More than 1,200 people have died and a third of Pakistan is under floods after weeks of unprecedented monsoon rains battered the country – which just weeks earlier was suffering from severe drought. Sherry Rehman. Photo: Farooq Naeem/AFP/Getty Images In an interview with the Guardian, Climate Minister Sherry Rehman said global emissions targets and offsets needed to be reviewed, given the accelerating and relentless nature of climate disasters hitting countries like Pakistan. “Global warming is the existential crisis facing the world and Pakistan is at ground zero – yet we have contributed less than 1% [greenhouse gas] emissions. We all know that commitments made in multilateral forums have not been fulfilled,” said Rehman, 61, a former journalist, senator and diplomat who previously served as Pakistan’s ambassador to the US. “There is so much loss and damage with so little compensation in countries that have contributed so little to the world’s carbon footprint that clearly the deal made between the global North and the global South is not working. We need to push very hard to reset the targets because climate change is accelerating much faster than predicted, on the ground, that’s very clear.” Residents wade through flood waters near their homes after heavy monsoon rains. Photo: AFP/Getty Images The extent of flood damage in Pakistan is unprecedented. An area the size of the state of Colorado has been flooded, with more than 200 bridges and 3,000 miles of telecommunications lines down or damaged, Rehman said. At least 33 million people have been affected – a figure expected to rise after authorities complete investigations next week. In the Sindh region, which produces half of the country’s food, 90% of crops are damaged. Entire villages and agricultural fields have been swept away. The main culprit is unprecedented incessant torrential rain, with some cities receiving 500 to 700% more rainfall than normal in August. Large tracts of land are still under eight to 10 feet of water, making it extremely difficult to drop rations or set up tents. The navy is carrying out rescue missions in normally arid areas where boats have never been seen, according to Rehman. “The whole area looks like an ocean without a horizon – something like this has never been seen before,” Rehman said. “I am shocked when I hear people say that these are natural disasters. This is very much the age of the Anthropocene: these are man-made disasters.” Many have fled flooded rural areas in search of food and shelter in nearby towns ill-equipped to cope, and it is unclear when – or if – they will ever be able to return. The total number of people who remain stranded in remote areas, awaiting rescue, remains unknown. It will take months for the water to drain and – despite a brief lull in the fall – more heavy rain is forecast for mid-September. You can’t get away from the reality that big companies that have net profits greater than the GDP of many countries must take responsibility Sherry Rehman Rehman, who was appointed climate change minister in April amid a political and economic crisis that led to the ouster of Prime Minister Imran Khan, said the government was doing its best but rescue and aid missions were hampered by the continued rain and a large scale of need. While she sympathized with the global economic challenges caused by the Covid pandemic and the war in Ukraine, she was adamant that “wealthier countries need to do more”. “Historical injustices must be heard and there must be some level of climate equalization so that the burden of irresponsible carbon consumption does not fall on nations near the equator, which are clearly unable to build resilient infrastructure on their own,” he said. A young man crosses a flooded field carrying tree branches in Mirpur Khas in Pakistan’s Sindh province. Photo: Muhammed Muheisen/AP There are also growing calls for fossil fuel companies – making record profits as a result of Russia’s war in Ukraine – to pay for the damage global warming is causing to developing countries. Rehman said: “Big polluters often try to clean up their emissions, but you can’t get away from the reality that big companies with net profits bigger than the GDP of many countries have to take responsibility.” Annual UN climate talks take place in Egypt in November, where the group of 77 developing countries plus China, currently chaired by Pakistan, will push hard to make polluters pay after a year of devastating drought, floods , heat and forest fires. . Pakistan is one of the world’s most vulnerable countries to global warming and the current devastating floods come after four consecutive heatwaves with temperatures exceeding 53 degrees earlier this year. It has more than 7,200 glaciers – more than anywhere outside the poles – that are melting much faster and earlier due to warming, adding water to rivers already swollen by rainfall. View of makeshift tents of flood victims fleeing to higher ground. Photo: Reuters “We’re going to be very clear and forthright about what we see as our wants and needs, and where we see the set of larger global goals. But the loss and risk to the south, already in the throes of an accelerating climate dystopia, should be part of the deal led to Cop27,” he said. Richer polluting countries have so far been slow to come up with promised money to help developing countries adapt to climate crises and even more reluctant to engage in meaningful negotiations on financing the damages and losses suffered by poorer countries like Pakistan that contributed negligible in greenhouse gas emissions. The compensation debate has been largely blocked, leaving vulnerable countries like Pakistan “to bear the brunt of reckless carbon consumption than others”. “As you can see, global warming has not decreased – quite the opposite. And there’s only so much customization we can do. Melting glaciers, floods, droughts, forest fires, none will stop without very serious commitments,” Rahman said. “We are at the forefront and intend to keep loss and damage and adaptation to climate disasters at the core of our arguments and negotiations. There will be no getting away from it.”
