By Fatima Ghufran (Pakistan)

Climate change continues to emerge as one of the most arduous challenges the humankind has ever faced. All over the world, scientists and geologists have been resounding the alarm time and again to alert the imminent doom pertaining to the rapidly evolving climate patterns. Although measures have been taken by nations, they have failed to halt the consequences of climate change.

Pakistan is one of the countries drastically impacted by the changing climate as witnessed by the past decade. This article aims to explore what really is climate change, and its impact on Pakistan. We will also outline the factors contributing to these drastic changes and the ways forward.

People usually misinterpret climate change as simply a global increase in Earth’s temperatures. However, this only scratches the surface as the concept is far more comprehensive. The United Nations Organization defines the term as “long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns.”   It is undeniable that human activity contributes to global warming which is one of the reasons for climate change. Such activities can be traced back to the 1800’s emanating from the Industrial Revolution to the widespread discoveries and subsequent use of fossil fuels such as gas, oil and coal.

The Year 2023 confirmed the diagnosis of Earth’s symptoms; Human-Induced Climate Change. According to NASA, the latter was the warmest year in Earth’s history. Research corroborated the fears of scientists and environmentalists when the Earth experienced a surge in its surface temperatures, recording a 2.45ᵒ Fahrenheit increase. Similarly, the National Climate Change Policy 2021 as introduced by the Ministry of Climate Change Pakistan identified several climatic threats faced by the country.  These threats are multi fold; impacting agriculture, forestry, air quality, and water storage systems.  

However, one of the foremost challenges Pakistan is faced with is a deteriorating air quality since the past several decades, and its consequence can be observed in the form of the hazardous smog that envelops several cities particularly October onwards. In November 2023, the air quality in Lahore was categorized as the most polluted across the globe. IQAir rated the latter at a significant 251 µg/m3 on the air quality index. The primary reasons of smog in Pakistan can be attributed to wide scale crop burning, a massive increase in industrialization, and an ever-increasing number of automobile owners.

The smoke emissions cause detrimental pollutants such as carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxide and various volatile organic compounds to be released into the atmosphere and cause significant health risks such as eye and lung diseases as well as risks of cancer.According to Dawn, a significant 17% of the deaths occurring in the country bustling with a whopping 240.5 Million people, are directly accredited to air pollution.

Pakistan has also been drastically impacted by unforeseen floods in 2022. UNICEF estimates that approximately 33 million people were impacted including children. 2023 was also a devastating year for many in the country due to flooding of the rivers which destroyed a substantial proportion of standing crops (153,231 acres) and forced the relocation of 162,257 people.    The flooding was an outcome of unusually high rainfall which reiterates the increasing variations in climate patterns of Pakistan. Greenhouse gas emissions are also a factor here which damage the ozone, leading to higher temperatures which eventually cause large scale glacial melting. The latter is one of the pivotal reasons for flash floods.

Whilst the above mentioned climate disasters warrant Pakistan to be blamed, we must not forego the fact that it contributes less than 1% to the global carbon emission. Furthermore; according to BBC, crop burning albeit being a phenomenon in the Pakistani Punjab as well, is regarded as a far more common sight in the Indian provinces of Punjab and Haryana.

The above underscores the importance of introducing effective legislation that hampers activity resulting in climate change across Pakistan. The International Conference on Climate Resilient Pakistan 2023 was organized on January 9, 2023 and co-hosted by United Nations and Pakistan. One of the main objectives was to mitigate the impact of the destructive 2022 floods via international community’s support, as well as to foster the growth of the Resilient Recovery, Rehabilitation, and Reconstruction Framework (4RF) . In the Conference, Pakistan presented its Post Disaster Needs Assessment Report. The report has been compiled through the help of the European Union, World Bank, United Nations and the Asian Development Bank, where it was estimated that around $14.9Billion worth of damages occurred and rebuilding of the infrastructure would incur a hefty US$16.3 billionexpenditure.

To conclude in Gary Snyder’s wise words, “The Nature is not a place to visit. It’s home.” It is quintessential that the world leaders unite in the face of drastic climate change to mitigate its harmful impact on our home. Pakistan is in a vulnerable state right now in terms of it’s socio-economic and environmental condition, and it is crucial that the disaster is averted whilst still being at the brink.