that determines what we get tomorrow. The Federal Ministry of Environment is wishing, and waiting. It is at the Pool of Bethesda.
Pius Alabi
09094380584
oapius@yahoo.com