10
INTERVIEWS VIEWS conversation
Ignore global
warming at your peril
UKM CLIMATOLOGIST PROF FREDOLIN TANGANG
TELLS MARIA J DASS WHY IT IS HIGH TIME FOR US
TO START NOTICING THE CHANGES TO OUR CLIMATE
AND MAKE THE NECESSARY ADJUSTMENTS.
You are the first Malaysian
to sit on the board of advis-
ers of the Intergovernmen-
tal Panel on Climate Change
(IPCC). How and why were
you selected?
Once every six years IPCC holds
its plenary meeting and elects
its bureau members. I was
nominated by the country IPCC
Focal Point which is the Envi-
ronment and Natural Resource
Ministry for the election that
was held in August/September
2008. There were two nomina-
tions from Malaysia. However
during the election I was the
only Malaysian candidate who
secured enough votes to sit as
IPCC bureau member.
A bureau member is ex-
pected to be an expert in a
climate-related field. There are
30 members in all. I am a vice-
chair in one of three working
groups – Working Group I,
which conducts physical sci-
entific assessment on climate
system and climate change.
What is IPCC?
The IPCC is an inter-govern-
mental body established in
1988 under the World Meteoro-
logical Organisation and UNEP
(United Nations Environmental
Programme). Its main purpose
is to routinely produce and
publish an independent and
transparent assessment report
on climate change. The IPCC
brings together experts from
various fields who make as-
sessments based on available
literature.
What happens to the re-
port?
Well it is like a bible that
people study and use to
negotiate. The IPCC does not
conduct research by itself but
relies on published mate-
rial and works by scientists.
However, in producing the
IPCC assessment report,
a task force comprising
experts may be formed to ad-
dress issues that are not well
understood or resolved. The
committee may make a rec-
ommendation for scientists
to formulate further research
on the issues.
As an adviser in IPCC,
how can you contribute
to climate change issues
in Malaysia?
As a vice-chair for Work-
ing Group I (WGI), I am
expected to contribute to the
shaping of WGI Assessment
Report for AR6 (Assessment
Report 6).
I have to travel overseas
at least once a month to
attend IPCC-related meet-
ings. My input to IPCC is
especially useful in terms of
how regional aspects such as
monsoon circulation should
be given emphasis in the
AR6.
In terms of contribution
to climate change issues,
the firsthand knowledge I
gather from the IPCC gives
me a broader idea of how
to deal with climate change
issues in relatively smaller
countries like Malaysia.
As a researcher myself,
my affiliation with the IPCC
gives me an insight into
which areas of research I
should prioritise. In addition,
I occasionally give public
lectures on climate change.
How can the scientific
community in Southeast
Asia contribute to ad-
dressing climate change?
Countries here (in the region)
still need to do substantial
work towards understand-
ing climate change over this
region. The greenhouse gas
emission from this region is
relatively lower compared
to developed countries and
large countries like China
and India. But globally each
country must do its part in
reducing carbon emissions
by embracing new and ef-
ficient technologies, alterna-
tive renewable energy, etc.
Countries in Southeast
Asia are vulnerable to cli-
mate change. Flood, drought,
storms, haze are extreme
events in which the frequen-
cy will be affected by climate
change. Monsoon cycles and
climate phenomenon such
as El Nino could be affected
theSun
by global warming, and this
can affect the climate in the
region.
What is the role of Iklim in
climate change research?
When was Iklim, which is
part of UKM’s Faculty of
Science and Technology,
established?
In the past, climate research
was considered least impor-
tant and researchers had
difficulty securing research
funding. Obviously it is im-
portant for us to understand
how our climate works and
how the climate is regulated
by oceans, land masses, for-
ests and vegetation.
We can’t understand
how climate change affects
our rhythm of weather and
climate, the physical and
biological systems, and natu-
ral resources such as marine
and coastal ecosystems.
Hence the establishment of
this centre aims to provide
a platform for researchers
especially from the faculty to
do research and understand
the intricate interplay among
various components of cli-
mate systems. This centre
was established in July 2008
and we still have to do more
to achieve its objectives.
What is the future of glo-
bal climate? Is there a sig-
nificant improvement?
Based on IPCC’s Assesment
Report 4, the Earth’s climate
will be 2°C warmer than pre-
industrial era temperatures
if current practices continue.
A 2° increase is perceived as
dangerous for the climate
system. The world may not
be doing enough, as emis-
sions by developed countries
appear to exceed the limits
agreed in the Kyoto Protocol.
I think this will be one of the
main agenda during negotia-
tions in the COP15 (UN Cli-
mate Change Conference) in
Copenhagen in December.
What was the outcome of
the World Business Sum-
mit on Climate Change in
May?
It is good to learn that the
business community is be-
ginning to respond to climate
change issues. You can’t
decouple business activities
from that of climate change.
The business community
issued a strong statement at
the summit which it dubbed
“The Copenhagen Call”. Five
important points are spelled
out in the document:
» Agreement on a sci-
ence-based greenhouse gas
stabilisation path with 2020
and 2050 emissions reduc-
| THURSDAY JULY 30 2009
tion that will achieve it.
» Effective measurement,
reporting and verification of
emissions performance by
business.
» Incentives for a dramatic
increase in financing low
emissions technologies.
» Deployment of existing
low-emissions technologies
and development of new
ones.
» Funds to make com-
munities more resilient and
able to adapt to the effects of
climate change; and
» Means to finance forest
protection.
What are the pressing
issues to be addressed in
COP15?
I think stabilisation of CO2
emissions is most crucial.
Do you think that the
slowing down of the econ-
omy is a good sign for the
global environment?
It is an opportunity to rede-
fine things in industries, to
come up with new things
– clean technology, green
technology.
The business community
in America is already adopt-
ing this and it will have an
impact all over the world.
For example an importer
of products from Malaysia
will want to know how the
product was made. Was the
technology used environ-
mentally friendly? What is
your carbon footprint? If you
are found to be not climate
friendly then you cannot
penetrate certain markets.
If we don’t do anything,
going over 2°C is almost
certain – going by the IPCC
report and once you reach
that part you may not be able
to go back and lower the
temperature, and the Earth
will be in danger not only in
terms of climate but also in
terms of sea level and all.
The Kyoto Protocol is a
failure; I think it is difficult
to keep under the protocol
limit. The question now is
how to ensure the target is
achieved, and how not to
exceed the expected 2°C
temperature increase.
Over the last century
there has been a 0.7°C in-
crease – not much but you
can see changes. In terms
of the climate system itself
– half a degree increase
in temperature is a huge
amount and can change a
lot. We have another 1.3°C
to go before we hit the 2°C
increase. The data we have
indicates that the increase is
not linear but accelerating
and if this goes on then we