As the UNFCCC COP28 began today in Dubai, delegates formally agreed to the loss and damage fund, with several countries pledging millions while the US contributed significantly less than the EU and the UAE pledges. Formalizing the fund, which provides compensation to poorer nations already seriously impacted by the effects of climate change, comes after years of negotiations and paves the way for the talks to focus on other key issues.
The most significant topic this year is agreement on the the rate of replacement of fossil fuels with alternative clean energy sources including wind and solar. Additionally, this COP will feature a “global stocktake” in which nations will report on how they are complying with pledges to cut emissions which were agreed to in the Paris Agreement in 2015. The next round of climate pledges will occur in 2025.
The goal as agreed to in Paris is to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees C, which many scientists believe is now out of reach as global temperatures have already increased by 1.2 degrees Celsius. Heating beyond 1.5 degrees presents what could be insurmountable challenges in dealing with heatwaves, extreme weather, droughts, and wildfires.
Johan Rockstrom, director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, commented on the summit:
“We have to get serious on the mitigation agenda, to have a credible commitment to start reducing emissions from oil, gas and coal, so we’re at the beginning of the end of the fossil fuel driven world economy,” he said.
“They (UAE) have an unparalleled convening power and possibility of getting their peers in the state-owned oil, gas and coal nations around the table. So, there's a particular and, I think, rightful expectation that COP28 should deliver on the fossil fuel agenda.”
Questions about just how successful this conference can be when it is being brokered by Sultan Al Jaber, the president of COP28and CEO of ADNOC, the UAE’s national oil company received additional weight yesterday with the publication of documents by the BBC revealing that Al Jaber has recently signed oil deals with other governments ahead of the UN talks.
From The Guardian story Cop28 president denies on eve of summit he abused his position to sign oil deals.
Sultan Al Jaber, the president of the UN Cop28 climate summit, has hit back strongly at reports he abused his position to try to sign oil deals with other governments, as the United Arab Emirates prepares to host the biggest Cop meeting yet.
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Speaking to a small group of journalists in Dubai on the eve of the conference on Wednesday, Al Jaber said: “These allegations are false. Not true, incorrect, not accurate. It’s an attempt to undermine the work of the Cop28 presidency … Never ever did I see these talking points or ever used such talking points in my discussions.”
He added: “Do you think the UAE or myself need the Cop or the Cop presidency to go and establish better deals or commercial relationships? This country over the past 50 years has been built around its ability to build bridges and create relationships and partnerships.”
In an analysis The Dilemmas of a Petrostate Preparing to Host a Climate Summit, the NYT notes that the UAE is also facing serious problems due to global warming.
If the world abandons oil too quickly, the powerful authoritarian state that the Emirati rulers have built in 50 years could crumble as the revenue that finances much of their budget dwindles. Yet, if the world moves away from oil too slowly, the sliver of land they call home could become a wasteland by the time their grandchildren grow old: Scientists warn that the unmitigated burning of fossil fuels could eventually send temperatures in the Emirates soaring beyond the limits that humans can survive.
Facing blowback over the announcement that President Biden will not be attending the COP this year, the administration announced that Kamala Harris is attending in his place, according to CNN. Harris has been engaging more frequently recently in climate-related events, and discussing the issue with young voters.
While meat and dairy companies face garner criticism for their excessive GHG footprints, they are campaigning to promote meat production as having a positive impact on the environment.
The Guardian reports Plans to present meat as ‘sustainable nutrition’ at Cop28 revealed
Animal agriculture is the largest emitter of methane, a greenhouse gas 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide when measured over a 20-year period. Scientists said that unless swift action is taken, methane from agriculture alone will push the world beyond a 1.5C (2.7F) rise in temperature above preindustrial levels that risks tipping the world into irreversible climate breakdown.
“These companies are stepping up their game because the exposure they are facing is stepping up,” says Jennifer Jacquet, professor of environmental science and policy at the University of Miami. “It used to be that they were caught on the back foot, but now they’re completely prepared.”
For pre-COP coverage here at DK, read two stories (here and here) by Meteor Blades and a much less popular post by me (here).
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