US Climate Envoy John Kerry warns that war in Ukraine must not be used as an excuse to prolong global coal dependence. Many countries are returning to fossil energy sources, which threatens global climate work.
At the same time as a climate meeting is now taking place in Bonn, Germany, it is criticizing John Kerry world leaders for not living up to the commitments they made at the COP26 climate summit.
The war in Ukraine must not be used as an excuse
If the countries increase their carbon dependence in response to the war, then “we are cooked”, says Kerry.
The Bonn summit comes halfway after COP26 in Glasgow and the next COP27 climate summit in Egypt, upper BBC.
The irony is that Egypt, which will hold the next climate summit, is one of the countries that has lagged behind in what they have promised, as well as India, which is an important key player in the talks on emission reductions.
Through the war, the countries have quickly had to review their energy resources and then fossil sources are easy to fall back on while they also continue the war, says Svitlana Krakovskaa former Ukrainian climate envoy.
“The cause of this war, what makes this war possible is oil and gas,” she says.
Reopens coal mines – fossil energy sources increase
In India, the government has decided to reopen 100 coal mines that were previously considered unprofitable. At the same time, however, the country has invested in solar power – during the first quarter of this year, India increased its solar energy capacity by 3 gigawatts.
In Europe, too, the authorities are looking at fossil sources, such as in Germany, where the construction of new gas terminals is being planned.
Oil production is increasing in places like Texas, and China is once again investing in coal after its lockdowns. At the same time, there is some parallel investment in green energy sources in China – where the number of wind turbines and solar power plants put into operation during the first four months of this year increased by 100 percent compared to last year’s levels.
Also read: War and climate pave the way for a new “era of risk” [Dagens PS]
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