Environment

Armengol warning about "ecological crisis"

Posidonia sea grass in the Mediterranean is threatened | Joan Costa

Majorca Daily Bulletin reporterPalma28/09/2019 04:01

In the context of Friday's climate strike, President Armengol said that the science about the "ecological crisis" is clear. "The planet is suffering and we are losing the race against a climate change that is accelerating." It is also clear that if climate change is not mitigated, "Spain will be one of the countries which is most affected".

Armengol pointed to summers being five weeks longer than they were in the 1980s, to the increased risk of forest fires and drought, and to the greater threat to agriculture. Rising sea levels threaten the coasts of the Balearics and Spain. "The beaches will disappear."

The president referred to pollution that is reducing Europeans' life expectancy by 2.2 years and to climate change that is making people "less intelligent". Increases in contaminating emissions result in falls in cognitive performance.

While climate action is a global challenge, there need to be local responses. In this regard she cited examples of Balearic legislation, such as the posidonia sea grass decree and the law for sustainable mobility.