News   /   Egypt   /   Editor's Choice

COP27 over but provided with no practical solution to fossil fuel usage

Sameh Shoukry, President of COP27, speaks during the closing session in Sharm-El-Sheikh, Egypt, on November 20, 2022. (Photo by AP)

Delegates at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP27) expressed “anger” over a failure for pushing further ambitions on cutting emissions as in its agreement it only reaffirmed the goal of keeping global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

The agenda that was a key demand from a number of countries as scientists have warned since decades that the warming must be limited to 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels, amid rising global average temperature that has already reached 1.1 degrees.

Negotiators at the conference were seen with growing frustration and mixed reactions over the way the Egyptian presidency was chairing the talks, as they struggled to reach a practical agreement.

EU officials that expressed disappointment, had threatened to walk out of the conference if it did not get better commitments on emissions.

"The European Union came here to get strong language agreed and we are disappointed we didn't achieve this," European Commission Vice President Frans Timmermans told the closing session of the summit in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.

“We do not want 1.5 Celsius to die here and today. That to us is completely unacceptable”

"Do we walk away and thereby kill a fund that vulnerable countries fought so hard for decades?... No. That would have been a huge mistake and a huge missed opportunity to tackle climate change," he added.

But later he was quoted as, “we’d rather have no decision than a bad decision.”

“The influence of the fossil fuel industry was found across the board,” Laurence Tubiana, CEO European Climate Foundation, said in a statement. “The Egyptian Presidency has produced a text that clearly protects oil and gas petro-states and the fossil fuel industries. This trend cannot continue in the United Arab Emirates next year.”

COP27 failure against global warming.

The UN chief Antonio Guterres reacted with saying that the COP27 climate talks had fallen short in pushing for the urgent "drastic" carbon-cutting needed to tackle global warming.

"Our planet is still in the emergency room. We need to drastically reduce emissions now and this is an issue this COP did not address."

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said responsibility “now lies in the hands of the Egyptian COP presidency.”

Sameh Shoukry, president of the COP27 was quoted as saying that “the issue now rests with the will of the parties. The [draft] text does keep the 1.5 alive.”

“The influence of the fossil fuel industry was found across the board,” Laurence Tubiana, CEO European Climate Foundation, said in a statement. “The Egyptian Presidency has produced a text that clearly protects oil and gas petro-states and the fossil fuel industries. This trend cannot continue in the United Arab Emirates next year.”

Maldives Environment Minister Aminath Shauna, as she referred to rising sea levels due to global warming said that she wants “to continue to live in the Maldives” and also wants her two-year old daughter “to also grow up in the Maldives."

However, the climate summit also satisfied the delegates as for the successful creation of a "loss and damage" fund to help vulnerable countries cope with the destructive impacts of global warming.

Currently, approximately 84 percent of the world’s energy needs are met from the usage of fossil fuels, especially oil.

In 2021, the world consumed nearly 490 exajoules of fossil fuels, that amounts to an unfathomable figure of epic proportions.

The US and China top in fossil fuel consumption, according to a data, an average American consumes at least 23 barrels of petroleum every year.

With billions of dollars invested every year into establishing wars, strengthening military and weaponry technologies by developed nations, they still have not come up with a concrete solution to end complete dependency on fossil fuels.


Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.ir

SHARE THIS ARTICLE
Press TV News Roku