Ethics & Religion
Column #2,101
Nov. 18, 2021
World Leaders Agree on Climate Change
By Mike McManus
World leaders agreed to a new climate change consensus after two
weeks of intense negotiations in Glasgow, Scotland. While some countries
agreed to ambitious cuts in heat-trapping pollution, many nations did
not agree to cut emissions fast enough for the world to avoid
catastrophic damage from climate-driven storms, heat waves and droughts.
However, the Summit's progress means the goal is within reach, provided
countries follow through on their pledges.
The agreement built a worldwide consensus to transition away from fossil
fuels and to speed up countries' ambitions to cut emissions faster.
As negotiators met in closed door sessions, thousands of activists
filled the streets to remind them the world has less than a decade to
get greenhouse gases under control.
Emissions must fall 45% by 2030 to give the planet a chance of limiting
warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit). Instead, they
are expected to rise 14% over the next nine years.
After four years of non-participation under President Trump, the U.S.
sought to regain climate credibility at these talks, urging other
nations to be more ambitious while trying to ensure that its policies
are not killed by a divided Congress.
Developing countries, already suffering damage from intense hurricanes
and droughts, made a unified plea for climate justice. Richer countries
are responsible for the bulk of climate emissions, they said, but poorer
nations are suffering the most. At the conference end, they were those
most disappointed, leaving only with promises that their pleas would be
addressed in the future.
India, a country heavily reliant on coal power, agreed to reach net-zero
emissions by a distant 2070. Saudi Arabia pledged to go net zero by 2060
and Brazil, by 2050.
More than 100 countries signed a pledge at the Summit to cut methane
emissions 30% by 2030. Potent greenhouse gas has 80 times the
heat-trapping power of carbon dioxide.
Another coalition of countries agreed to halt deforestation by 2030,
including the heavily forested nations of Russia and Brazil.
China, the world's largest emitter of greenhouse gases, held firm to its
plan to allow emissions to rise until 2030, eventually declining to
net-zero in four decades - by 2060. But in a surprise announcement, the
U.S. and China agreed to work together "to strengthen and accelerate
climate action and cooperation" into the future.
U.S. Climate Envoy John Kerry asserted, "It's the first time China and
the United States have stood up - the two biggest emitters in the world
- and said, "We're going to work together to accelerate the reduction."
However experts concluded that the pledges will not reduce emissions
fast enough to keep the world within the crucial limit of 1.5 degrees
Celsius by 2100, as agreed to in the Paris climate talks. Instead, the
world would be on track for 1.8 degrees Celsius of warming according to
an analysis from the International Energy Agency.
This promise is an improvement over previous pledges. But it depends
entirely upon countries following through on their promises, and many
have provided few concrete details.
Even with past commitments, many governments haven't backed up words
with actions. Based on what countries are currently doing on the ground,
the world is headed toward a 2.7 degree Celsius warming, or almost 5
degrees Fahrenheit.
The Glasgow meeting marked a major moment for global action. It was the
first time that nations updated their plans to limit emissions since the
historic Paris agreement in 2015.
But with current climate commitments falling short, many developing
nations advocated for speeding up that schedule, arguing that waiting
another 5 years would mean valuable time is lost. Coalitions of poorer
nations, like the Climate Vulnerable Form, urged richer countries to
come back with stronger pledges every year to cut their emissions.
"The safety of my children and yours hangs in the balance," said
Marshall Islands climate envoy Tina Stege in the final days of
negotiations. "It's time for us to level up. We need to keep returning
to the table."
China was one of several delegations heavily reliant on fossil fuels
that pushed back on that idea, urging countries be given "space and
time" to set their climate plans.
In the end, the final agreement held as firmly as a consensus agreement
speeding up progress, saying it requests countries to "revisit and
strengthen" their plans by 2022.
Mankind is steward of all that God created. We are not to exploit, waste
or abuse our planet. Nations seem to have ignored our sacred calling to
what God entrusted to our care. We are Environmental Citizens, and time
is running out!
_________________________
Copyright (c)2021 Michael J. McManus, a syndicated columnist and past president of Marriage Savers. To read past columns, go to
www.ethicsandreligion.com. Hit
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