COP27 was extended by one day, till 19 November, 2022 in a bid to reach consensus on contentious issues, particularly on creating a “loss and damage” fund to assist poor countries suffering disproportionately, from climate change.
Deliberations on the draft agreement continued into the morning of 20 November, 2022 before a consensus could be reached.
Can rising global temperature be kept at 1.5 degrees Celsius of the pre-industrial level by cutting greenhouse gas emissions that cause it?
These were some of the serious issues at COP27.
The group of 20 largest economies/leading industrialised nations meeting in Bali, Indonesia, acknowledged that the effects of global warming would be “much lower at 1.5C compared with 2C” and pledged to abide by it.
G20 represents about 75% to 80% of global annual emissions.
This was a big boost to COP27 at a time the world is facing an energy crisis worsened by the Russia-Ukraine war.
The world’s top five polluters are: China with more than 10,065 million tons of Carbon Dioxide, CO2, released (30%), · United States with 5,416 million tons (15%), India – 2,654 million tons (7%), Russia – 1,711 million tons (5%), and Japan – 1,162 million tons (4%).
They are quickly followed by Germany with 750 million tons of CO2 released.
Should the six biggest polluters not cut down on their emissions and also pay reparations to poorer countries like Pakistan that just suffered its worst flood that killed 1,500 people and damaged property worth 30 billion dollars?
Pakistan generates less than one per cent of global greenhouse gases.
Some other countries in West Africa, like Nigeria and Chad, are also believed to be bearng a disproportionate brunt of climate change.
The 2022 flood in Nigeria killed 605 people and displaced 1.5 million.
In the Horn of Africa, it has not rained for four years.
East Africa generates about 0.1 per cent of global greenhouse gases while Africa as a whole generates less than 4% of global greenhouse gases.
The argument for reparation gained weight when it was supported by former US Vice President, Al Gore, in COP27.
The argument is by no means an easy one because some developing countries are also among the top 10 polluters:
- Iran, 720 million tons of CO2,
- South Korea, 659 million tons of CO2,
- Saudi Arabia, 621 million tons of CO2,
- Indonesia, 615 million tons of CO2.
This means that China, India, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Indonesia should also contribute to the fund with US and EU.
Such an agreement on the draft document in COP27 was, as expected, not an easy one.
US climate envoy, John Kerry, who is fully vaccinated and has also received booster vaccine, tested positive to Covid-19 on 18 November, 2022 and had to isolate; working with his colleagues by telephone.
The 27th session of the UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP27) held from November 6, 2022 in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.
It was attended by countries (the parties) that signed the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) – a treaty agreed in 1994.
Egypt, with a population of 102 million people, the most populous Arab country, is seen as a neutral host to bring more countries aboard the climate change campaign.
In the last UN climate summit in Glasgow, Scotland, in 2021 almost 200 nations attended and pledged to cut world Carbon Dioxide emissions by about half.
Coal-fired plants and fossil fuels should be phased down.
In the Paris 2015 agreement, global warming is to be kept from going beyond 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels.
To this end, most countries pledged to achieve a net zero status between 2030 to 2050.
Net zero emissions means no more greenhouse gases than the amount recaptured from the atmosphere.
Less developed countries also hope to benefit and get help towards protecting and restoring ecosystems to stop loss of lives, homes and livelihoods to climate change.
World leaders, before COP26, pledged $100 billion annually for climate action in developing countries, but this has remained largely, unfulfilled.
Another point is women participation in decision-making in climate activities.
The need for more women to be involved as equal partners in climate change matters was stressed and agreed, if the campaign is to succeed.
Egypt and the United States set-up a joint committee for the successful hosting of the UN climate change summit, COP27, in 2021.
John Kerry, President Biden’s special envoy for climate and Egyptian Foreign Minister, Sameh Shoukry, told journalists in Cairo that both countries are anxious in seeing that the goals of COP27 are met.
The challenges of climate change are obvious: Flood in Pakistan and Nigeria and Hurricane Ian in Florida, USA, are some of the worst natural disasters of 2022.
It has not rained in the Horn of Africa for four years while UK recorded its highest temperature in history in 2022.
In Africa, deserts are encroaching as trees are cut down for fuelwood and the environment is not exploited in a sustainable manner.
Africa’s Great Green Wall started with planting of trees like a belt from Senegal in the west to Djibouti in the east from 2007 to end 2030.
The aim was to check coastal erosion in the west and desertification in the east.
However, millions of the planted trees were lost to high temperature and poor rains.
Trees are essential in the ecosystem because they absorb 30% of all Carbon Dioxide emissions for photosynthesis and give up Oxygen in the process.
Trees are therefore, not just a check against desertification but, also against global warming.
Pollutants like greenhouse gases or CFCs deplete the protective Ozone layer, exposing the Earth to the Sun’s radiation.
Cleaner energy forms are the way to go: Solar energy, Electric Vehicles for fossil fuel-fired ones and nuclear electricity or renewable energy for coal-fired plants.
The world awaits action from COP27.
This is despite the challenges from the Russia-Ukraine war, energy crisis and inflation, threatening the working class and the economy in most countries.
Environmentalists prefer to call the energy crisis a fossil-fuel crisis and maintain that it is a wake-up call for the world to switch to renewable and cleaner energy sources.
photo credit: ap
