MORE islands and other areas of PNG will follow the Cataret, Duke of York and Manus and disappear under water if leaders do not stand up to fight global warming, Governor-General Sir Paulias Matane warned.
Speaking at Warangoi in his home province last Wednesday, Sir Paulias accused industrialised countries of not doing enough to reduce carbondioxide (CO2) emissions, singling them out as the main contributor to the whole ozone layer with their industrial emissions.
He said many places and islands in the world were already underwater, and more would be affected if leaders do not stand up and act.
“Our leaders must stand up and urge leaders of industrialised countries to do more to control CO2 emissions,” he said.
He said he had travelled to all continents, including the poles, and seen for himself the huge masses of ice and glaciers breaking away and melting, causing sea level around the globe to rise to submerge low lying islands like Cataret in Bougainville and Duke of York in East New Britain.
He urged Papua New Guineans to be environmental conscious, and called on the Government to be tough on companies that cut down trees for export.
He said companies that cut down and export timber should be made to replant trees.
“We had such laws in 1974.
“Companies had to do this before they take our trees,” he recalled.
Sir Paulias flew to ENB to attend the 20th anniversary celebrations of Organisation for Industrial, Spiritual and Cultural Advancement International (OISCA) and joined OISCA president Dr Yoshiko Nakano in a symbolic tree planting ceremony.