COP26 Day 11 | ‘Not there yet’
Euronews Green delivers a Special COP26 email to my mailbox every day during the two weeks it is running (01-12 November 2021). I’ll publish it in its entirety for those who are interested. This is the eighth in the series.
Today’s takeaway
Waves of tentative optimism were sweeping through COP26 today after the US and China announced a bilateral deal to redouble their climate efforts.
The joint statement issued by Washington and Beijing called for “enhanced climate action in the 2020s”, including a new, stronger emission cuts target in 2025 and a pledge by China to follow the US lead in slashing methane emissions.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and others hailed it as “an important step in the right direction.” But some analysts thought the deal “lacked meat” on concrete commitments besides those on methane.
Whether or not this spirit of cooperation will be reflected in the final agreement of COP26 is another story. Difficult negotiations involving almost 200 countries continued in Glasgow after a draft cover deal was released yesterday.
“We’re not there yet. There is still much more work to be done,” said COP26 chairman Alok Sharma as he briefed delegates on the progress of the talks, urging another “gear shift” in the final hours of the summit.
The UK presidency said it planned on publishing the next draft of the cover deal overnight, with a new meeting of ministers planned for tomorrow morning.
COP26 is due to end on Friday evening, but an extension has not been ruled out.
In other news, Denmark and Costa Rica launched an ambitious alliance today to phase out coal and gas. Six full members, France, Greenland, Ireland, Quebec, Sweden and Wales also joined the group known as the ‘Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance‘.
Campaigners hailed the move as a “turning point” while urging more countries to join.
“The creation of this alliance puts to shame claims of climate leadership among countries like the United Kingdom, Norway, the United States, and Canada, all of which have yet to answer this simple question: Where is your plan to stop producing the fossil fuels that are driving the climate crisis?” asked Romain Ioualalen of Oil Change International.
In case you weren’t able to follow along on Wednesday, here are five takeaways from Day 10.
Some additional bad and good news
Deforestation in Australia: a wanton assault on wildlife – in pictures
More than 100 nations including Australia have signed up to stop or reverse deforestation by 2030. The pact, hailed as one of the main achievements of COP26, put the spotlight on an issue that combines carbon emissions and threatened species. These images reveal some of the shocking impacts of deforestation.
(From: The Canopy, Greenpeace Australia Pacific)
At a glance
Major European countries pledge to phase out oil and gas
A “first of its kind” alliance of governments has committed to phasing out the production of oil and gas. Led by Costa Rica and Denmark, the Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance (BOGA) saw six members join.
Read more
Local councils trusted more than world leaders on climate, poll finds
British people trust local councils more than the government when it comes to taking action on climate change, a new survey has revealed.
Read more
Frustrated doctor diagnoses woman with ‘climate change’ in world first
A Canadian woman has become the first patient in the world to be diagnosed as suffering from ‘climate change’, after she developed breathing difficulties following a historic heatwave. But what are her symptoms?
Read more
Social exclusive
2 Responses to “As Seen from Afar 11/11/2021”
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Comment from Mitch –
I’m sticking with “We will see!” That lady diagnosed as suffering from “climate chang”may be the first so dx’x, but is not, I’m sure, by far, the first to be so impacted.
Mitch
Indonesia walked back their forest promise within 2 days. Biden’s agencies responsible for our forests are still proposing clearcutting the trees remaining in fire areas even though he had the US sign–sure walks and talks like empty words again.