Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Caucasus Environment Outlook, David Tarkhnishvili, Editör, United Nations , Vienna, ss.61-71, 2024
The Caucasus Ecoregion extends over 570,000 km2 throughout six countries: Armenia (5.2 per cent of the total area of the Ecoregion), Azerbaijan (15.2 per cent), Georgia (12.3 per cent), the north-west part of the Islamic Republic of Iran (10.5 per cent), the southern part of the Russian Federation (44.6 percent) and north-east Türkiye (12.2 per cent). The Caucasus Ecoregion covers the entire national territories of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia, but lesser percentages of the Islamic Republic of Iran (3.5 per cent), the Russian Federation (1.5 per cent) and Türkiye (9 per cent).
Home to an estimated 42 million people, the Caucasus Ecoregion has seen a clear trend of rural outmigration in recent years due to the attractiveness of urban areas that offer more services, income opportunities, and connectivity. Urban centres are becoming a melting pot of innovation and culture, with a diverse population as a great economic driver. However, urban centres are also major contributors to climate change, responsible for about 75 per cent of global CO2 emissions, with transport and buildings among the largest contributors. Larger cities increase the risk of certain hazards, especially within improperly planned and managed areas where informal housing for residents with lower incomes are often found. Income inequalities also continue to rise in cities throughout the world.
The effects of climate change are also exacerbated in urban areas due to interactions between residents, urban infrastructure systems and economic activities. Increasing average temperatures have been consistently observed in the last decade, and forward-looking climate scenarios unanimously predict continued temperature increases. Urban planning should thus be organized taking these changes into account, to preserve and improve the health and comfort of all people, including vulnerable groups, such as displaced people, migrants, religious and ethnic minorities, the elderly, women, children and people with lower incomes. Mountain areas are warming at faster rates than lowlands.
Environmental and biodiversity conservation in the Caucasus Ecoregion, internationally recognized as a biodiversity hotspot, should be a priority. Mountains make up more than half of this territory. Highlands provide essential ecosystems services. Glacial meltwater, pastureland and forests benefit people living in lowlands and cities. The negative impacts of land use, pollutant emissions in the atmosphere or availability and quality of freshwater and other cross-cutting issues in the Caucasus Ecoregion can be mitigated. Enhanced monitoring and evaluation of various measures undertaken would serve to strengthen climate change and adaptation. Ecosystembased adaptation solutions need to be developed to reduce the impacts of climate change.
At the time of writing this publication, all countries in the Caucasus Ecoregion are among the 196 total countries to have signed the Paris Agreement adopted at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of Parties 21 (UNFCCC-COP 21) in 2015. All countries, except the Islamic Republic of Iran, have also ratified it and published their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC). The NDCs communicate plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to reach the Paris agreement goal to keep global warming to well below 2°C. Ratifying and implementing several other international conventions is critical, including the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) with the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance and other treaties that provide guidelines to improve relevant environmental, social, and health aspects for the Caucasus Ecoregion. The Caucasus Environment Outlook focuses on efforts to fill gaps and better enable the mitigation of environmental change in its overview of the state of the environment in each country and on each theme.
Promoting the sustainable development of the Caucasus Ecoregion necessitates robust collaboration and communication among diverse stakeholders. However, the prevailing economic and sociopolitical context in the region erodes the unity of the Caucasus space. Conflicts within and between certain countries also present challenges for regional cooperation.
Establishing national regulations to follow this path requires a long-term perspective that can allow for decisions offering greater certainty and clarity to industries and companies that need to apply changes, which sometimes involve large investments. Ultimately, reducing emissions should be at the heart of every decision in order to reach the goal of net-zero emissions by 2050. Policies that do not protect the environment should be updated. Individual actions are important and should be supported, but large collective efforts toward reducing greenhouse gas emissions are to be implemented at the national level to increase the rate of climate change mitigation. Involving the scientific community in guiding decisionmakers to the most environmentally friendly options is necessary. The Scientific Network for the Caucasus Mountain Region (SNC-mt) provides an excellent example of international cooperation on environmental research. Other scientific bodies exist at the local and regional levels to determine and reach long-term goals and targets.