US climate envoy: Some countries don’t want 1.5 degrees in climate summit final statement

According to US envoy Kerry, “a small number of countries” objected to explicitly mentioning the 1.5 degree limit in the closing text. However, the climate envoy said he was confident agreements reached previously would remain in place.

Critical limit

At the climate summit in Paris in 2015, countries agreed to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees, and preferably to 1.5 degrees. At the Glasgow Summit last year, the final declaration acknowledged that the effects of climate change are much greater at 2 degrees than at 1.5 degrees.

Scientists warn that above 1.5 degrees there is a much greater chance that certain tipping points will be reached, which could accelerate warming. The UN recently calculated that with the current state of affairs, the world is heading for a warming of 2.8 degrees by the end of this century. The 1.5 degree is seen as a limit not to be exceeded to slow down the effects of climate change.

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US President Joe Biden apologized on Friday at his predecessor Donald Trump’s climate policy summit in Egypt. He withdrew the United States from the Paris Accords.

The effects of climate change are already noticeable almost everywhere, but it’s often not as bad as in the video below. The whole beach has disappeared, the city is submerged:

The Dutch contribution of Minister Liesje Schreinemacher (Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation) to “COP27” in Sharm-el-Sheikh focused on water. “Either there is too much water, or not enough, or it is polluted,” she said in her speech today. “Nine out of 10 natural disasters over the past ten years were water-related.”

Private investments

The minister announced an increase in water spending and measures. It is for an additional €15 million in 2023, rising to an additional €40 million from 2026. “We will use the money specifically to support the most vulnerable countries.”

She stressed the need to increase global support for climate action. It is partly for this reason that the Netherlands is co-host of the United Nations Water Conference in New York in March 2023. “To make countries aware of the importance of investing in the water,” a Foreign Office spokesman said.

Climate adaptation

Schreinemacher also advocated for increased private sector investment, especially in developing countries. “Public resources take us far, but the rest of this road requires private funding,” the minister said. “I know that unlocking much-needed private finance for climate adaptation is not easy. But it can be done. That is why private sector engagement plays a key role in Dutch policy, in especially in Africa.”