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https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/nov/08/cop29-baku-climate-talks-odour-of-oil-return-of-trump-finance>
"More than 100 heads of state and government are expected to land in Baku, the
capital of Azerbaijan, over the next few days and the first thing they are
likely to notice is the smell of oil. The odour hangs heavy in the air,
evidence of the abundance of fossil fuels in this small country on the shores
of the Caspian Sea.
Flaring from refineries lights up the night sky, and the city is dotted with
diminutive “nodding donkey” oil wells raising and lowering their pistons as
they draw from the earth. Even the national symbol is a gas flame, epitomised
in the shape of three skyscrapers that tower over the city.
Azerbaijan has been built on oil since the mid-19th century, and fossil fuels
now make up 90% of its exports. There could be no starker reminder of the core
question that world leaders have come to Baku to decide: whether the planet
will burn so that fossil fuel producers can continue to make money, or whether
to take a different path.
That the world’s biggest economy, the US, is about to shift away from the focus
on clean energy fostered by Joe Biden towards the “drill, baby, drill” policies
of Donald Trump will be a main topic of conversation for the tens of thousands
of delegates at the Cop29 UN climate summit. However, many will point out that
no country has ever produced as much oil and gas as the US does now, with 20%
more oil and gas licences issued during the Biden administration than during
Trump’s first term.
Climate leaders reacted with defiance to the US election outcome. “The result
from this election will be seen as a major blow to global climate action but it
cannot and will not halt the changes under way to decarbonise the economy and
meet the goals of the Paris agreement,” declared Christiana Figueres, the
former UN climate chief who is a co-founder of the Global Optimism thinktank.
Trump will not be at Cop29, a fortnight-long meeting that is the latest in a
near annual series stretching back to 1992 when the UN framework convention on
climate change – the parent treaty to the 2015 Paris climate agreement – was
signed.
Those talks may appear to have achieved little, as greenhouse gas emissions are
still rising and the losses from extreme weather – record hurricanes in the
Atlantic, dramatic floods last week in Spain, drought in Africa that has
threatened millions with famine – are becoming daily more apparent. Last year
was the hottest on record and this year is likely to be hotter still.
Just 15 years ago, however, matters looked much worse. Renewable energy was
then expensive and scarcely used, and the world was headed for 6C of global
heating above preindustrial temperatures, a level that would barely support
human life. Today, after years of talks – during which fossil fuel interests
have repeatedly spread disinformation, blocked agreement, captured politicians
and choked investment in renewables – we are heading for “only” 3C.
Global heating on that scale would still be devastating, scientists have made
clear. So countries meeting at Cop29 from Monday will reaffirm their
commitments to limiting temperature rises to 1.5C, which will require reaching
net zero emissions in the next two decades. Scientists say there is still a
chance of avoiding the worst ravages of climate breakdown if the world acts
now."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
