Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Climate Change recommended that Pakistan Meteorological Department should be brought under the Climate Change Ministry. The Committee met here at parliament house on Thursday under the chairmanship of MNA Dr. Hafeez-ur-Rehman Darishak. The committee discussed the terms, conditions and policy for the ‘think tank on climate change.’ While briefing the committee, DG Environment Irfan Tariq said that the think tank was the consultative forum of experts on climate change, which was established in 2015.

Weather expert Dr. Qamar Zaman is its convener and it has 35 members. He said that the climate change ministry was acting as the facilitator of the think tank but it was a matter of great concern that this was the only meeting held since its inception. MNA Imran Zafar Leghari of PPPP expressed his apprehensions that the Sindh province did not have any representation in the think tank and said that it should only be comprised of parliamentarians. “Sindh is among the provinces most likely to suffer from climate change. Is Sindh is not part of Pakistan?”

MNA Murad Saeed of PTI supported Leghari’s viewpoint and demanded that KP should also be given representation in the think tank. On the occasion, exchange of heated words took place between Legahri and Federal Minister for Climate Change Zahid Hamid. The minister was of the view that the think tank was formed hurriedly before the Paris Agreement on climate change. But after intervention from other committee members, he agreed to give representation to Sindh in the think tank.

He said that Pakistan was the seventh most negatively impacted country in the world from climate change. He said that the provinces should also take measures to reduce climate change effects. He said that though the development of the forests was a provincial subject, the federal government had allocated Rs 2 billion for it.

He said that ministry prepared report of Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDC) of Pakistan. The report has been prepared through a broad consultation process and taking into consideration the Vision 2025 of the Planning Commission, National Climate Change Policy, National Disaster Risk management Policy and a host of other relevant documents. The report noted that future greenhouse gas emissions of Pakistan were likely to have grown considerably given the forecasted economic growth and expansion in the energy sector, especially the usage of coal.

Balochistan’s Secretary of Environment said that his province was facing the problem of shortage of water and the ground water table was declining with the passage of time. He demanded support from the federal government to address the issue. The Standing Committee also suggested that the think tank should reviewed, broadened and all provinces should be given equal nomination.