EPA, UNDP Strive To Improve Air Quality

As part of the revision process of Liberia’s Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), the Environmental Protection Agency of Liberia (EPA) and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) on Friday, December 11, 2020 concluded a two-day ‘Short-Lived Climate Pollutants Technical Workshop and Training’ in Kakata, Margibi County.

Short-Lived Climate Pollutants (SLCPs) are considered both greenhouse gases (GHGs) and air quality pollutants that have short atmospheric lifetimes, compare to longer-lived GHGs such as carbon dioxide (CO2).

Like GHGs, SLCPs have warming impact on climate. Reducing them will help Liberia achieve its’ climate objective and enhance air quality.

The two-day technical workshop and training was intended to provide insights to help policymakers understand how targets and policies on highly potent SLCPs can be added in Liberia’s updated NDCs.

The training workshop also considered practical exercises that assessed the current situation in Liberia. It also looked at how to estimate the emission reduction potential of SLCPs.

Liberia submitted its Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDC) in 2015, outlining the country’s intended actions to contribute to the global effort to combat climate change, EPA Chief Technical Adviser, Prof. Benjamin S. Karmorh said.

The document, he noted contains both adaptation and mitigation targets that are contingent on the availability of support.

According to him, Liberia INDC presents a platform to integrate its Low Carbon Development Strategy into the country’s long-term sustainable development vision by 2030 (Agenda for Transformation).

“Liberia INDC presents a platform to integrate its Low Carbon Development Strategy into the country’s long-term sustainable development vision by 2030,” Prof. Karmorh indicated.

He said Liberia mitigation targets include: Reducing GHGs by at least 10% by 2030; improving energy efficiency by at least 20% by 2030; raising share of renewable energy to at least 30% of electricity production and 10% of overall energy consumption by 2030; and replacing cooking stoves with low thermal efficiency (5-10%) with the high efficiency (40%) stoves.

Prof. Karmorh told the audience that Liberia plans to implement adaption actions in sectors such as energy, agriculture, forestry, fishery, health and coastal.

He  further noted that the country has an opportunity to revise and resubmit its NDC by the end of 2020 or early 2021, including by raising ambition in mitigation and or adaptation actions and support (finance), as part of the Paris Agreement’s NDC update process.

The University of Liberia Professor disclosed that SLCPs present an opportunity to add or strengthen the NDC ambition by targeting more gases and wider co-benefits.

UNDP under the Climate Promise initiative is supporting the government of Liberia to assess the possibilities to enhance the ambition of the NDC by including SLCPs emissions and targets.