op 5 current polluters - Our World in Data

 

Floods in Pakistan: Global Polluters Must Accept Responsibility
By Riaz Haq
CA

Pakistan, a country that has contributed only 0.28% of the CO2 emissions, is among the biggest victims of climate change. The US, Europe, India, China and Japan, the world's biggest polluters, must accept responsibility for the  catastrophic floods  in Pakistan and climate disasters elsewhere.

A direct link of the disaster in Pakistan to climate change has been confirmed by a team of 26 scientists affiliated with the World Weather Attribution, a research initiative that specializes in rapid studies of extreme events, according to the  New York Times . 

Currently, the biggest annual CO2 emitters are China, the US, India and Russia. China contributes 11.7 million tons, the United States 4.5 billion tons, India 2.4 billion tons, Russia 1.6 billion tons and Japan 1.06 billion tons. 

The United States has contributed 399 billion tons (25%) of CO2 emissions, the highest cumulative carbon emissions since the start of the  Industrial Revolution  in the late 18th century. The 28 countries of the European Union (EU28), including the United Kingdom, come in second with 353 billion tons of CO2 (22%), followed by China with 200 billion tons (12.7%). 

Pakistan's cumulative CO2 contribution in its entire history is just 4 billion tons (0.28%). Among Pakistan's neighbors, China's cumulative contribution is 200 billion tons (12.7%),  India's 48 billion tons (3%) and Iran's 17 billion tons (1%).  

Developing Asian nations' CO2 emissions - Our World in Data

Pakistan has contributed a minuscule little to climate change, but it has become one of its biggest victims. In the 2015 Paris agreement on climate change, signatories agreed to recognize and “address” the loss and damage caused by those dangerous climate impacts, according to the  Washington Post . Last year, at the major UN climate conference in Glasgow, Scotland, negotiators from developing countries tried to establish a formal fund to help countries like Pakistan most affected by climate disasters. It was blocked by rich countries. 

(Riaz Haq is a Silicon Valley-based Pakistani-American analyst and writer. He blogs at  www.riazhaq.com )