Climate change - previously only vaguely recognised by people as the phenomenon of rising world temperatures and sea-levels and changing rainfall patterns - is knocking on Malaysia's door.

Unless Malaysians change their ways now and force their leaders and governments elsewhere to halt the phenomenon, it is their children who will suffer from the resulting havoc, said environmental groups.

They had gathered last Thursday in Penang for a one-day conference on 'Climate Change: Issues and Challenges', jointly organised by the Consumers' Association of Penang (CAP) and Germany-based humanitarian organisation Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe.

"Climate change is no more an abstract theory debated by scientists in their learned journals. It is now a fact of life," said CAP vice-president Mohideen Abdul Kader ( right ) in his opening remarks.

While climate change has occurred naturally throughout history, the increasing speed and scale of its occurrence brought about by human activities in modern times has no parallel, he said.

He pointed out that the thick blanket of such greenhouse gases as carbon dioxide and methane that have increasingly spread over the earth's atmosphere in the last 50 years, has led to the fastest increase in average global temperatures in recorded history.

"Experts think the trend is accelerating: the 10 hottest years on record have all occurred since 1990," said Mohideen, who added that there is a 50 percent chance of the temperature rising more than five decrees Celsius over the next century.

"This rise is equivalent to the change in average (global) temperatures from the last Ice Age to today."

Typhoon Durian that killed an estimated 1,000 people in the Philippines last week, while the crippling snow and ice storms in the central US, and other extreme weather events are believed to be the manifestations of climate change, he said.

Hotter in most places

Dr Wan Azli Wan Hassan, the director for Research and Numerical Weather Prediction Development at the Malaysian Meteorological Department, noted that the average temperature in Malaysia has risen steadily over the past 40 years ( see chart below ).

"There is a clear trend of increasing temperature in most places (in Malaysia)," said Azli, who pointed to about 1 degree Celsius increase from 1968-2000.

What does this mean in concrete terms?

Dr Nadzri Yahaya, the deputy undersecretary (conservation and environmental management Division) at the ministry of natural resources and environment, said higher temperatures will, among other outcomes, lead to decreased harvests and a decline in food supply.

"For every one degree rise (in temperature), there is a 9-10 percent decline in grain yield," he said.

If average temperatures rise higher than 31 degrees Celsius, it would mean the wipeout of about 12 percent of oil-palm yielding hectares.

"If the sea level rises by more than one metre, 100,000 hectares will be (rendered) unsuitable," he said.

'Mainstream' awareness

When opening the conference, Natural Resources and Environment Deputy-Minister S Sothinathan urged developed countries - the main culprits - to assist developing countries such as Malaysia to achieve sustainable socio-economic development while tackling climate change.

At the same time, he said there was nothing to stop citizens from changing their habits and reduce the consumption of fossil-fuel based energy - the source of most greenhouse gases.

"Energy-efficiency measures which do not need advanced technology know-how can be carried out every day. We can always reduce usage of electricity at home through prudent measures such as boiling water with gas instead of electricity," said Sothinathan.

"We do not have to light up the whole house at any one time. We don't need to work in an office (cooled to) 19 degrees Celsius. And we also do not have to drive a car to a shop (that is) 500m away."

The most impassioned plea, however, came from CAP legal advisor Meenakshi Raman ( right ), who said efforts by all Malaysians to change their lifestyles and to educate fellow-citizens should also extend to bringing pressure to bear on the government.

Despite the environment ministry's claims that policies in the Ninth Malaysia Plan (9MP) reflect concern about climate change, these have been contradicted by other aspects of the 9MP that will promote and extend dependence on fossil fuels, she noted.

She cited the slowness with which the government is improving public infrastructure and providing viable alternatives to the use of private vehicles.

Climate awareness and assessment of climate change impacts need to be 'mainstreamed' and integrated into current policies such as in land-use planning, environmental impact assessments and disaster management, said Meenaskhi.

"Our challenge is to translate the science and the implications (of climate change) to mobilise public outcry, and to demand for action so that our politicians and policy makers take climate change seriously," she said