Current:Home > ScamsClimate talks are wrapping up. The thorniest questions are still unresolved.-LoTradeCoin
Climate talks are wrapping up. The thorniest questions are still unresolved.
View Date:2024-12-23 17:05:12
SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt – Global climate talks in Egypt are entering their final stretch, and so far, delegates have made little progress on the biggest climate questions facing humanity.
Global greenhouse gas emissions are still rising. The Earth is on track to blow past temperature targets that could rein in the most extreme weather events. And the countries most vulnerable to climate-driven disasters are still largely on their own to pay for catastrophic damage.
Now, negotiators are entering the most intense period of the two-week meeting, known as COP27. Talks are supposed to wrap up on Friday. But those who have attended past annual meetings say it's likely that delegates will miss that deadline, given their many areas of disagreement.
"The Parties remain divided on a number of significant issues," said United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres, in a speech Thursday. "There is clearly a breakdown in trust between North and South, and between developed and emerging economies."
The main sticking point in negotiations centers on the issue of loss and damage – the question of what developed countries, which contributed the most to climate change, owe to smaller, developing countries, which are suffering its effects now. Vulnerable countries have been asking for a fund to be set up that would provide them with money in the wake of a climate-fueled disaster like the flooding in Pakistan earlier this year.
Multiple countries and climate advocates have described the establishment of a fund as being the "litmus test" for a successful climate conference.
"This would be a failed COP if there's no fund," said Kathy Jetn̄il-Kijiner, Climate Envoy for the Marshall Islands. "Continuously delaying the process because people can't agree or see the value in it, that's really difficult for us."
The world's largest historic polluter, the United States, has been stalling conversations about loss and damage, climate advocates and negotiators tell NPR. U.S. climate envoy John Kerry seemed to address growing frustrations during a press event about methane reductions on Thursday.
Seventeen of the 20 countries in the world most affected by climate change are in Africa, Kerry said. Collectively, they've contributed roughly 0.55% of all emissions warming the world.
"It's no wonder that there's an increasing anger, an increasing frustration, which we intend to address here while we're in Sharm El-Sheikh," he said.
Vulnerable countries have very little power to affect what rich countries do, shy of walking out on negotiations, which negotiators say is unlikely.
Despite the disagreement on loss and damage, there have been some areas of agreement heading into the final negotiations. One hundred and fifty countries have now signed on to reduce emissions of methane by one third by the end of the decade. Methane is an incredibly potent greenhouse gas that is currently released in huge quantities by oil and gas operations, landfills and agriculture.
Kerry said clamping down on methane emissions is key if humans hope to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius – the goal of the 2015 Paris climate agreement and a level at which some of the worst climate disasters might be avoided. Right now, the Earth is on track to hit nearly 3 degrees Celsius of warming by the end of the century.
"This is absolutely critical to our ability to keep 1.5 degrees [Celsius] within reach," he said. "As you hear some of the grim predictions about where we are with respect to 1.5 [degrees], methane looms even more and more important."
China has not agreed to reduce its methane emissions, despite being home to some of the largest sources of methane pollution. But on Thursday, Chinese climate envoy Xie Zhenhua made a surprise appearance at Kerry's press conference about methane, and said the Chinese government is working on a plan to address that.
The United Nations also announced a new plan to beef up global weather forecasts to warn people about impending disasters, especially in lower-income countries where early warning systems are often lacking. And there has been some progress toward funding the transition to clean electricity in rapidly developing countries like Indonesia, which is a major contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions.
Still, overall progress to address global warming and pay for its effects is looking grim. Scientists say greenhouse gas emissions must be cut in half this decade to avoid runaway sea level rise, deadly heat waves, mass extinction of animals and plants and a variety of weather disasters. Right now, countries have collectively promised to cut greenhouse gas emissions by only about 3% by 2030.
veryGood! (62)
Related
- Sports are a must-have for many girls who grow up to be leaders
- Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards 2024 are this weekend: Date, time, categories, where to watch
- 1 dead, 2 missing after tour helicopter crashes off Hawaiian coast
- 1 dead, 2 missing after tour helicopter crashes off Hawaiian coast
- NFL coaches diversity report 2024: Gains at head coach, setbacks at offensive coordinator
- Former Georgia insurance commissioner sentenced to prison after pleading guilty to health care fraud
- Pecans are a good snack, ingredient – but not great for this
- Late-night comics have long been relentless in skewering Donald Trump. Now it’s Joe Biden’s turn
- Parts of Southern California under quarantine over oriental fruit fly infestation
- Potentially dozens of Democrats expected to call on Biden to step aside after NATO conference
Ranking
- High-scoring night in NBA: Giannis Antetokounmpo explodes for 59, Victor Wembanyama for 50
- This woman threw french fries on her husband's grave. Millions laughed – and grieved.
- Potentially dozens of Democrats expected to call on Biden to step aside after NATO conference
- Ohio mother dies after chasing down car with her 6-year-old son inside
- Elon Musk says 'SNL' is 'so mad' Trump won as he slams Dana Carvey's impression
- Kysre Gondrezick, Jaylen Brown appear to confirm relationship on ESPY red carpet
- Moms swoon over new 'toddler Stanleys.' But the cups have been around for years.
- The Daily Money: Take action: huge password leak
Recommendation
-
Federal judge blocks Louisiana law that requires classrooms to display Ten Commandments
-
Federal judge refuses to block Biden administration rule on gun sales in Kansas, 19 other states
-
U.S. says it will deploy more long-range missiles in Germany, Russia vows a military response
-
5 people escape hot, acidic pond after SUV drove into inactive geyser in Yellowstone National Park
-
FanDuel Sports Network regional channels will be available as add-on subscription on Prime Video
-
Chiefs star Patrick Mahomes, wife Brittany announce they're expecting third child
-
Billions of gallons of water from Lake Shasta disappearing into thin air
-
Joey Chestnut's ban takes bite out of Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest TV ratings