Mixed expectations as nations begin global climate talks
Last year, countries agreed to have a common time frame for the next round of climate commitments (to be submitted in 2025 for an implementation period starting in 2031), but they could not agree on the length of the implementation period.
SIGNATORIES to a global pact to curb rising temperatures will today kickstart a two weeks talk in Madrid, Spain central capital to raise overall ambition by completing several key aspects with respect to the full operationalisation of the Paris Climate Change Agreement.
The meeting, the 25th session of the Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, will have at top of its agenda, to take the next crucial steps in the process on issues such as adaptation, loss and damage, transparency, finance, capacity-building, Indigenous issues, oceans, forestry, gender and more.
Notably, the provision of finance and technology is crucial for developing countries to green their economies and build resilience.
Last year at COP24 in Poland, the bulk of the implementation guidelines of the Paris Agreement were agreed, with the exception of Article 6 of the Paris Agreement.
Article six is to provide guidelines for how international climate markets will work, as a key component of the world’s economic toolbox for addressing climate change.
In 2020, nations are to submit new or updated national climate action plans, referred to as Nationally-Determined Contributions (NDCS).
According to the UN Environment Programme’s 2019 Emission Gap Report published last week, unless global greenhouse gas emissions fall by 7.6 per cent each year between 2020 and 2030, the world will miss the opportunity to get on track towards the 1.5°C temperature goal of the Paris Agreement.
This means collective ambition would need to increase more than five fold over current levels to deliver the cuts needed over the next decade for the 1.5°C goal. “Current NDCS remain inadequate,” said Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa.
“If we stay on our current trajectory, it’s estimated that global temperatures could more than double by the end of this century. This will have enormous negative consequences for humanity and threaten our existence on this planet. We need an immediate and urgent change in trajectory.
“It’s achievable, but to stabilize global temperature rise by 1.5 Celsius by the end of this century, we need to reduce emissions 45 per cent by 2030 and achieve climate neutrality by 2050. It’s an extremely difficult challenge, but meeting it is absolutely necessary to the health, safety and security of everyone on this planet— both in the short- and longterm.”
Executive Secretary of UN Climate Change said: “The world’s small window of opportunity to address climate change is closing rapidly. We must urgently deploy all the tools of multilateral cooperation to make
COP25 the launchpad for more climate ambition to put the world on a transformational path towards low carbon and resilience.”
According to World Resources Institute four priorities for the COP25 . One, Step up ambition: the Chilean presidency defined COP25 as an Ambition COP. At COP21 in Paris in 2015, countries were asked to bring forward updated national climate commitments by 2020 (known in the UN as nationally determined contributions, or NDCS). And at the September 2019 UN Climate Action Summit in New York, many small and medium-sized countries sent a clear signal that they will strengthen their commitments next year. As of now, 68 countries have indicated that they intend to enhance their NDCS. As we move toward 2020, the world will be watching to see whether large emitters will follow that example. COP25 will be a moment to highlight those who are clearly ready to enhance their commitments and shine a spotlight on what’s needed from others next year.
While the Trump administration has rejected the Paris Agreement and established the United States as a climate loner, this is no excuse for other countries to dial back their climate efforts. The U.S. states, cities and businesses that remain committed to the Paris Agreement now represent nearly 70 per cent of U.S. GDP and nearly two-thirds of the country’s population; if they were a country, they’d be the second-largest economy in the world, second only to the full United States and larger than China. At COP25, high-level events are expected to bring ministers of energy, finance and environment together to align policies that will accelerate and scale up action and investments toward a low-carbon and climateresilient economy. Countries should leave the summit with a good sense of key milestones for next year, with an indication of when the next round of national climate commitments are expected to be submitted, and when the UNFCCC Secretariat will produce a synthesis report of these NDCS that can help assess collective progress toward the Paris Agreement goals.
Two, Make progress on outstanding rules: while the big deliverable of last year’s COP in Katowice, Poland was the adoption of a 300-page set of guidelines to facilitate the implementation of the Paris Agreement, two issues could not be resolved: the use of international carbon markets — covered in Article six of the climate accord — and the length of the implementing period for countries’ NDCS, also referred to as the common time frame. Three, Carbon Markets: Establishing rules for carbon markets will be a priority for COP25. Fifty-one percent of all NDCS include markets as one of the means to achieve countries’ emissions-reduction goals. These approaches have the potential to drive cheaper emissions reductions while generating financing to transition to renewable energy and bolster resilience to climate impacts. But those rules must be designed so that they protect the environmental integrity of countries’ national climate commitments.
Without proper oversight and robust rules, Article 6 could severely undercut climate action. One way this could happen is through double counting, in which both the buyer and seller of carbon credits would claim the same emissions reduc
Mechanism for Loss and Damage (WIM), which was established in 2013 to address loss and damage associated with impacts of climate change in developing countries that are particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change. This includes losses and damages that go beyond what countries and communities can adapt to or recover from, such as loss of cultural heritage, land, lives and livelihoods. At COP25, Parties will review the WIM’S performance: what lessons have been learned, what are the gaps and opportunities, is the WIM effective and efficient, is it useful and responsive to developing countries, is it catalyzing collaboration and partnership, and is it properly resourced? They will also review the longterm vision for the WIM, which has implications for ways in which it may be enhanced and strengthened. Parties will no doubt pay particular attention to how the WIM has, over the past six years, enhanced action and support for averting, reducing and addressing loss and damage associated with the impacts of climate change — and what can be done to strengthen this particular function of the WIM, including through the possible establishment of a taskforce on loss and damage finance. Five, advance finance and capacity-building: Developing countries — particularly those most vulnerable to climate change — cannot step up climate action without financial support from developed ones. So far, 28 countries have confirmed $9.7 billion in pledges to the Green Climate Fund’s replenishment; 12 of those countries have at least doubled their contributions compared to 2014. This is a positive step, but many more countries should contribute, including Australia, the United States and wealthy oil-producing states. Developed countries that have not yet doubled their contributions should do so. Additional financial commitments at COP25 would build trust and empower more countries to strengthen their climate commitments in 2020.
Decisions on capacity-building are also expected at COP25. In 2015, countries established the Paris Committee on Capacitybuilding to enable countries to fulfill their more ambitious and stringent commitments and foster their transition to a low-carbon and climate-resilient economy.