What is climate change mitigation?

Climate change mitigation are efforts that seek to prevent or slow down the increase of greenhouse gas global warming into the atmosphere. Mitigation also means human interventions to reduce the sources of greenhouse geseas or to enhance their removal from the atmosphere by sinks. Greenhouse gases are the gases that absorb and emit energy into the atmosphere thereby causing global warming. The primary Greenhouse Gases are the Carbon Dioxide (CO₂), Methane (CH₄) and Nitrous Oxide (N₂O). The other Greenhouse gasses are hydroflourocarbons (HFCs), perflourocarbons (PFCs) and Sulphur hexafluoride (SF₆).

What are the  sources Greenhouse Gases?

Burning of fossil fuels and land use chanage through deforestation are the majors sources of carbon dioxide .  Mathane and nitirus oxide come from  agriuclture especially fertilizers and livestock wastes as well as rotten wastes while industrial process are the main sources of flourocarbons

How do we mitigate climate change

Climate change mitigation requires adopting to clean or renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, hydropower and promotion of geothermal generation; promotion of more efficient transport system technologies; promotion of energy efficient buildings and changing human behaviors. Kenya has adopted sector approach to address climate change mitigation.  Some of the sector mitigation approaches are:

1. Kenya promotes renwable energy technologies such as geothermal power, wind; hydroelectric power and solar generation; improved cook stoves that use less wood fule for hgher efficiency and energy saving bulbs in Energy sector.
2. Promotion of mass transport modes such as bus rapid transit (BRT) and rail transit system in cities and towns to decongest traffic, non-motorized modes of transport (NMT) such as bicycles and phasing out old and inefficient (high fuel-consuming) motor vehicles by encouraging importation of efficient vehicles through tax incentives and other financial tools in Transport sector.
3. Restoration of f forests on degraded lands and reforestation of degraded forests and improvement of trees species to increase biomass productivity and carbon sequestration in Forestry sector
4. Management of livestock and manure to reduce CH₄emissions (e.g agricultural waste to produce biogas); improved fertilizer application techniques to reduce N₂O emissions; promotion of dedicated energy crops to replace fossil fuel for use as biofuel; recycling of agricultural waste for generation of energy (Co-generation); promotion of agroforestry technology for carbon sequestration in Agriculture sector
5. Waster sector technology include methane capture from municipal waste for generation of biogas and from landfills involving extraction of methane gas and other pollutants

Kenya’s mitigation priority actions are well captured in the National Climate Change Action Plan (NCCAP 2013-2017), which is currently under review to include Kenya’s commitments to the Paris Agreement. The NCCAP is embedded in the MTPIII   to ensure budgeting for implementation.

The climate is the weather conditions in a particular region.

A change in the statistical distribution of weather patterns when that change lasts for an extended period of at least 30 years.

Variations (ups and downs) in climatic conditions on time scales of months, years or less than three decades

Changes in processes, practices, and structures to moderate potential damages or to benefit from opportunities associated with climate change