Sri Lankan President proposes mechanism to promote green house gas targets in key economic sectors
Sri Lanka’s President Maithripala Sirisena in his capacity as the Minister of Environment has proposed the setting up of green house gas targets in key economic sectors while also putting in place targets and activities for which foreign grants will be made available.
The Cabinet of Minister has reportedly approved the creation of activities in the fields of power, industries, garbage disposal and forests to reduce green house gas emissions.
“It is necessary to identify the amount of green house gas emissions of each field to reach the targets determined locally,” the proposal to the Cabinet has reportedly stated.
Sri Lanka has been bound to set targets under the Paris Agreement from 2016.
According to reports, compared to developed countries Sri Lanka has low carbon emissions, analyst say and care must be taken not to set difficult targets which may worsen poverty by pushing up energy costs.
World Bank data has noted that Sri Lanka has one of the lowest per person carbon dioxide emissions rates in the region. About a third of the country’s power is made up of hydro power.
Sri Lanka had emissions equivalent of 0.9 metric tonnes per person a year, compared to 8 tonnes in Malaysia, 10.3 for Singapore, 16.5 tonnes for the US and 4.6 tonnes for France.
OSL take:
The proposal by the Sri Lankan President is an indication of the importance given to matters related to environment conservation. The move to reduce the emission of green house gas in many key economic sectors would provide many business opportunities for foreign companies engaged in providing solutions to develop green economies.
| Article Code : | VBS/AT/29082018/Z_4 |