Cyprus is set to ratify the Paris climate change deal, said Agriculture Minister Nicos Kouyialis.

“The Paris Agreement on climate is deemed the landmark for combating climate change as it represents an ambitious, balanced, equitable and legally binding agreement,” he commented after the agreement was signed at the UN in New York on April 22nd.

As a Mediterranean island, Cyprus is experiencing the first serious effects of global warming, said the minister.

“We have been witnessing prolonged periods of drought, increased temperatures, degradation of forests and rare ecosystems,” he said.

The frequency of dust storms from deserts in Egypt and Syria have also intensified due to these droughts.

Cyprus recognises the importance of climate change, and it has been included as one of the goals of the newly developed national development plan, said the minister, adding:

“Within the following years, we plan to implement a number of mitigation and adaptation policies and measures. We have already ratified the Doha Amendment to the Kyoto Protocol establishing the second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol from 2013 until 2020.”

Cyprus is legally bound to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 40 percent by 2030 compared to 1990, said the minister.

Its current economic problems notwithstanding, Cyprus has contributed 350 000 euros to the Green Climate Fund.

The Paris agreement’s overall goal is to reduce the increase of the global temperature to below two percent.

Environmental challenges

Several major problems with the island’s pollution still stand out - the number of cars, the unavoidable use of air-conditioners in summer, and the way electricity is produced by using the highly-polluting Mazut crude at Vassiliko Power Plant. Instead of Mazut, cleaner alternatives like natural gas or solar energy should be used.

Some parts of Nicosia’s old walls are almost black with car emissions mixed with dust. And along the Larnaca-Limassol coast, emissions have been problematically high, given that’s where the electricity is produced. In summer, electricity use jumps sharply because of the high temperatures, leading to more emissions.

The House of Representatives has been slow to react to the problem of climate change and a number of bills bringing the island’s legal infrastructure in line with the EU’s have still not appeared. But the environment must become a priority for the sake of everyone’s health and the country’s future.