Intermittent bouts of severe weather have in the past few days triggered adverse weather and riverine flood alerts, which are worrying reminders about the climate vulnerabilities of these twin islands.
Downpours that triggered rising river levels in the past 24 hours are causing moments of anxiety for residents in flood-prone communities across T&T, and up to late yesterday, that threat had not fully subsided. Unfortunately, this is now the norm rather than the exception.
Extreme weather events have been occurring more frequently in recent years, raising serious concerns about the level of preparation in T&T for the inevitable catastrophic effects of climate change.
For more than a decade now, experts have been forecasting a future of soaring temperatures and smaller land spaces for our small island developing state.
This grim outlook was reinforced at a National Climate Outlook Forum last year, when climatologist Kenneth Kerr said climate change is the single biggest challenge for this country. He described it as “an ongoing threat and a disaster risk multiplier.”
In recent rainy seasons, we have been experiencing more extreme single-day rainfall events of 50 millimetres or more. Added to that is the upward trend in temperatures. These are symptoms of the continued progression of climate change.
Coastal erosion is no longer a threat but is evident in the destruction of beaches at Vessigny and Grande Riviere. At the latter location, beachfront hotels and turtle nesting sites are being destroyed.
Long-predicted rises in sea levels, increased flooding, extreme weather conditions, hillside erosion and the loss of coastal habitats are now upon us. The population of this country will not be spared the wide-reaching and potentially catastrophic impacts on agriculture, health, the water supply and our living spaces.
Therefore, questions have to be asked about whether climate change is a priority issue on the national agenda, particularly as T&T is responsible for the second-highest per capita greenhouse gas emissions in the world due to our petrochemical industry, electricity generation, the exhaust emitted from vehicles, daily consumption and waste management.
An important question is how far along is this nation with its objective of reducing overall emissions by 15 per cent, or 103 million tonnes, by 2030 in three sectors—power generation, industry and transport?
Back in 2013 when this objective was first set, it came with a price tag of US$2 billion. In the intervening years of economic challenges, further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, this cost may seem more onerous but climate change expenditure is no longer a matter to be avoided or delayed.
And that is just one of the numerous climate issues that must be given immediate attention.
In the current Cabinet configuration, there is no ministry dedicated solely to the environment and climate change. Instead, there are parts of the weighty portfolio of the Ministry of Planning and Development. This is an arrangement that needs to be revisited.
Different approaches are required all around
It is time for the authorities to urgently heed the warnings from recent weather events. It should not take another catastrophic occurrence to force the issue of climate resilience to the top of the national agenda.