Tiempo Climate Newswatch

Tonga's Joint National Action Plan on Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Management was presented at the Pacific Climate Change Roundtable in Alofi, Niue, last week. "In preparing this plan we learnt that you need really good teamwork for this to work well, teamwork and strong partnerships. It is also best if there is direct involvement of the communities in project activities to ensure ownership and there is a real need for donor coordination to avoid duplication," said Lupe Matoto of the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change.

The action plan has six goals covering good governance, enhanced technical knowledge and an increase in education and understanding of the action plan, analysis and assessment of climate impacts and disaster risk, enhanced community preparedness and resilience to all disasters, technically reliable, economically affordable and environmentally-sound support to Tonga and strong partnerships between government agencies, non-governmental organizations and private sectors. In addressing issues related to climate change, sea-level rise, extreme events and geological hazards, it aims to bring together two separate bodies of work in a more unified manner, avoiding duplicating of effort.

The first of a series of high-level meetings to consider a national transition to a low-carbon economy, hosted by South Africa's National Planning Commission, has been held in Johannesburg. "What was so good about the seminar was the breadth and depth of the people involved; and it started out as an exchange of ideas rather than a forum to make decisions," commented Harald Winkler of the University of Cape Town. It is hoped that a planning paper and vision statement will be ready by the end of this year, as South Africa hosts the next major climate summit.

The vulnerability of South Africa's water supply to climate change is exacerbated by weak infrastructure management and poor planning, according to local experts. "We are very good at burglar proofing, bullet proofing, but are we good at climate proofing?" Roland Schulze from the University of KwaZulu-Natal asked participants at a recent meeting of the South African Water and Energy Forum. "Adaptation is not going to be easy. Climate change has to be part of integrated thinking," he said. Richard Holden of the Trans-Caledon Tunnel Authority argued that climate change can act as a scapegoat. "It's easy to blame climate change, but we don't look at ourselves and ask, what were we doing to improve the catchment? We need to separate climate change from what we are doing ourselves," he said.

Soot landing on the snow-covered Tibetan Plateau could alter local climate more than greenhouse gases or other forms of atmospheric pollution, according to researchers from the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), the University of Michigan and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in the United States. "On the global scale, greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide cause the most concern related to climate change," said Yun Qian from PNNL. "But our research shows that in some places like the Tibetan Plateau, soot can do more damage."

Soot falling on snow means that the annual glacial melt occurs earlier, so less water is available in the summer for farming and other activities. The earlier melting and localized heating can also strengthen the monsoon systems over India and China. A global climate model was used to simulate the effect of various processes, including soot lying on the snow of the Tibetan Plateau's snow, soot floating in the air above the plateau and increased atmospheric carbon dioxide. "The Tibetan Plateau is an amazing, dynamic place where many things come together to develop large climate systems," Qian said. "Our research indicates that soot on snow can be a large player in the region's climate, but it's not the only factor. Many other elements need to be studied before we can say for sure what is the leading cause of snowmelt."