JAVED Khan
PESHAWAR
Chief Minister Mahmood Khan on Sunday approved modified draft of the Khyber Pakhunkhwa Climate Change Policy 2022, targeting 172 practices for adaptation in various sectors of the province.
In a press statement issued from CM House here, “Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Mahmood Khan has formally approved the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Climate Change policy 2022 alongside the requisite action plan that encompasses the necessary steps required to rise up against the challenge”.
Terming the provincial climate change policy formulation and approval, the CM Mahmood Khan noted that necessary steps to be taken by various government departments for effective implementation of the policy.
The policy has identified 129 driving forces continuously contributing to exacerbate the impacts of climatic changes and increasing environmental degradation in the province.
It is pertinent to mention here that, following the 18th constitutional amendments, KP was the first province in the country to develop a provincial climate change police in 2017 and it has updated its provincial policy in 2022.
Assistant Director KP Climate Change Cell, Afsar Khan told Lead Pakistan that the KP Climate Change Policy 2022, which is consistent with the National Climate Change 2021, primarily focused on elaborated protective measures or action plan such as adaptation and mitigation in different sectors.
“The adaptation approach to climate change seeks to reduce the vulnerability of natural and humans systems or to capitalize on anticipated changes in climatic conditions, where mitigation seeks to reduce greenhouse gas emission through technological or through nature-based solutions,” he explained.
Forestry, Environment and Wildlife department KP who developed the climate change policy had conducted various public consultations to include relevant stockholders input in the policy.
According to the KP Climate Change Policy 2022, that climate change has posed certain critical challenges to ecosystems of the province. It added that the provincial government through implementation of the policy would address these challenges through bold and creative climate actions.
However, the policy, on the basis of scientific evidences, has warns of more disasters in the province in the coming decades.
“Climate Change-related disasters such as riverine floods, storm-water, glacier bursting, heat strokes, droughts, and other vector-borne diseases are expected to become more common in the coming decades, according to scientific evidence,” it warned.
The update KP climate change policy implementation is subject to provincial cabinet approval.
A senior official in environment department, who wish not to be named, said that the approval of the policy suffered without any justifiable cause, adding that the policy likely to be approved from KP cabinet in coming days.
