INDIA – NORWAY JOINT STATEMENT

Prelims level : Climate Change and its Impact Mains level : GS-III Conservation, Environmental Pollution and Degradation, Environmental Impact Assessment.
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Why in News?

  • India and Norway issued a joint statement on climate and environment during the 13th Conference of Parties (COP) of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS).

Highlights:

  • India and Norway agreed to jointly tackle concerns related to oceans, environment and climate matters.
  • Ministers of both countries expressed interest to continue and strengthen the mutually beneficial cooperation on environment and climate between the two countries, including on ocean affairs.
  • Both sides agreed to take up actions that target climate change and air pollution.
  • The ministers recognized that the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol for phasing down the use of Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) could prevent up to 0.4 degree C of warming by end of the century.
  • The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (a protocol to the Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer) is an international treaty designed to protect the ozone layer by phasing out the production of numerous substances that are responsible for ozone depletion.
  • The Kigali Agreement is an amendment to the Montreal Protocol. As per this arrangement, countries that have signed it are supposed to decrease the manufacture and use of Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) by approximately 80-85% from their respective standards, till 2045.
  • This phase down is supposed to capture the global average temperature rise up to 0.5 degree C by 2100.
  • The ministers reiterated the importance of oceans in meeting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). They were particularly satisfied that Norway and India will sign a Letter of Intent on integrated ocean management including sustainable Blue Economy initiatives. Know more about the Blue Revolution.
  • They welcomed the cooperation between India and Norway on the implementation of the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants and on the minimisation of discharge of marine litter.
  • The Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants is a global treaty to protect human health and the environment from chemicals that remain intact in the environment for long periods, become widely distributed geographically, accumulate in the fatty tissue of humans and wildlife, and have harmful impacts on human health or on the environment.
  • It was adopted by the Conference of Plenipotentiaries in May 2001 in Stockholm, Sweden. The Convention entered into force in May 2004.
  • India ratified this Convention in 2006 and it entered into force for India in 2006.
  • The Ministers emphasized a shared understanding of the global and urgent nature of marine plastic litter and microplastics and underlined that this issue cannot be solved by any one country alone. They are committed to supporting global action to address plastic pollution and exploring the feasibility of establishing a new global agreement on plastic pollution.
  • They also discussed the conservation of migratory species of wild animals.
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