Ader calls for cooperation on climate change

Budapest (MTI) – The United States, European Union and China, the world’s major polluters, must cooperate to defeat climate change, President Janos Ader said on Tuesday.

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“At the same time, we have to be prepared for more frequent natural disasters,” Ader said in a speech at the University of Szeged, in southern Hungary.

Data clearly show the global average temperature has been rising, Ader said, adding that scientists generally agree that CO2 and other greenhouse gas emissions have largely contributed towards this trend.

Since this problem cannot be resolved by any single country, the three largest emitters that produce about half of greenhouse gases should reach an agreement paving the way for a substantial reduction of emissions, he added. Alternative technologies and energy efficiency alone are not up to the task, he said, adding that there is a 30-40 year lag between decisions and effects on the climate.

The number of natural disasters has increased threefold over the past 40 years and the number of people suffering their effects has reached two billion, Ader said.

Fully 80 percent of the effects of climate change are related to water. Ader noted that 10,000 children under the age of five die each day due to a lack of clean drinking water and half of the world’s hospital beds are occupied by patients with illnesses related to drinking contaminated water.

Strong international cooperation can yield results in efforts aimed at mitigating the effects of climate change, Ader said, citing steps taken towards protecting the ozone layer.

Gabor Szabo, the rector, briefed the president about initiatives that placed the university 19th in the latest global ranking of green universities.

Photo: MTI

Source: http://mtva.hu/hu/hungary-matters