BURMA
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CO2 Emissions p.capita (tonnes) UN |
World Ranking CO2 Emissions (p.capita) UN |
EPI World Ranking Climate Change |
TI World Ranking Corruption |
TI Asia Ranking Corruption |
Ratified Kyoto Protocol (year) |
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0.21 |
31 |
71 |
178 |
24 |
Not ratified |
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Compiled by Green Assembly. Data sourced from the UN,Transparency International,and EPI |
BURMA, officially the Union of Myanmar, is the largest country by geographical area in mainland Southeast Asia.
Because of its very slow economic development and isolation from the rest of the world, Burma has a very good emissions record up to now. It seems that prosperity and CO2 emissions go hand-in-hand.
The country’s exceptionally low emissions of CO2 give it a global ranking of 31 per capita. But that is all changing with the construction of a chain of hydro-electric dams thanks to finance and expertise from China.
The amount of CO2 absorption capacity that is about to be lost is staggering. Much of the electricity that will be generated by the new dams will be exported to power-guzzling neighbours such as Thailand which is itself already a major CO2 producer.
According to Wikipedia, Burma is bordered by the People’s Republic of China on the northeast, Laos on the east, Thailand on the southeast, Bangladesh on the west, India on the northwest, the Bay of Bengal to the southwest with the Gulf of Martaban and Andaman Sea defining its southern periphery. One-third of Burma’s total perimeter, 1,930 kilometres (1,199 miles), forms an uninterrupted coastline.
Burma’s diverse population has played a major role in defining its politics, history and demographics in modern times, and the country continues to struggle to mend its ethnic tensions.
Its political system remains under the tight control of the SPDC, the military-led government, led since 1992 by Senior General Than Shwe. The military has dominated government since General Ne Win led a coup in 1962 that toppled the civilian government of U Nu.
The country’s culture, heavily influenced by neighbours, is based on Theravada Buddhism intertwined with local elements.