Climate change manifested as a result of global warming derived from the effects of heat-trapping greenhouse gases (GHG, which includes carbon dioxide, Co2, and methane, CH4) emitted into the atmosphere from burning of fossil sourced energy, and acting like a blanket around the earth; being the impact of long-term disruption in global temperatures and weather conditions or its devastated patterns. Its adverse environmental impact that is being experienced in different parts of the world however is as a result of the cumulative global activities of human beings over a long period; in their bid to source energy from fossil fuels, for energy production, distribution and consumption.
Man’s efforts to provide energy remain a continuum, so long as life exists. Energy, therefore, is an essential transformable quantity that is conserved (which cannot be created nor destroyed), and it is vital for man to do work, or cause motion, which may also create change in a system. Man’s energy needs with its utilization and consumption is inevitable, as long as life is to be sustained. This therefore, makes economic activities tied to the energy value chain for energy production, especially from continued utilization of fossil fuels, which obviously appears as a “necessary evil” in the wake of the present global challenge of climate change that is threatening man’s sustainable existence on the planet due to global warming. However, the ongoing global climate action measures for adaptation and mitigation of global warming; which includes a net-zero target plan, an initiative for global temperature not exceeding 1.5 degree Celsius before 2050, through decarbonization, carbon credits, and carbon balancing/neutrality on carbon footprints, alongside the trending programme of “energy transition” to renewable energy sources, are the sustainable energy intelligent activities for man into the future.
As energy is essential for man’s sustainable existence, so is food. There is no gainsaying the fact that without food, hunger can kill a man. Without food also, man will not have the strength to walk, or even do any meaningful work because he derives the energy he expends from the food he eats. Invariably, food serves as fuel for man’s daily living (the way petrol is to a car). Food security, therefore, is inevitable and very essential for man’s sustainable existence; and this is connected with man’s ability to engage in economic activities and to further create wealth. Food production invariably is an essential economic factor that demands diligent efforts to sustain it globally, in a climate disrupted environment and a seasonal devastated earth, with all forms of unusual developments occurring with different kinds of impact being witnessed and experienced. These occurrences in the course of food production through agricultural activities by farmers call for innovative reforms in agricultural extension services; where adverse climate conditions (the likes of drought, extreme high temperatures, flooding of farmlands, and all other unusual harsh weather conditions) are scientifically bypassed through climatic adaptive measures for agricultural smart schemes that boosts sustainable food production in a climate disrupted environment.
Global food production in today’s environmentally challenged world grappling with ways and means to overcome the imminent global food crises and food poverty needs to urgently come up with agricultural schemes that can provide global solutions for introduction and implementation. Drought infested regions due to global warming, for instance, could be engaged in agricultural programmes that will apply solar powered irrigation systems under smart schemes by farmers (both smallholder and big-time agripreneurs/farmers) operating in drought affected regions, to sustain seamless food production that supports food security. The truth about the observations of experiences in climate devastated regions is that sourcing from fossil fuels can not be written off suddenly because, the poorer nations of the world, where the environmental devastation is significant, are the same victims of the said adverse impact of climate change – they are at the receiving end, especially on the African continent – who may not be able to afford the global energy mitigation programmes through introduction of the renewable energy transition projects, mainly due to paucity of funds (i.e. financially poor economies).
Governments all over the world are, therefore, urged, to apply the prerogative of good governance to fund the project that will provide the infrastructural facilities for climatic smart schemes to specifically benefit all smallholder farmers. These, incidentally, happen to be the significant chunk engaged in agricultural services. This proposition is to make sure that climate influenced food insecurity is not allowed to have a foothold to manifest or thrive in the present climate change dispensation. Food availability, accessibility, and its affordability can only be meaningfully achieved if the system is able to record self-sufficiency in food, in the final analysis.
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Sunny Nwachukwu (Loyal Sigmite), PhD, Fellow (ICCON, CSN, SM), a pure and applied chemist with an MBA in management, is an Onitsha based industrialist, and former vice president (finance), Onitsha Chamber of Commerce. He can be reached on +234 803 318 2105 (text only) or schubltd@yahoo.com
Decarbonisation fever