The Glasgow Agreement, like its predecessor, the Paris Agreement, is non-binding. There is nothing in the text to directly force countries to implement specific policies.
- COP26 representatives agreed to reduce coal use, end “inefficient” fossil fuel subsidies, and raise climate targets more quickly.
- Although China and India, the two largest emitters in the world, objected at the last minute, the agreement was reached.
- But the Glasgow Climate Convention has almost put the world on the path of limiting global temperature rise to 1.5°C.
Negotiators from nearly 200 countries reached an agreement aimed at maintaining the most ambitious goals of the Paris Agreement, breaking new ground in the fight against climate change, but pushing the most difficult decisions into the future. ??
After two weeks of often stressful UN COP26 talks, the delegates agreed to reduce coal use, end “inefficient” fossil fuel subsidies, and raise their climate goals as soon as possible. The Glasgow Climate Convention has almost put the world on the path to increase global temperature from the pre-industrial era to 1.5 degrees Celsius-this is the extended goal of the Paris Agreement and what scientists say is needed to avoid catastrophic warming level.
“This is the beginning of the 10-year sprint,” said John Kerry, the U.S. climate envoy. “In fact, we are closer than ever to avoiding climate chaos, ensuring cleaner air, safer water and a healthier planet.”
Although China and India, the two largest emitters in the world, objected at the last minute, the agreement was reached. They hoped to downplay the language about coal. Delegates also approved the carbon credit trading framework, breaking the six-year deadlock, and emission reporting guidelines to strengthen the review of climate commitments.
The Glasgow Agreement is a more ambitious agreement than many long-time COP observers expected, especially the coal pledge is seen as an important breakthrough. But it is based on a huge assumption that the biggest polluters—especially China, the United States and India—will fulfill their promise of zero emissions in the coming decades.
Achieving carbon neutrality will require trillions of dollars in clean energy investment and stricter restrictions on fossil fuel activities, including internal combustion engine vehicles and polluting factories.
The agreement has also been criticized for not taking enough measures to raise financial support from rich countries to help developing countries transition to clean energy and prepare for more extreme weather. They also warned that concessions to carbon market rules may hinder efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
The UN climate agreements are essentially a messy compromise because they must balance the competing interests of more than 190 countries. In the last few hours, countries including low-lying island countries such as the Maldives and carbon powers such as the United States complained that they were not doing enough.
Delegates also expressed anger that India was allowed to amend the final draft. It successfully replaced the promise of coal, from “phasing out” its use-not capturing emissions-to “gradual reduction.” According to people familiar with the matter, although this South Asian country failed by downplaying the text, its public opposition obscured the role of China and even the United States in weakening the results.
Although this seems to be a small adjustment, European countries warn that it will make it more difficult to reach the 1.5°C limit. EU climate czar Frans Timmermans said: “The longer it takes to get rid of coal, the greater the burden on the natural environment.” “The more burden you put on the economy, Because coal is not a wise economic proposition either.”
Many people are not satisfied with the final text. But in the end countries agreed to compromise because time was passing and protesters outside the venue asked them to take action to stop the warming that had already caused floods, heat waves and rising sea levels.
As the private market outside the control of the United Nations flourishes, the pressure to reach an agreement on carbon market rules is particularly intense, which has heightened concerns about free trade that could promote green drift. As more and more companies set a net zero goal, demand is expected to grow to US$100 billion by the end of the decade, but its effectiveness as a climate solution depends on setting high standards.
Although COP26 Chairman Alok Sharma expressed regret over how the last-minute bargaining was conducted in small-scale negotiations that excluded most countries, the documents were met with cheers and high-fives on Saturday night Approved. “I apologize for the way this process has developed, and I am deeply sorry,” he said, almost in tears. “I also understand that people are deeply disappointed, but as you have already pointed out, it is also important for us to protect this package.”
It is always impossible for all countries in the world to agree on how to halve their emissions this decade-the conditions required to reach 1.5°C-at a global summit. The Glasgow Agreement, like its predecessor, the Paris Agreement, is non-binding. There is nothing in the text to directly force countries to implement specific policies.
In other words, a landmark climate agreement can send important market signals and reshape the economy. According to Bloomberg New Energy Finance, since governments signed the landmark Paris Agreement in 2015, they have invested more than US$2.2 trillion in solar, wind, batteries and other renewable technologies.
This is disrupting the entire industry from cars to the grid. Tesla, a symbol of the new green economy, is now worth more than US$1 trillion, dwarfing the market value of the world’s traditional automakers.
“Glasgow has always been an important gateway to the 1.5°C world, but we now need to move faster to achieve this goal,” said Emily Shuckerberg, director of the Cambridge Zero Research Center. “The end of COP26 reiterated the fact that the science of climate change is very clear-our time is running out.”
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