In remarks delivered via video at the Austrian World Summit in Vienna, Antonio Guterres issued a critical assessment of the planet’s prospects. “Most national climate pledges are not enough,” he said.
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The UN Secretary-General has called for the new funding for fossil fuel exploration to be “delusional” and to abandon fossil fuel finance.
In remarks delivered via video at the Austrian World Summit in Vienna, Antonio Guterres issued a critical assessment of the planet’s prospects.
“The war-borne energy crisis in Ukraine has seen an alarming doubling down on fossil fuels by major economies,” he said on Tuesday.
“The war has reinforced a disgusting lesson: our energy mix is broken,” Guterres said. “If we had invested extensively in renewable energy in the past, we should no longer be so dramatically at the mercy of the volatility of fossil fuel markets.”
With the cost of both, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has put concerns regarding both the energy transition and energy security into sharp relief. Oil And gas The boom has continued in recent months.
Russia is a significant supplier of both, and several major economies have made plans in recent months to reduce their reliance on hydrocarbons. This desire to move away from Russian imports has led to some challenging situations.
In May, the European Commission detailed description of a plan To increase the EU’s renewable energy capacity and reduce its reliance on Russian fossil fuels. It simultaneously acknowledged that existing coal facilities could be used for “longer than initially expected”.
Coal has a significant impact on the environment and the US Energy Information Administration lists a range of emissions from its combustion. These include carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, particulates and nitrogen oxides.
Elsewhere, Greenpeace describes coal as “the dirtiest, most polluting way of producing energy”.
In his speech at the summit in Vienna, the UN’s Guterres highlighted the “crippling prices” currently being experienced by businesses and households. “Our world is facing climate chaos,” he said.
“New funding for fossil fuel exploration and production infrastructure is delusional,” he said. “It will only address the scourge of war, pollution and climate devastation.”
Portugal’s former prime minister called on “all financial actors to abandon fossil fuel finance” and invest in renewable energy instead.
“The only true path to energy security, stable electricity prices, prosperity and a habitable planet is to abandon polluting fossil fuels – particularly coal – and accelerate the energy transition to renewables based.”
The renewable energy source, Guterres argued, was the “Peace Plan of 21”.scheduled tribe century.” He outlined a strategy that, he claimed, would “start the renewable energy transition immediately.”
This includes a tripling investment in renewable energy, moving energy subsidies from fossil fuels to renewable energy, and faster approvals for wind and solar projects.
‘not good enough’
On the future of the planet, Guterres called for an urgent rally.
“The window to contain the worst effects of the climate crisis is rapidly closing,” he said. “Our planet has already warmed by 1.2 degrees.”
“To keep the 1.5° target within reach,” he said, “we must reduce emissions by 45% by 2030 and reach net zero emissions by mid-century. But about 14% this decade from current national commitments.” will increase.”
Guterres’ reference to 1.5 °C is related to the Paris Agreement’s goal of limiting global warming to “below 2 °C, preferably 1.5 °C, below pre-industrial levels.”
Pointing to a recent report by the International Energy Agency, he also said that energy-related global CO2 emissions were seen in 2021. 6% jump in 2021. “Let me be blunt,” he said. “Most national climate pledges are not good enough.”
Guterres’ comments represent his latest intervention in discussions about climate change and the future of the energy sector.
In March, he said the planet had emerged with “a certain naive optimism” from last year’s COP26 climate summit in Glasgow. and “climate was sleeping for catastrophe.”
In the same speech, he also said that coal was a “stupid investment – which trapped billions in wealth.”