Glasgow, 5 November 2021 (TDI): United Nations: At the heart of COP26. There is an urgent need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. 80% of which come from generating and using energy. The day dedicated to the future of clean energy had many announcements of new efforts, funding, and promises to reduce and eliminate coal consumption.
The United Kingdom has called for the transfer of coal in history. Since the Paris Agreement in 2015, the number of new coal-fired coal plants worldwide has dropped by 76%. Promises were enough for Fatih Birol of the International Energy Agency to say that meeting all the latest obligations could reduce the temperature to 1.8 ° C.
However, UN Assistant Secretary-General Selwin Hart replied that based on the world’s climate plans so far, “we are still far from living up to the Paris Agreement. We cannot be complacent. We can’t celebrate before we’ve done the job. ”
No more coal
More than 20 countries are making new commitments to eliminate coal-fired power. They include the world’s largest users, such as Egypt, Indonesia, Poland, the Republic of Korea, and Vietnam. Major international lenders such as HSBC, Fidelity International, and Ethos are committed to ending non-stop coal support.
A group of 25 countries, including Canada, Denmark, Italy, and the United States as well as public financial institutions, have signed a joint United Kingdom-led statement. To end international public support for renewable fuel by the end of 2022.
They vowed, prioritize support for clean energy transformation, which could shift an estimated $ 17.8 billion a year in community support from fossil fuels to clean energy. “The coal years are coming to an end,” said COP26 President Alok Sharma. “A bright, green future awaits the world.” But he added that more needs to be done, especially to increase access to power for all.
Don’t forget Oil and Gas: COP26
The initiative to eradicate coal in rich countries over the next decade and thereafter in developing countries is intensifying. But coal should be used for cleaning and renewable fuels, not for other fossil fuels such as oil and gas.
With a worrying signal, investment in oil and gas appears to be on the rise, according to German NGO Urge Wald. It has released a new report showing that companies are increasing production, including in border regions and environmentally sensitive areas.
Representative of the Secretary-General for Sustainable Energy, Damilola Ogunbiyi, said two things were important. “If this is the year in which we have to eradicate coal, it must be the year in which we prove to develop countries that clean electricity is the most attractive and affordable option, by providing them with clean energy. We have to do this with the help of technology, partnerships, and monetization to get clean energy more easily accessible.
She added, “We need to show why clean energy is an important part of a sustainable future and move on without thinking that providing clean energy to get home is enough. It must be clean energy to achieve, economic development and industrial development.”
As global trade continued to grow. Attention was drawn to the increase in emissions from shipping and aviation. Two sectors not covered by the Paris Agreement. At the beginning of COP26, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, Germany, Marshall Islands, Norway, Panama, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States supported the goal of reducing global maritime emissions to zero by 2050. They agreed on the ambitious intermediary targets by 2030 and 2040.
Young people take it down
The youth are planning a rally. As part of the Future movement, to protest the lack of desire to reduce climate change. Young climate activists said they felt they had a greater impact outside COP26 than inside.
At a press conference organized by UNICEF. Magali Cho Lin Wing said, “I am one of the few young people here to have access to the blue area but tomorrow I will go out and strike”.
