As Goa’s current ruling party enlisted the support of its Health Minister in campaigning for the party in the upcoming elections in Karnataka, the apprehensions surrounding the Mhadei diversion issue still loom at large in the minds of the Goan electorate back home.
And rightly so, Goa cannot afford to engage in ‘vote bank’ politics to the detriment of its ‘river bank’ conservation agenda.
Since the seventh schedule of the Constitution of India in List-II (State List) envisages at entry 17:
“Water, that is to say, water supplies, irrigation and canals, drainage and embankments, water storage and water power subject to the provisions of entry 56 of List I.”.
The State of Goa still has to look up towards the Majority Government for a resolution to the Mhadei issue which is presently dependent upon the interpretation and implementation of the DPR pending decision before the hon’ble Supreme Court of India.
Despite the State Sovereignty that an MLA, more specifically a Minister of the Cabinet is expected to uphold while under Oath before the Governor, the act of campaigning for the ruling party in another state with which Goa is in disagreement on pertinent issues would bear the detriment of reducing the faith of the electorate in the integrity of its Minister.
Because in the mind of a common man of general prudence, if a person can shed his inhibitions and campaign for electoral candidates in another state while neglecting his own electorate’s pressing needs, there is no way of guaranteeing in which direction politically motivated jargon could stem the tide.
Presently, Goa stands to lose its climate sustainability in the event that water’s from the Mhadei are diverted for dam projects since ecological imbalances would traditionally accompany any action involving the alteration of the natural course of nature.
According to Samantha Stahl (2017) in her article titled:
Dams + Climate Change = Bad News
“Dams store water, provide renewable energy and prevent floods. Unfortunately, they also worsen the impact of climate change. They release greenhouse gases, destroy carbon sinks in wetlands and oceans, deprive ecosystems of nutrients, destroy habitats, increase sea levels, waste water and displace poor communities.”
According to Jacques Leslie (2021) at the Yale School of Environment:
“Climate change further weakens the case for hydroelectric dams by intensifying droughts that increasingly hamper electricity production and by boosting evaporation from reservoirs as temperatures rise. In the pre-climate change era, plentiful methane emissions from some reservoirs might have been considered inconsequential, but now they are a major source of concern.”
Resultantly, it would be apt to re-discover the resolutions which have been taken at different international conventions on Climate Change from which Goa can draw inspiration in endeavouring to mitigate the drastic phenomenon.
Kyoto Protocol:
Signed on 11th December 1997, the Kyoto Protocol was an international treaty which extended the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change that commits state parties to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, based on the scientific consensus that global warming is occurring and that human-made COâ‚‚ emissions are driving it.
Johannesburg Declaration:
World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD): August 26th to September 6th, 2002;
The 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg adopted a Political Declaration and Implementation Plan which included provisions covering a set of activities and measures to be taken in order to achieve development that takes into account respect for the environment.
In the area of ​​water, the Plan of Implementation encouraged partnerships between the public and private sectors based on regulatory frameworks established by governments.
The Paris Agreement (2016):
known as UN Climate Change Conference (COP21), the Paris Agreement is a legally binding international treaty on climate change. It was adopted by 196 Parties at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP21) in Paris, France, on 12th December 2015. It entered into force on 4th November 2016.
Its overarching goal is to hold “the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels” and pursue efforts “to limit the temperature increase to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.”
2021 UN Climate Change Conference:
The 26th United Nations Climate Change conference (COP26) was held from 31st October to 13th November 2021. For nearly three decades the UN has been bringing together almost every country on earth for global climate summits “ called COPs “ which stands for ‘Conference of the Parties’.
Nations took a range of decisions in the collective effort to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees.
- COP27 “ the UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties:
6th Nov 2022 “ 18th Nov 2022:
- COP27 “ the UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties “ is intended to build on the work that took place at COP26 last year and move on from pledges to implementation.
- COP27 focused on mitigation, adaptation and the urgent need for climate finance.
Incidentally, according to Justin Worland (2021) of Time Magazine in his Article titled:
“How Climate Change May Be Contributing to Our Political Instability”
“Research has shown repeatedly that warmer temperatures and more extreme weather contribute to a slew of adverse outcomes: violent crime, political instability and the collapse of regimes, to name a few.” Worland (2021).
According to Worland (2021) in:
The future: what could come next if climate change is left unchecked:
“Climate change’s role in shaping politics and geopolitics today may be subtle, but in the future, its influence is certain to be more pronounced”and concerning. If climate change is left unchecked, bigger storms, unsurvivable heat and disappearing coastlines will leave billions displaced or struggling to survive. This would in turn create unprecedented strain on political and social institutions.”
