HAVANA, Cuba, Nov 14 (ACN) Cuban president Miguel Díaz-Canel wrote in Twitter that in COP26 historic global agreement on climate change, still does not meet the needs of the planet.
Developed countries are required to provide funding in accordance with their historical responsibility, notes the tweet about the event, in which after marathon negotiations, an agreement on global climate has been reached at COP26, held in the Scottish city of Glasgow.
Cuban media outlet Cubadebate refers that the agreement includes a reference for the first time in history to fossil fuels and their role in the climate crisis the world is experiencing and that the final text of the document points directly against coal, the biggest contributor to climate change.
It is worth noting that in the previous 25 climate change conferences, coal, oil or gas were never mentioned in the final agreement, as well as any other fossil fuel, as the main cause of the environmental crisis, says the publication.
The discussions in Glasgow lasted much longer than anticipated due to disagreements over key issues, including the attack on coal and the amount of money the developed world should pay to the Global South to help with adaptation to the climate crisis, adds the source, who says the event was initially scheduled to end on November 12, but had to be extended to the 13th.
Coal is responsible for approximately 40% of CO2 emissions each year, which is why this fuel has been the central protagonist in efforts to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees. To meet this target, which was agreed in Paris in 2015, global emissions must be reduced by 45% by 2030, and must remain virtually eliminated by mid-century.
However, the current commitments are not enough to limit global temperature growth by 1.5 degrees. A first draft of the COP26 agreement mentioned phasing out the use of coal. However, it was changed due to last minute objections made by India. Thus, the phrase was changed to reduce instead of eliminate.
After the phrase was changed, several nations expressed their disagreement, while COP26 chairman Alok Sharma said he was “deeply saddened” by how events unfolded. In doing so, he stressed that it was vitally important to protect the agreement in general terms.
Meanwhile, Swiss environment minister Simonetta Sommaruga also criticized the process of changing the language on fossil fuels at the last minute, as she felt it was not a transparent way of doing things.
“We don’t need to reduce the use of coal and other fossil fuels. That won’t get us closer to the 1.5 [degree] target, it will only make it harder,” Sommaruga stressed.For his part, Lars Koch, ActionAid’s policy director, said it was disappointing that only precise mention was made of coal.
“This gives a free pass to rich countries, who for more than a century were and still are extracting and polluting, to continue producing oil and gas,” he said.
Under the agreement, countries have committed to comply with the reduction of coal use as long as they do not allow the temperature to rise by more than 1.5 degrees. If this is not achieved, scientists warn, the Earth could suffer dire consequences, according to Cubadebate.
