News

National climate change plans cite mountains

31.08.2016

Of the 163 countries that submitted national climate change plans to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), 48 referred to mountains. Prior to their 21st session which was held in Paris, France, in December 2015, 29 percent of UNFCCC Country Parties specifically mentioned mountains in their Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs), outlining the efforts they would pursue to combat climate change, which reflects the severe impacts climate change is having on mountainous areas.

Countries noted the significance of mountains in relation to climate change in several ways. A major concern that was evident in several countries references to mountains was how increases in temperature due to climate change are greater at higher altitudes compared to lower altitudes. Afghanistan, a country over 50 percent covered by mountains, stated: “Afghanistan will face an overall strong increase in mean annual temperature, considerably higher than global mean projections… under the ‘optimistic’ scenario (RCP4.5), the mean of the model ensembles projects a warming of approximately 1.5°C until 2050 and of approximately 2.5°C until 2100. For the ‘pessimistic’ scenario (RCP8.5), the models project an extreme warming of approximately 3°C until 2050, with further warming up to 7°C by 2100. Under both scenarios there are regional differences, with higher temperature increases at higher altitudes compared to the lowlands.”

Because high-altitude mountainous ecosystems are fragile, increased temperatures can have several effects on a territory, including changes to patterns of biodiversity and changes to the amount of annual precipitation, which affects agricultural seasons among other things.

Climate change also increases the risk of disaster in mountains. Several countries noted efforts to monitor their glaciers because increased glacial melt increases the risk of glacial lake outburst floods. Glacial retreat also allow increase the risk of landslides. Switzerland, a country over 75 percent covered by mountains, said, “Parallel to the retreat of glaciers, the permanently frozen subsoil in the high mountains also continues to thaw. More frequent mountain and rock falls as well as debris slides that can endanger transport links and infrastructure in the high mountains are a result of this.”

The Paris Agreement on Climate Change, the outcome of UNFCCC COP21, requires all countries to put forward their best efforts through Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) in order to strengthen the global response to the threat of climate change by keeping a global temperature rise this century well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. As countries ratify the Paris Agreement, they submit NDCs based on the INDCs they had previously submitted. Currently, 23 countries have deposited instruments of ratification. Four of those countries’ (Cameroon, Peru, Seychelles and St Vincent and the Grenadines) NDCs contain mentions of mountains.

“This not only points to the need to increase public and private sector attention, commitment, engagement and investments in sustainable mountain development, but it also points to the need to develop UNFCCC workstreams dedicated to mountains,” notes Rosalaura Romeo of the Mountain Partnership Secretariat.

Photo: UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe