World still not on track towards 1.5 degrees target
COP27
The 27th World Climate Conference (COP27) ended with a step forward on the dispute topic of loss and damage, but no progress on credible steps to keep the world below 1.5°C global warming. The Greens/EFA welcome the agreement on the establishment of a fund for loss and damages caused by climate change in the most vulnerable countries. However, the question of who is going to pay and who is going to receive remains unclear. The negotiators could not agree on clear language to increase their climate targets and binding measures, neither did they grasp the momentum to call upon a phase out of fossil fuels, they merely confirmed the coal phase down that was agreed upon last year in Glasgow. As no real progress since last year’s climate conference, this was a lost year for climate action.
Bas Eickhout, Head of the COP27 delegation of the European Parliament and Greens/EFA member, comments:
"The year 2022 is a lost year for climate action as we are no closer to keeping 1.5°C within reach. More ambition in climate action and compliance with the Paris Climate Agreement have once again been kicked down the road. This conference was a missed opportunity to substantially tackle the root of the problem, massively reduce emissions and end the age of fossil fuels. The longer we cling to coal, oil and gas, the more catastrophic the consequences of climate change and, in the end, the costs will be.
“The decision on the establishment of a Loss and Damage Fund is an important political signal, but will still be at the center of many discussions at the conferences to come. It is still unclear which countries will be paying into the fund and which ones will be eligible for support. We will have to make sure that support reaches the people most vulnerable and hardest hit by climate change.
“At this COP, we experienced inacceptable repressions against people raising their voice against climate change. We call on the UN Climate Change Secretariat to make arrangements for the Dubai Climate Change Conference so that the intolerable intimidation and surveillance of protesters is not repeated and civil society has a chance to speak out.”
