Climate summit draft agreement removes mention of fossil fuel phase-out
Dubai (CNN) — A new draft of the core agreement at the COP28 climate talks published Monday removed a call to phase out fossil fuels, the main driver of the climate crisis, in a watering down of earlier versions and an apparent concession to oil-producing nations who had opposed the measure.
More than 100 countries came to the Dubai talks supporting language to phase out fossil fuels, and many are likely to voice their opposition to the latest draft in an upcoming plenary session. If the current draft does not get widespread support, negotiators may need to return to debate.
Earlier drafts had included several options that called on countries to phase out climate-polluting oil, gas and coal, which observers said was an encouraging sign that this year’s summit agreement would be stronger than previous years.
One option in the new draft calls for countries to take action to reduce planet-warming emissions, with a menu of choices that could include “reducing both consumption and production of fossil fuels, in a just, orderly and equitable manner so as to achieve net zero by, before, or around 2050 in keeping with the science.”
The conference is due to end on Tuesday, but the new draft — which is far from what many nations in Dubai had called for — could prolong one of the most contentious and high stakes conferences in its nearly three decade history.
Monday’s draft came after marathon negotiations and was published more than six hours later than expected.
Harjeet Singh, head of global political strategy at Climate Action Network International, said the latest draft was “a significant regression” from previous versions.
“Astonishingly, it has dropped explicit language on phasing out fossil fuels, opting instead for a vague commitment to ‘reduce both consumption and production’ by 2050,” he told CNN. “This is a clear indication of the fossil fuel industry’s lobbying power, influencing global policies to favor prolonged fossil fuel use.
Rachel Cleetus, the policy director and a lead economist for the Climate and Energy Program at the Union of Concerned Scientists, said the draft agreement was “extremely disappointing, concerning, and nowhere close to the level of ambition people around the world deserve.”
“This draft comes with a huge qualifier of ‘could’ at the top that makes all the listed actions optional for nations. It has a laundry list of actions filled with glaring loopholes, including a lack of meaningful timelines” she said in a statement.
Some experts were more optimistic. “We are cooking a fossil free meal here in Dubai,” said Mohamed Adow, director of climate think tank Power Shift Africa, in a statement. “People will argue if it’s the correct recipe, but the main thing is that all the right ingredients are there.”
This is a developing story and it will be updated.
The-CNN-Wire
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