Period of Introspection / Exist vs Evolve – Melba Pría

It is the natural course of the human race to develop and grow. Over the course of evolution, individual
humans have been replaced by societies who were in turn were replaced by countries in the endless quest
for improvement. Unconsiously, our idea of “progress” has manifested itself in industrial and commercial
progress which has made establishing a balance between nature and development difficult. This natural
race for the “best”, has led to the inevitable clash between man and nature. One of the few rebellious
steps that the nature have taken is the flooding of Svalbard Global Seed Vault. The vault is essentially a
secure seed bank on the Norwegian in the remote island of Spitsbergen near the north pole. This vault
preserves a wide variety of plant seeds which are mostly spare produce. It was designed like a deep-freeze
refrigerator which would be an insurance against the loss or damage of food at the time of global crisis.
But due to Global Warming, the melted water flooded this vault on 22nd May, 2017. The vault is not
supposed to be manned but just because we can’t tap the energy from renewable resources, we have to
face the consequences of soaring temperatures.

Mexico is no stranger to the plight of pollution. In 1992, UN declared Mexico City as the world’s most
polluted city. México City is located in the high altitude which traps pollution and makes it a victim of
poor ventilation and strong sun isolation. Furthermore, it is a highly developed industrial area including
over 78,000 industries and 1,23,000 commercial and service establishments. Mexican author, Carlos
Fuentes, ficticiously renamed the city as "Makesicko City". The pollution level was so drastic back in
1992 that it led to serious health issues for its population. Together, this cost the economy about $850
million.

We have come a long way since 1992. The government designed to curtail pollution to some extent. One
the most intriguing measure that the government took was the campaign of “one day without car”.
Originally, it was a voluntary initiative to stop using the car one day one week. Eventually, this evolved
into the program “Hoy No Circula”, which shares similarities with the Delhi’s odd-even policy. Under
the ProAire programme, launched in 2011 and running until 2020, contains 89 measures and 116
separate actions across eight strategy areas, including energy consumption, greening of the municipal
transport fleets, education, green areas and reforestation, capacity building and scientific research.
Following these measures, we were able to combat pollution in an effective way, which reduced our
carbon emissions in a considerable amount allowing us to enjoy better air quality. Thus, we were
awarded the C40 City Award for air quality. Now we face new challenges. While we haven’t reached
there yet, we are determined to evolve.

In the course of history, CO2 level has never gone above 330 PPM but the world has witnessed a drastic
change in the recent years. The logic behind the varying levels is that the temperature gets warmer when
there is more carbon dioxide. Consequently, it traps more heat from the sun inside which in turn leads to
the increase in the CO2 level.

Prior to the Industrial Revolution, carbon dioxide stood at roughly 280 parts per million. This may, 2017,
Carbon dioxide has reached an all-time-high record. Carbon dioxide peaked at 409.65 parts per million
for the year, according to data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. It is worth
mentioning that human pollution is pushing atmospheric carbon dioxide ever higher. The rise in carbon
dioxide is tipping the climate into a volatile state, one in which Arctic sea ice is scraping the bottom of the
barrel, oceans are rising and causing flooding even on sunny days, and the earth has warmed 1.8°F above
pre-industrial levels. As carbon dioxide levels continue to increase, those impacts will only become more
pronounced.
Optional paragraph - Rising emissions reflect the underlying baseline requirements on economic
growth: with increasing GDP and energy demand, especially in fast growing economies such as India and
China, emissions of air pollutants rise, albeit at a slower pace than GDP. In particular, emissions of
nitrogen oxides (NOx) and ammonia (NH3 ) are projected to increase strongly. These large changes are
due to the projected increase in the demand for agricultural products and energy (incl. transport and
power generation). Emissions of black carbon (BC), carbon monoxide (CO), and Volatile Organic
compounds (VOCs) also increase. Emissions of sulphur dioxide (SO2 ) are projected to initially decrease
but increase again after 2030.

Elaboration of the state of earth in 2100 - The rise in these concentrations means an increase in the
temperature of the planet. An average increase of one degree across its entire surface means huge changes
in climatic extremes. It has been calculated that a one-degree increase would eliminate fresh water from a
third of the world’s land surface by 2100. Tropical lands like the Amazon will teeter on the brink, the
Artic icecaps and glaciers must have lost half of its ice. Permafrost – ground that has lain frozen for
thousands of years – would dissolve into mud and lakes, destabilising whole areas as the ground collapses
beneath buildings, roads and pipelines.
Polar Bears and Inuits will suffer a loss of habitat because they require ice caps to hunt and survive but
the sea ice is declining at the rate of 13 percent per decade. Since the ice caps would melt and turn into
a sea, it will absorb the heat from the sun and will cause stronger storms. Hurricanes Jeanne, Francis and
Ivan and infact Katrina are a string of big hurricanes seen till now, but the ferocity and impact of the
hurricanes will increase.

In the past, México has been the victim of the hurricane Patricia. It was a category 5 storm – The
strongest ever in the western hemisphere. Winds at the velocity of 165 mph struck south-western Mexico
on October 13, 2015. The strong winds uprooted trees, toppled power lines and unleashed landlsides and
mudslides. The world’s oil industry in the Gulf of México was hit as well which costed the economy
millions of dollars.
Mexico is considered one of the most biodiverse region of the planet because around 574 out of 717
reptile species are found in Mexico, however, climate change will threaten the existence of the country’s
rich wildlife. Animals like Vaquita (only 20 or so left), Monarch Butterfly, will go extinct in the
coming years. The surprising thing is, that there are a range of new exotic invasive species filling up the
space for old ones.

The world has witnessed the affects of climate change. The environmental scientists have put together a
series of before and after photographs of the consequences of Global Warming.
Qori Kalis Glacier in Perú has retreated by 1.14 km (0.7 miles) between 1978 (left) and 2016 (right).
Columbia Glacier, Alaska, has retreated by 6.5 km (4 miles) between 2009 (left) and 2015 (right).

Trift Glacier, Switzerland, has retreated by 1.17 km (0.7 miles) between 2006 (left) and 2015 (right).
Mendenhall Glacier, Alaska, has retreated by 550 m (1,800 ft) between 2007 (left) and 2015 (right).

Realizing the fact that we are sitting on the edge in terms of world crisis is inescapable. But doing
absolutely nothing about it, is ignorance. (a paradoxical joke about ignorance is bliss). These red lights
are making us question our own “fail-safe”. We not only have to look out for our backups but also hold
fort against the impending results of our own actions. Earth is everyone’s home, not someone’s throne.
We are amid this climate shift therefore, we can’t procrastinate any longer. Our half-measures are not
enough.

According to the report of World Health Organization, India has half of the world’s 20 most polluted
cities, mostly due to industrial and vehicular exhaust. The smaller towns of India like Gwaliar, Allahabad
and Patna are actually competing to be in the second and third position against Delhi which is at the 11th
position. In 2005, 6.2 lakh deaths were reported due to particulate matter and ozone. In 2010, the numbers
increased by 11% and counting.

India is an old country but a young nation. The average age of India in 2020 will be 29 which implies that
more than half of the population would be under 25 compared to the average age of China which will be
47, U.S, 40 and Europe which will be 46.

Individual efforts

 We can start making a difference by using energy efficient light bulbs and appliances, Buy a
hybrid car if possible, depend a little on carpool for short distance, or better yet cycle and walk if
you can. It will help keeping the calories in check and expensive calorie count watches will be
worthwhile too.
 Household cleaners have high levels of VOCs which is harmful. A better way would be to ask for
low VOCs paints and solvents. If not, tightly seal the containers of household cleaners, workshop
chemicals, solvents, and garden chemicals to prevent volatile organic compounds from
evaporating into the air.
  Advocate for emission reductions from power plants and more stringent national vehicle emission
standards.
 Intelligent use of lights, computers and electrical appliances when they are not in use.
 Tap non-renewable energy resources.
 Instead of organizing bonfire parties, set up a dinner under butterfly lights where you can see the
stars.
 Help in cleaning after a concert or a public event.
 Use thermacol glasses instead of plastic.
 Be an active part in the community-driven inititatives like the “Ugly Indian”.
 Adopt solar solutions like solar panels.
 Learn organic farming
 Educate yourself for better disposal of sanitary pads.
 Intern with waste management and e-waste campaigns.
 Plant trees. It is an old-school and the most efficient solution we have to save ourselves.
Participate in tree plantation drives.

Smoking is injurious to health is the slogan we read every now and then. Ideally, we should not smoke
but this is for the people who do. You can also contribute to combat pollution. There is a start-up called
“Code”. This startup collects and recycles cigarette waste and also pays you for it. Generally, after
smoking, the butt of the cigarette is trashed. But what we fail to realize is that, the butts are made of a
synthetic polymer called Cellulose Acetate which is non-biodegradable.

Bangaluru-based Encashea is a startup which encashes your scrap. They pay you for segregating
your recyclable scrap, thus, lowering its environmental impact. This even has an app through which you
can request for a pick-up.

Conclusion - It is easy to give up on things because life is hard and you can’t change the world, but you
can choose a different story for yourself. You can change your world, your sphere, your personal space
and I am here to encourage you for exactly that. If the youth constitutes the major part of the population
then it means that we don’t lack manpower but determination. This degradation calls for action and
support of you all. We need to realize the power that we can choose between existing and evolving.