World Bank: Rich nations have moral duty to help 'sinking' island nations

worldbank-support[1]Eric Worrall writes: Rachel Kyte, the World Bank’s special envoy for climate change, claims that rich nations have a moral duty to help island nations survive climate change.

According to Ms Kyte; “For some of the islands, we’re really talking about the extreme effects of climate change now, which are going to put their entire cultures in jeopardy within the foreseeable future. We have an obligation to help build these countries’ resilience. Some will argue that this is an actual issue of justice and an actual issue of rights” given the role rich nations have played in emitting greenhouse gas emissions to “poison” the atmosphere”

Story here: http://www.smh.com.au/environment/climate-change/rich-nations-have-moral-duty-to-help-island-nations-as-climate-change-shifts-weather-patterns-says-world-bank-envoy-20140831-10al2l.html

The word “moral”, as ever, is a politician speak demand for more of our money. But the article does end on an amusing note – as evidence for the urgency of the demand for cash, the author cites a report suggesting “a thinning of Antarctica’s grounded and floating ice, with the annual loss in the order of 350 gigatonnes as the planet warms up”.


 

See related WUWT story on Antarctica here

For a tutorial on why these islands aren’t ‘sinking” or being inundated by sea level rise due to global warming, see this excellent essay by Willis Eschenbach.

 

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Konrad.
September 1, 2014 3:58 am

Ah yes, world bank, directly implicated in two Climategate II emails.
I shall give the matter all due consideration…
The round wicker filing cabinet may be appropriate.

Gin
Reply to  Konrad.
September 5, 2014 6:38 am

In a unicorn’s eye gentlemen. Even pigs won’t offer their eyes for this one.

September 1, 2014 4:08 am

The AGW machinery is “tightening the belts” prior to Paris 2015. It is a race against the clock as nature ( the climate) is not obliging.

September 1, 2014 4:12 am

I suppose it’s the weight of all those concrete runways the sinking islands are having forced on them by the evil feckless 1st world that’s causing all the problems?

H.R.
Reply to  grumpyoldmanuk
September 1, 2014 4:50 am

My concern is, if two or three aircraft full of tourists are sitting on the runway at once, the island might tip over. It is a dicey situation, after all.

September 1, 2014 4:12 am

Let us all collectively give the World Bank the BIRD.

Patrick Adelaide
September 1, 2014 4:16 am

One of my Maldivian friends posted this on facebook today. It is a very interesting proposal but, as I mentioned on FB, makes a mockery of the Maldivian government’s stand on global warming induced sea-level rise. Disclaimer: I love Maldives. My wife is Maldivian and my kids are moldy-aussies. It is a great country with wonderful people. Like everywhere else nowadays, the government is full of self-interest.

Admin
Reply to  Patrick Adelaide
September 1, 2014 4:28 am

Hilarious 🙂

Editor
Reply to  Patrick Adelaide
September 1, 2014 9:59 am

Wow. Not one mention of fresh water, but it seems to me they’ll be able to bring it in (and out?) by tanker.

Gary Hladik
Reply to  Patrick Adelaide
September 1, 2014 12:33 pm

I looked at all the development planned in that Maldives video and thought: tsunami bait.
When I checked the damage from the 2004 tsunami, however, I discovered that wave height at the Maldives was only about 1/5 the height at Thailand
https://student.societyforscience.org/article/coral-islands-survive-tsunami
because they are the tippy tips of tall mountains in a very deep ocean. So the death toll in the Maldives was “only” 80 people.
Gee, I can’t wait to invest my “denier” check from Big Oil! 🙂

Ray Boorman
Reply to  Patrick Adelaide
September 2, 2014 12:15 am

Patrick, the iHavan proposal sounds wonderful. I think I’ll invest a billion or 2. On a serious note, their carbon footprint will be the size of the Indian Ocean, & their fresh water requirements will be a Lake Erie every year if it comes to fruition. Not bad for a country that a few years ago publicised their plight with an underwater cabinet meeting. Hypocrasy knows no bounds.

September 1, 2014 4:22 am

Spare a penny G’vnor?
Pointman

Konrad.
Reply to  Pointman
September 1, 2014 4:26 am

I’m all out of love, so don’t even start on the nickels or dimes…

September 1, 2014 4:33 am

Were it true the rich and powerful nations would have a moral duty to defend the poor and weak.
It is only wrong because the islands aren’t sinking.

Robert of Ottawa
Reply to  M Courtney
September 1, 2014 5:10 am

Nations do not have morals. The sea level has been rising for 10,000 years and they are still there.

Clovis Marcus
September 1, 2014 4:38 am

Dear Islands,
if all these things are true you can have a bit of cash:
You have not allowed the residential development of under land 5m elevation since 2000
You can show that tourist developments since 2000 can pay back before your projections say they will sink
You have invested more in sea defences and SLR mitigation than your government spends on air travel
You can provide evidence of material damage from sea encroachment due to SLR between 2000 and now
Signed
The World Bank

Mike T
September 1, 2014 4:39 am
Ian W
Reply to  Mike T
September 1, 2014 4:56 am

The obvious response is to agree that finance should be given to any sinking island nations. Then to state that as there are no island nations that are sinking, no finance will be necessary.

BallBounces
September 1, 2014 4:51 am

I’m all for climate justice. Canada should have some of Arizona’s heat. Let’s start there.

Bill Illis
September 1, 2014 4:58 am

The World Bank is a good example of what happens to an organization when it is captured by an intense global warming believer. The new President since July 1, 2012, is Jim Yong Kim of the US who has decided to turn the infrastructure-financing-mandate of the World Bank into his own personal climate-change-pulpit which also entails using all the resources available through the World Bank.

Greg
Reply to  Bill Illis
September 1, 2014 7:03 am

There is nothing “moral’ about the World Banks interest in all this.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Climate_Fund

During COP-16 in Cancun, the matter of governing the GCF was entrusted to the newly founded Green Climate Fund Board, and the World Bank was chosen as the temporary trustee.[6] To develop a design for the functioning of the GCF, the ‘Transitional Committee for the Green Climate Fund’ was established in Cancun too. The committee met four times throughout the year 2011, and submitted a report to the 17th COP in Durban, South Africa. Based on this report, the COP decided that the ‘GCF would become an operating entity of the financial mechanism’ of the UNFCCC,[

As a part of the UN it will be outside the legislation of any country in the world. A law unto itself with NO accountability.
The $100 BILLION PER YEAR EVERY YEAR slush fund to be run without any legal oversight or accountability.
UN Gen Pres Kim Ban Moon got to chose where the HQ of the fund would be officially housed. He chose well-known centre of finance, philanthropy and international humanitarian aid work: Seoul Korean.
Was that an accident or could it have something to do with Pres. Moon’s nationality?
” The new President since July 1, 2012, is Jim Yong Kim of the US …..”
Of the U.S? hmm, sounds more like, dare I say, a korean name to me.
Controlling that kind of budget entails enormous influence and power. That it be beyond all legal control, what could possibly go wrong. Expect the corruption process to PRECEDE it’s foundation.
For the pres. of the WB not to be pushing as hard as he can to put this fund in place it like expecting the IRS to argue against taxation.
There’s nothing about “saving the planet” or drowning islands in all this, it’s all about money, power and influence.

dipchip
September 1, 2014 5:03 am

August 31: Per JAXA data first increase in ice cover for the 2014 Arctic melt season.

Jeff Alberts
Reply to  dipchip
September 1, 2014 11:12 am

Off-topic

jones
September 1, 2014 5:17 am

At least the Maldives are building lots of new airports as a very clear and foresighted contingency.

Eric the halibut
Reply to  jones
September 1, 2014 6:13 am

Would this be the same World Bank which is currently funding the upgrades to the international airports on Kiribati to the tune of some $24 million? Interestingly the only talk of resettlement is in relation to land acquisition around the airports. Wouldn’t it be ironic if the airliners bringing in the tourists and their cash were the instruments that led to the island disappearing beneath the waves.

Greg
Reply to  Eric the halibut
September 1, 2014 7:10 am

The real threat to these islands is over population and over development.
They are doing their utmost to exploit their fragile ecology to death for short term financial gain and will then come howling to the UN for “reparation payments” when it all collapses.
Doubtless the loss of the newly expanded multi-billion pound dollar tourist industry will be part of the “insurance” claim.

Auto
Reply to  jones
September 1, 2014 2:28 pm

Makes sure that – if the decent science is wrong – Maldivians can fly out if the coral uplift doesn’t equal or exceed the SLR.
Auto

Andrew
September 1, 2014 5:19 am

When it sinks, we’ll give them a spot. But they’re not getting speculative money BEFORE the event. (And how would money help?? They would cease all development in preparation for abandonment, right?)

Old'un
September 1, 2014 5:22 am

In 2001 The Guardian waved goodbye to Tuvalu:
http://www.tuvaluislands.com/news/farewell_tuvalu.htm
The Tuvalu Government’s site today – ‘timeless Tuvalu’:
http://www.timelesstuvalu.com/
Willis was right!
The Global warming gravy train is understandably tempting for these islands but there is only standing room left, because renewable energy companies and climate scientists have already grabbed the best seats.

Jeff
Reply to  Old'un
September 1, 2014 6:22 am

Any chance we can wave goodbye (and good riddance) to the Grauniad?

Old'un
Reply to  Jeff
September 1, 2014 8:52 am

Unlikely. Apart from anything else it would leave Dana Nuccitelli and John Abraham talking to the wall, which would constitute cruelty to Propagandists.

Auto
Reply to  Jeff
September 1, 2014 2:30 pm

Old’un
September 1, 2014 at 8:52 am
Unlikely. Apart from anything else it would leave Dana Nuccitelli and John Abraham talking to the wall, which would constitute cruelty to Propagandists.
============
Looks like cruelty to the wall, too, from here.
Auto

Tucker
September 1, 2014 5:28 am

Ever notice that the sea level rise rhetoric far, FAR and away outpaces the actual rise in sea levels. You’d think from these articles that sea level was rising nine inches per year instead of nine inches per century. And that’s pretty much the rate of rise for centuries now, and well before “climate disruption” started.

Jimbo
September 1, 2014 5:29 am

World Bank: Rich nations have moral duty to help ‘sinking’ island nations

Here is an example of a sinking island helping themselves (with other’s cash of course).

Paul Homewood – September 19, 2013
“Maldives Building Five More Underwater Airports”
===================
NoTricksZone – 3. November 2013
Developers Dismiss Sea Level Rise Claims – Plan To Build 30 New Luxury Hotels In The Maldives – Nasheed’s Cash Machine
…..In 2012 former President of the Maldive Islands Mohamed Nasheed said: “If carbon emissions continue at the rate they are climbing today, my country will be underwater in seven years.”…..

Can I say low carbon footprint on tourist flights to the Maldives? Of course I can’t. Here is something else tourists are adding to. It’s not pretty.

BBC – 19 May 2012
‘Apocalyptic’ island of waste in the Maldives
….The Maldives’ government told the BBC they were looking at ways to tackle their waste problem…..

By bringing in more tourists. LOL. This is a con job my friends.

Bruce Cobb
September 1, 2014 5:29 am

Clueless Kyte needs to know that every time she breathes out, she is “poisoning” the atmosphere. She needs to remedy that.

Jimbo
September 1, 2014 5:35 am

Most coral island atolls would do just fine with current rates of sea level rise. They have been doing so for many hundreds of years. Here are factors that can hinder the natural rise of coral island atolls, causing them to ‘sink’. More money will just make things worse! New hotels and more runways!

Abstract – 16 November 2007
Ian White et. al.
Challenges in freshwater management in low coral atolls
…..Storm surges and over-extractions cause seawater intrusion, while human settlements and agriculture can pollute shallow groundwaters. Limited land areas restrict freshwater quantities, particularly in frequent ENSO-related droughts. Demand for freshwater is increasing and availability is extremely limited……
————–
Abstract – 2006
Three-Dimensional Imaging of Lagoon Aggregate Extraction and Resources: Case Study from Majuro Atoll, Marshall Islands
Carbonate sediments are the sole indigenous source of aggregate for infrastructure development on many Pacific islands, and their importance has increased markedly since the middle of the last century. Biogenic gravel and sand are extracted in many places by dredging of shallow lagoons and by the mining of beach deposits….
————–
Abstract – 2010
Impacts of Recreational Divers on Palauan Coral Reefs and Options for Management
…Guides identified natural impacts (63% of respondents) and divers (34% of respondents) as the primary causes of damage to coral….
————–
Abstract – 7 Jun 2010
Donovan Storeya et. al.
Kiribati: an environmental ‘perfect storm’
….Pollution of the groundwater, lagoon and near-shore reef areas as well as over-extraction of freshwater from groundwater sources have been consistent problems in water management. Most pollution is …
[Google search snippet – quote in PDF]
————–
FAO
Paper 5: Status of Coral Mining in the Maldives: Impacts and Management Options
…There are many problems associated with the current mining practices. Biological surveys of mined sites indicate mat the coral diversity and abundance have been decreased dramatically. In addition to this, little recovery was seen at sites intensively mined over 16 years ago…
Coral mining is a questionable activity with respect to maintaining the reefs in equilibrium.

Jimbo
September 1, 2014 5:46 am

Leaked cables explains Maldives’ attitude. MONEY.

Guardian – Dec 3, 2010
WikiLeaks cables reveal how US manipulated climate accord
Embassy dispatches show America used spying, threats and promises of aid to get support for Copenhagen accord
…….Getting as many countries as possible to associate themselves with the accord strongly served US interests, by boosting the likelihood it would be officially adopted. A diplomatic offensive was launched. Diplomatic cables flew thick and fast between the end of Copenhagen in December 2009 and late February 2010, when the leaked cables end.
Some countries needed little persuading. The accord promised $30bn (£19bn) in aid for the poorest nations hit by global warming they had not caused. Within two weeks of Copenhagen, the Maldives foreign minister, Ahmed Shaheed, wrote to the US secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, expressing eagerness to back it.
By 23 February 2010, the Maldives’ ambassador-designate to the US, Abdul Ghafoor Mohamed, told the US deputy climate change envoy, Jonathan Pershing, his country wanted “tangible assistance”, saying other nations would then realise “the advantages to be gained by compliance” with the accord……
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2010/dec/03/wikileaks-us-manipulated-climate-accord
=================
Guardian – 3 December 2010
US embassy cables: Maldives tout $50m climate projects to US
http://www.theguardian.com/world/us-embassy-cables-documents/251174

fretslider
September 1, 2014 5:55 am

What about my climate rights? It’s been a lousy summer

DirkH
September 1, 2014 6:00 am

Old’un
September 1, 2014 at 5:22 am
“In 2001 The Guardian waved goodbye to Tuvalu:
http://www.tuvaluislands.com/news/farewell_tuvalu.htm

The Guardian doesn’t even know that Bangladesh is in a subsiding river delta?

September 1, 2014 6:23 am

The apocalyptic rise temperature we are experiencing, and an article in The Guardian by Mr. Achim Steiner, the Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme led me to review the whole sea level rise problem and I concluded YOU should indeed donate to help those poor islanders.
To help you understand the seriousness of this situation and how YOU must unite to help me fight this problem I have written this apeal
http://21stcenturysocialcritic.blogspot.com.es/2014/09/drowning-islands.html
In which I explain the enormous crisis faced by a small group of islanders I want to help.

Jeff
Reply to  Fernando Leanme
September 1, 2014 6:46 am

Good one… I think the pigeon pinched that book from the UN, er, World Bank….. 🙂

ferd berple
Reply to  Fernando Leanme
September 1, 2014 9:02 am

You have a fantastic idea. Form a tax exempt charity, and donate 100% of your income to the charity, so that you pay no taxes.
The purpose of the charity is to provide for those that have taken a vow of perpetual poverty, that donate 100% of their income to the charity. Thus, you will head the line of the people deserving of the charity’s support.
Viola, you have no income to be taxed. The aid you receive from a charity is tax exempt, since it was not earned income. The charity itself is non-profit and tax exempt.

Jeff
September 1, 2014 6:40 am

Interesting running down all the links from some of Ms. Kyte’s bios….all these organizations, UN groups, NGOs, etc., are joined together like some sort of evil enviro-ivy. The watermelons (and community organizers, etc.) are masters of networking and influence-peddling.
We need to do something to counter this….
You can lead someone to truth, but you can’t make them think….

Jeff
September 1, 2014 6:41 am

Tune has been rattling around in my head (lot of empty space in there 🙂 )…
For the benefit of Rachel Kyte
There will be a show tonight
In Maldives….
(I’m sure someone can figure out more/better words…)