| Welcome to Natural Hazards Forum. We hope you enjoy your visit. You're currently viewing our forum as a guest. This means you are limited to certain areas of the board and there are some features you can't use. If you join our community, you'll be able to access member-only sections, and use many member-only features such as customizing your profile, sending personal messages, and voting in polls. Registration is simple, fast, and completely free. Join our community! If you're already a member please log in to your account to access all of our features: |
| Cop 23 | |
|---|---|
| Tweet Topic Started: 6 Nov 2017, 12:14 AM (125 Views) | |
| skibboy | 6 Nov 2017, 12:14 AM Post #1 |
|
Anger over Trump support for coal at UN climate talks By Matt McGrath Environment correspondent, Bonn 5 November 2017 ![]() Representatives of US coal companies are due to present at this year's climate talks Plans by the Trump administration to promote coal as a solution to climate change at a major UN meeting have angered environmentalists. An adviser to the president is expected to take part in a pro-coal presentation in Bonn this coming week. Separately, a group of governors will say that the US is still committed to climate action despite Mr Trump's rejection of the Paris agreement. The talks begin on Monday and aim to flesh out the rules for the Paris pact. This meeting, officially known as COP23, will be the first full gathering of climate negotiators since President Trump vowed to take the US out of the Paris treaty. "The bottom line is that the Paris accord is very unfair, at the highest level, to the United States," he said last June, announcing the US intention to withdraw. However, under the rules, the US cannot leave the agreement until 2020, so they will be sending a team of negotiators to this meeting. ![]() President Trump declared in June that the US would withdraw from the "unfair" Paris pact The official US delegation, mainly career civil servants, may well be overshadowed, though, by other groups with very different visions for how the US should combat climate change. According to reports, members of the Trump administration will lend their support to an event to promote fossil fuels and nuclear power as solutions to climate change. Speakers from coal giant Peabody Energy, among others, will make a presentation to highlight the role that coal and other fuels can play in curbing the impacts of rising temperatures. A White House spokesman said in a statement that the discussion aimed to build on the administration's efforts to promote fossil fuels at the G20 meeting this year. "It is undeniable that fossil fuels will be used for the foreseeable future, and it is in everyone's interest that they be efficient and clean," the spokesman said. 'Beyond absurd' The prospect of fossil fuel industries making their case at this meeting has angered some who will be attending. "Fossil fuels having any role in tackling climate change is beyond absurd. It is dangerous," said Andrew Norton, director of the International Institute for Environment and Development. "These talks are no place for pushing the fossil fuel agenda. The US needs to come back to the table and help with the rapid cuts in emissions that the situation demands." Long-time talks participant Alden Meyer from the Union of Concerned Scientists added: "It's not a credible solution, but that doesn't seem to bother them. "They might even welcome some of the reaction to show to their base that they are fighting for America's interest and not this globalist malarkey." 'Much of America supports Paris deal' Environmentalists point to the contradiction of the Trump administration championing fossil fuels while an authoritative National Climate Assessment report, released on the eve of COP23, is clear that CO2 from these fuels is the key cause of climate change. The report says: "It is extremely likely that human activities, especially emissions of greenhouse gases, are the dominant cause of the observed warming since the mid-20th century. For the warming over the last century, there is no convincing alternative explanation supported by the extent of the observational evidence." Other groups opposed to the Trump perspective will also be paying for a large pavilion at the talks. ![]() Fiji, which is chairing this year's talks, has experienced the impacts of extreme weather Delegations of US governors, mayors and business people, under the We Are Still In coalition umbrella, will be in Bonn to tell negotiators that below the Federal level, much of America still supports the Paris agreement. The US Climate Alliance, which represents 14 states and one territory, says that it speaks for around 36% of the US population and if it were a nation state would be the third biggest economy in the world. One of the governors who will be on the ground in Bonn is Washington's Jay Inslee. "We need to make sure that the world maintains confidence in our ability to move forward," he told reporters. "So far, not one single nation state, city or county, municipality or school district have followed Donald Trump into the ranks of surrendering to climate change since he pulled out of Paris - his decision has energised our efforts." This determination to remain part of Paris is also being reflected at city level in many parts of the US. "Whatever 'America first' is supposed to mean, it absolutely does not mean America alone," said Mayor Lionel Johnson from the city of St Gabriel in Louisiana. "My fellow mayors and I stand united and we stand with the international community to pursue solutions to the dramatic climate challenges we are facing together. Count us in!" Apart from the confusion over who is speaking for the US, the talks will focus on establishing rules and guidelines for the Paris pact. These need to be agreed by the end of 2018. The talks are being chaired by Fiji, which is the first time a small island developing state has taken this role. As such, questions of climate impacts are likely to be in the spotlight, including the tricky question of loss and damage. This is a potential area of significant disagreement as the richer countries are strongly opposed to any implied legal liability for the damages caused by climate related extreme weather events. Around 20,000 delegates and visitors will attend the meeting over two weeks. Source: .com
|
![]() |
|
| skibboy | 6 Nov 2017, 12:38 AM Post #2 |
|
Fiji and Bonn, an unusual partnership to host COP23 climate change conference![]() © Kay Nietfeld, POOL, AFP | Josaia Voreqe Bainimarama known commonly as Frank Bainimarama, Prime Minister of Fiji, speaks at the beginning of the Petersberg Climate Dialogue on May 22, 2017 in Berlin. Text by Anne-Diandra LOUARN 2017-11-05 As the 23rd edition of the world’s climate change conference opens in Germany, the summit’s rotating presidency will for the first time be held by a country hugely affected by global warming: the tiny island nation of Fiji. Although Fiji is presiding over this year’s summit, the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP23) will be held in Bonn from November 6-17. The South Pacific island simply cannot handle the logistics of hosting such an event, which is expensive to organise for the thousands of international delegates expected to attend. But for Fiji more than most other countries, the climate stakes are higher than ever. Hosting a COP is expensive Fiji, an archipelago consisting of more than 330 islands in the south Pacific Ocean, has already seen the consequences of global warming in natural disasters, rising water levels and warmer seas. But despite its position on the front lines of climate change, Fiji lacks the resources to host the COP23 due to its remote location, size and limited infrastructure. Hosting a COP is an expensive business. The price tag for the COP15 in Copenhagen in 2009, which more than 27,000 people attended, came to €182 million ($250 million). France spent more than €170 million when it hosted the COP21 for 40,000 delegates in 2015: Banks, restaurants, post offices and security had to be set up on the COP21 site in Paris-Le Bourget near Charles de Gaulle airport. The financial benefits for the Parisian region are estimated to have been around €100 million. “The UN Climate Change Conferences do cost a lot of money,” COP23 said in a statement. “The actual costs of COP23 are not yet known and can only be quantified after the climate summit. This year, restrictions have been imposed due to the limited space. Organisers expect around 20,000 to 25,000 people.” What are the aims of COP23? Two years after the Paris Agreement was signed during the COP21, the main challenge for the signatories is to agree at the COP23 on how to implement their commitments. The text will then have to be finalised and approved during the COP24 in Poland in 2018. Although the COP23 is understood to be mainly technical in nature, Fiji hopes to draw attention to the threat weighing on the inhabitants of the Pacific islands – particularly the Kiribati, Tuvalu and Marshall islands, which risk being being underwater in the next 50 years. “We who are most vulnerable must be heard, whether we come from the Pacific or other Small Island Developing States, other low-lying nations, and states or threatened cities in the developed world like Miami, New York, Venice or Rotterdam,” said Fiji’s Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama, president of the COP23, in a speech last May when he addressed delegates in Bonn. “But together we must speak out for the whole world – every global citizen – because no-one, no matter who they are or where they live, will ultimately escape the impact of climate change.” The other main issue is that of the financing required to combat climate change. “With the withdrawal of the US from the Paris Agreement, we are missing a key financial contributor,” said Schwarz. “Progress needs to be made on this front during the COP23 in order to reach the annual amount of $100 billion promised for 2020 by developed countries towards developing ones,” Bainimarama said during his closing speech at the Pre-COP (an event for discussing ideas for the upcoming COP23) on Denarau Island in Nadi, Fiji, on October 18. Bonn, home to Germany’s largest coal mine The UN chooses each year which country will host the next COP. According to a rotation principle, it was the turn of a country from the Asia-Pacific region to organise the conference. As Fiji could not handle the logistics, Bonn was automatically designated due to its position of secretariat of the UNFCCC. This is not the first time that Bonn has hosted such an event. The COP5 in 1999 and the COP 6-2 in 2001 were also held in Bonn. The very first COP in 1995 was held in Berlin. “Once again, Bonn has an opportunity to demonstrate its calibre as a UN city and as a conference location,” state secretary Walter Lindner of the German foreign office said in a statement in September. “Germany’s support for Fiji, for the UN climate change team and for every person who will attend COP 23, shows the country’s commitment to climate and sustainable development goals,” Patricia Espinosa, executive secretary of the UNFCC, said in the September statement. “For participants ranging from heads of state and ministers to CEOs of major companies, civil society and young people, Germany will be the hub [of] global climate action in November,” Espinosa added. Bonn is where Germany’s largest coal mine is located, a fact that activists intend to underscore. “The climate march, which will take place on the margins of the COP23, will focus this year on exiting fossil energy – precisely because the conference is taking place in a coalmining area,” Rixa Schwarz, team leader on international climate policy at the Bonn-based NGO Germanwatch, told FRANCE 24. The conference will also be a hot topic of debate for German’s political scene and the media. “The fact that the COP is taking place here will enable questions on the environment to be brought to the discussion table in Germany,” Schwarz said. The issue of climate change was not a hot topic during Germany’s electoral campaign in September. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who failed to obtain a large enough majority to form her own government, must form a coalition with liberals and environmentalists, who are calling for an end to coalmining. “The presence of the COP23 in Bonn, while the coalition is being formed, will put pressure regarding the subject of climate change on the political parties,” Schwarz said. Germany has pledged to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by 40 percent by 2020, something that Merkel promised to deliver on during her campaign. The EU, which is the third-largest emitter of greenhouse gases worldwide after China and the US, has also committed to reducing industrial emissions by 40 percent from its 1990 levels by 2030. It has also committed to reduce emissions from the transport, agriculture, construction and waste-management sectors from 2005 levels by 30 percent. Source: .com
Edited by skibboy, 6 Nov 2017, 12:39 AM.
|
![]() |
|
| skibboy | 7 Nov 2017, 02:09 AM Post #3 |
|
06 November 2017 Rich nations far behind on $100 bn climate pledge: study ![]() © AFP/File | UN negotiators meeting in Bonn, Germany, this week are trying to work out how to implement the Paris accord, which aims to keep warming at "well under two degrees Celsius" (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels PARIS (AFP) - Wealthy countries are falling well short of their pledge to provide $100 billion a year to developing countries by 2020 as part of the Paris climate accord, a report published Monday said. Of the $111 billion invested in clean energy technologies only $10 billion was provided by rich countries, according to data compiled by Bloomberg New Energy Finance. The pledge was first made at a Copenhagen summit in 2009 and confirmed by signatories of the 2015 Paris Agreement to limit global warming caused by greenhouse gas emissions. The $100 billion, to be raised from multiple sources including from the private sector, was intended to be a minimum, with nations expected to set a new goal by 2025. UN negotiators meeting in Bonn, Germany, this week are trying to work out how to implement the Paris accord, which aims to keep warming at "well under two degrees Celsius" (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels. But US President Donald Trump has pulled his country out of the deal, and analysts have warned that other national leaders may struggle to find the funds to match their ambitions. On Monday, Standard and Poor's released a report questioning where the money would come from, citing a need for many countries to increase budgets and debt burdens to finance their pledges. "In our view, it is very unlikely that governments would be willing, or able, to risk deteriorating their creditworthiness by stretching their budgets and debt burdens to fund the implementation costs," the analysts wrote. But Bloomberg New Energy Finance also said that developing countries needed to improve legal frameworks in order to make investments in clean energy more attractive, both for public and private investors. Source: .com
|
![]() |
|
| skibboy | 10 Nov 2017, 02:22 AM Post #4 |
|
10 November 2017 Developing world says rich nations shirking on climate ![]() © AFP/File / by Marlowe HOOD | People refresh themselves in the fountain of the Trocadero Gardens by the Eiffel Tower during a June 2015 heatwave in Paris, where virtually every country in the world signed a treaty pledging to cap global warming at two degrees Celsius PARIS (AFP) - The failure of wealthy nations to deliver on short-term climate commitments could hinder the rollout of a landmark treaty, a bloc of 134 developing countries, including India and China, warned Thursday at UN negotiations in Bonn. The diplomatic spat has underscored the difficulty of reaching a consensus at the 196-nation talks. "If we do not respect decisions that we have made, then how can we build trust among the parties?" said Chen Zhihua, China's senior negotiator, referring to long-standing pledges by rich nations to enhance financial support and "revisit" targets for curbing greenhouse gas emissions before 2020. "And how can we lay a good foundation for the implementation of the Paris Agreement?" he added at a press conference, flanked by diplomats from India, Iran, Nicaragua and Ecuador. The treaty, inked outside the French capital in 2015, calls on the world to cap global warming at "well below" two degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit), and even 1.5 C if possible. With one degree of warming so far, the planet has already seen an increase in drought, deadly heatwaves and superstorms. The pact rests on voluntary carbon-cutting pledges from virtually every country in the world. "The science is clear: if we don't get our act together before 2020, you can forget about the 2 C and 1.5 C targets," said Paul Oquist, Nicaragua's chief negotiator at the talks. "There has been a failure to comply with existing commitments," he added. Under the terms of the UN's core climate convention, the burden for action before 2020 falls mainly on wealthy countries historically responsible for the rapid rise of greenhouse gases. China is the world's top carbon polluter, followed by the United States, the European Union, India and Russia. Developing countries sought to have a "pre-2020 agenda" formally added to the negotiating process, but the move was shelved at the start of the 12-day talks. Efforts to resolve the issue have so far been fruitless. "It would be a bad thing if this hangs over into the second week and becomes a political issue for ministers," said Alden Meyer, director of strategy and policy for the Union of Concerned Scientists in Washington DC. "It has been a pretty sterile debate that has degenerated into a finger-pointing exercise," he told AFP. Some 20 heads of state, including French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, are scheduled to appear at the UN climate forum next week. by Marlowe HOOD Source: .com
|
![]() |
|
| skibboy | 12 Nov 2017, 01:41 AM Post #5 |
|
11 November 2017 Under Trump, US to fall short of Paris climate targets: report ![]() © AFP/File | The United States will fail to meet its commitments for reducing greenhouse gas emissions under the Paris climate treaty, according to a report released at UN negotiations in Bonn PARIS (AFP) - The United States will fail to meet its commitments for reducing greenhouse gas emissions under the Paris climate treaty, according to a report released Saturday at UN negotiations in Bonn. A crescendo of efforts at the sub-national level to shrink the country's carbon footprint will not fully compensate for US President Donald Trump's decision to scrap his predecessor's climate policies and promote the use of fossil fuels, it found. "Given the stated policies of the present US administration, currently committed non-federal efforts are not sufficient to meet the US commitments under the Paris Agreement," concluded the 120-page analysis, entitled "America's Pledge." California Governor Jerry Brown and former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg unveiled the report in Bonn, flanked by UN climate chief Patricia Espinosa and Fijian Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama, who is presiding over the 12-day talks. Under the 196-nation treaty, agreed outside the French capital 2015, the United States made a voluntary commitment to cut the country's emissions 26-28 percent below 2005 levels by 2025. The Paris pact marked the first time that all countries -- including emerging giants such as China and India -- laid out specific targets for greening their economies. Despite the US shortfall, a surge of climate action will keep the US emissions curve on a downward path, said the report, jointly issued by the World Resources Institute and the Rocky Mountain Institute. "States, cities, and business have emerged as the new face of American leadership on climate change, and are stepping up with commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions," they said in a statement. "If these non-federal actors were a country, their economy would be the third largest in the world." Twenty US states, 110 cities, and over 1,400 businesses with US operations have adopted quantified emissions reduction targets, the report found. Collectively, they represent $25 trillion in market capitalisation and nearly a billion tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions per year. Total global emissions were about 42 billion tonnes in 2015, according to the Global Carbon Project. California has adopted the most ambitious targets, requiring the state to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to 40 percent below 1990 levels by 2030. Source: .com
|
![]() |
|
| skibboy | 16 Nov 2017, 12:24 AM Post #6 |
|
Europe steps in to cover US shortfall in funding climate science By Matt McGrath Environment correspondent, Bonn 5 hours ago ![]() French president Emmanuel Macron says that Europe will cover any shortfall in funding for the global climate body, the IPCC. The scientific organisation has faced uncertainty since President Donald Trump outlined plans earlier this year to cut US funding. The UK government also pledged to double their IPCC contribution. Speaking at UN talks in Bonn, Mr Macron said that climate change was the most significant struggle of our times. Today saw the start of the high level segment at this meeting of global climate negotiators known as COP23. In his statement to negotiators, the French president outlined the need for increased commitments to cut carbon. Mr Macron said these decisions must be based on clear scientific information. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has long been seen as a key element of that system of advice to governments. Meeting the challenge Their assessment reports, which come out every six or seven years, are critical in informing the public and governments about the causes and impacts of climate change. Earlier this year, President Trump proposed ending US funding for this body. Mr Macron said that Europe would now fill the gap. "I propose that Europe replace America, and France will meet that challenge," he told delegates here in Bonn. "I would like to see the largest number of EU countries at our side, all together we can compensate for the loss of US funding but I can guarantee from the start of 2018, the IPCC will have all the money that it needs and it will continue to support our decision-making. They will not miss a single euro." The UK also announced that it would help the IPCC financially, with the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) announcing a doubling of funding for the organisation. Report Mr Macron was keen to reinforce the leadership of France and the European Union on climate change. He announced that France would close all its coal plants by 2021, putting him at odds with German chancellor Angela Merkel who struggled with this issue as she tried to form a coalition government. On renewable energy, Mr Macron outlined plans for projects that would build inter-connections between green energy producers and consumer across the continent. "We will encourage and actively participate in funding all the projects we need bilaterally, with Germany and France but also with Ireland, Spain, Italy, the Benelux countries and Portugal," "These international interconnections will be aimed at utilising renewables most efficiently across our continent, throughout the EU," "This will be a guarantee that we will accelerate a reduction of greenhouse gas emissions." Earlier UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres had addressed the conference of the parties for the first time in his new role. He used the opportunity to call for greater investment in green energy - and an end to subsidies for coal, oil and gas. ![]() Macron's stance on coal puts him at odds somewhat with the German chancellor Ms Merkel "In 2016, an estimated $825bn were invested in fossil fuels and high emissions sector," he told the meeting. "We must stop making bets on an unsustainable future that will place savings and societies at risk." Other leaders and senior ministers were scheduled to address the talks on Thursday amid progress across a raft of technical issues, including the wish of poorer nations to see more action from the richer states in the years before 2020, when the Paris pact kicks in. There was also some good news from researchers who track the commitments of countries to cut their carbon emissions. Scientists involved with the Climate Action Tracker said that while the decision of President Trump to withdraw from Paris would impact US commitments, their analysis showed that on the ground actions in India and China were making a difference in curbing emissions. The report shows that the projected temperature rise facing the world by 2100 had dropped to 3.4C compared to 3.6C a year ago. "It is clear who the leaders are here," said Bill Hare of Climate Analytics, part of the team the group that put the tracker together. "In the face of US inaction, China and India are stepping up." "However, both need to review, and strengthen, their Paris commitments. Our projections show they will meet them much earlier than 2030." Source: .com
|
![]() |
|
| skibboy | 17 Nov 2017, 01:45 AM Post #7 |
|
16 November 2017 Battle lines drawn over coal at UN climate talks ![]() © AFP / by Marlowe HOOD | A replica of the Statue of Liberty emitting smoke from the torch, created by Danish artist Jens Galschiot, is displayed at the Rheinaue park during the COP23 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Bonn, Germany on November 16, 2017 BONN (AFP) - A score of mostly wealthy nations banded together at UN climate talks Thursday to swear off coal-fired power, a key driver of global warming and air pollution. To cap global warming at "well under" two degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) -- the planet-saving target in the 196-nation Paris Agreement -- coal must be phased out in developed countries by 2030, and "by no later than 2050 in the rest of the world," they said in a declaration. The dirtiest of fossil fuels still generates 40 percent of the world's electricity, and none of the countries that truly depend on it were on hand to take the "no coal" pledge. One country participating in the 12-day talks, which end Friday, has made a point of promoting the development of "clean fossil fuels": the United States. The near-pariah status of coal at the UN negotiations was in evidence earlier in the week when an event featuring White House officials and energy executives was greeted with protests. The US position "is only controversial if we choose to bury our heads in the sand and ignore the realities of the global energy system," countered George David Banks, a special energy and environment assistant to US President Donald Trump. Led by ministers from Britain and Canada, the "Powering Past Coal Alliance" committed to phasing out CO2-belching coal power, and a moratorium on new plants that lack the technology to capture emissions before they reach the atmosphere. "In a few short years, we have almost entirely reduced our reliance on coal," said British Minister of State Claire Perry. The share of electricity generated by coal in Britain dropped from 40 percent in July 2012 to two percent in July of this year, she noted. Other signatories included Austria, Belgium, Canada, Costa Rica, Denmark, Finland, France, Italy, Mexico, Netherlands and New Zealand. Germany -- where coal powers 40 percent of the country's electricity -- was asked to join, said environment minister Barbara Hendricks. "I asked them to understand that we can't make a decision like that before forming a new government," she told journalists. Most of the enlisted countries don't have far to go to complete a phase-out. Deadlines range from 2022 for France, which has four coal-fired plants in operation, to 2025 for Britain, where eight such power stations are still running, and 2030 for the Netherlands. - No economic rationale - "This climate meeting has seen Donald Trump trying to perversely promote coal," said Mohamed Adow, top Climate analyst at Christian Aid, which advocated for the interests of poor countries. "But it will finish with the UK, Canada and a host of other countries signalling the death knell of the world's dirtiest fossil fuel in their countries." But not all countries are in the same boat, said Benjamin Sporton, president of the World Coal Association. "There are 24 nations that have included a role for low-emissions coal technology as part of their NDCs," or nationally determined contributions, the voluntary greenhouse gas cuts pledged under the Paris treaty. Coal continues to play a major role in powering the Chinese economy, and will see "big increases in India and Southeast Asia," he told AFP. Making coal "clean", Sporton acknowledged, depends on the massive expansion of a technology called carbon capture and storage (CCS), in which CO2 emitted when coal is burned is syphoned off and stored in the ground. The UN's climate science panel, and the International Energy Agency, both say that staying under the 2 C temperature threshold will require deploying CCS. The problem is that -- despite decades of development -- very little CO2 is being captured in this way. There are only 20 CCS plants in the world that stock at least one million tonnes of CO2 per year, a relatively insignificant amount given the scope of the problem. One reason is the price tag: it costs about a billion dollars (900,000 euros) to fit CCS technology to a large-scale, coal-fired plant. "If you could develop cost-effective technology that would be permanent and work at scale, it could be a real game-changer," said Alden Meyer, a climate analyst at the Washington-based Union of Concerned Scientists. "But you have to be realistic about the prospects." At the same time, the price of wind and especially solar power has dropped so much that CCS may no longer be economical. The crucial issue is not retro-fitting old plants, but avoiding the construction of new ones, Meyer added. "There's really no economic rationale for coal, and there's certainly no environmental rationale for it," he told AFP. by Marlowe HOOD Source: .com
|
![]() |
|
| 1 user reading this topic (1 Guest and 0 Anonymous) | |
| « Previous Topic · Climate change · Next Topic » |






.com




.com






3:30 PM Jul 11