Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

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

Any activity that results in reduction of greenhouse gas emission or removal of greenhouse gases from the atmosphere.

Climate change is a major focus of the work of Kenya’s Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (MENR).

Many other organizations including the Kenya Meteorological Department (KMD); the Ministry of Agriculture Livestock Development and Fisheries, Ministry of Energy and Ministry of Transport and The National Treasury among others are working to reduce the negative impact of Climate Change and towards taking advantage of opportunities. Other agencies include but are not limited to the following:

• The National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA). NEMA is the National Implementing Agency (NIA) for climate change work in Kenya.
• In 2010, Kenya launched a National Climate Change Response Strategy (NCCRS)
• In 2013, produced a National Climate Change Action Plan (NCCAP)
• Between 2013 and 2015 Kenya developed a Climate Change Policy Framework and a Climate Change Bill
• Kenya is party to the United Nations Framework Convention in Climate Change UNFCCC)

Kenya has set up a Climate Change Resource Centre. It is located at the headquarters of the Kenya Meteorological Department at Dagoretti in Nairobi.

This Portal- Kenya Climate Change Portal www.lecrd-km.org contains online information about climate change in Kenya

Climate change begun in the decades after the industrial revolution which started in the 1700s. People started to use machines powered by water, steam and later petroleum products, a form of fossil fuels. Burning of fossil fuels produces carbon dioxide (CO2), one of the main greenhouse gases that cause global warming.

Global warming is the increase of Earth’s average surface temperature due to effect of greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide emissions from burning fossil fuels or from deforestation, which trap heat that would otherwise escape from Earth. This is a type of greenhouse effect.

The warming of the earth’s atmosphere that occurs when the sun’s radiation passes through the atmosphere, is absorbed by the earth, and is given off as heat which can be absorbed by atmospheric gases (as carbon dioxide and water vapor)

1. Rising Seas— inundation of fresh water marshlands (the everglades), low-lying cities, and islands with seawater.
2. Changes in rainfall patterns — droughts and fires in some areas, flooding in other areas. See the section above on the recent droughts, for example!
3. Increased likelihood of extreme events— such as flooding, hurricanes, etc.
4. Melting of the ice caps — loss of habitat near the poles. Polar bears are now thought to be greatly endangered by the shortening of their feeding season due to dwindling ice packs.
5. Melting glaciers – significant melting of old glaciers is already observed.
6. Widespread vanishing of animal populations — following widespread habitat loss.
7. Spread of disease — migration of diseases such as malaria to new, now warmer, regions.
8. Bleaching of Coral Reefs due to warming seas and acidification due to carbonic acid formation — One third of coral reefs now appear to have been severely damaged by warming seas.
9. Loss of Plankton due to warming seas — The enormous (900 mile long) Aleution island ecosystems of orcas (killer whales), sea lions, sea otters, sea urchins, kelp beds, and fish populations, appears to have collapsed due to loss of plankton, leading to loss of sea lions, leading orcas to eat too many sea otters, leading to urchin explosions, leading to loss of kelp beds and their associated fish populations.

• Source: http://goo.gl/1mu7E8

It is true that Kenya and many developing countries in Africa and Asia have contributed minimal levels of GHGs. However, to avoid following the same high emitting development pathways that the current industrialized nations followed, Kenya has chosen to follow a low carbon development pathway hence the emphasis use of clean energy, recycling of waste and afforestation.

Plants, oceans, and soils release and absorb large quantities of carbon dioxide as a part of the Earth’s natural carbon cycle. These natural emissions and absorptions of carbon dioxide on average balance out over time. However, the carbon dioxide from human activities is not part of this natural balance. According to the United States Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) Ice core measurements reveal that carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere are higher than they have been for at least 800,000 years (http://www3.epa.gov/climatechange/science/causes.html#GreenhouseRole).  The global warming that has been observed in recent decades was caused by elevated levels of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, due primarily to human activities.

Plants, oceans, and soils release and absorb large quantities of carbon dioxide as a part of the Earth’s natural carbon cycle. These natural emissions and absorptions of carbon dioxide on average balance out over time. However, the carbon dioxide from human activities is not part of this natural balance. According to the United States Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) Ice core measurements reveal that carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere are higher than they have been for at least 800,000 years (http://www3.epa.gov/climatechange/science/causes.html#GreenhouseRole).  The global warming that has been observed in recent decades was caused by elevated levels of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, due primarily to human activities.

Air pollution is made of various chemicals and particles that contaminate the atmosphere around the earth.

Greenhouse gases refer to gases in the atmosphere that absorb heat radiated from earth. Together, greenhouse gases act like a blanket reducing heat loss, similar to the way the glass of a greenhouse warms the air inside the greenhouse.

The IPCC is a panel made up of global experts. It was set up in 1988 by the World Meteorogical Organisation and the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP). It is seeks to establish and avail the latest information about climate change. The information is published in the IPPCC periodic assessment reports

1. Reduce, reuse and recycle as much as possible
2. Use public instead of private transport as whenever possible
3. Increase usage of renewable energy
4. Replace incandescent with Light Emitting Diode (LED) bulbs
5. Use natural light as much as possible
6. Wash clothes with cool water and hang them out to dry
7. Purchase more efficient appliances
8. Plant trees
9. Avoid cutting trees
10. Do not burn organic matter from the farm
11. Unplug electrical appliances when not in use
12. Use every drop of water, avoid wasting water

The National Climate Change Action Plan (NCAAP) and Climate Change Act 2016 recommends that climate change be infused into all levels of the education curriculum. When this recommendation is implemented, it students learn about climate change in schools and colleges.