COP26: BBC audience member shames leaders
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At the time, the Paris Climate Agreement charted a new course in the global attempt to thwart the climate crisis, as countries made a number of promises to reduce emissions and put the brakes on impending climate disaster. But perhaps unsurprisingly, a lot of this hasn’t materialised – despite the accord being legally binding. The Paris agreement was hashed out by world leaders during COP21 – we are now in the middle of COP26. So how much has actually changed?
What is the Paris agreement?
The Paris agreement is an international accord that aims to substantially reduce global carbon emissions to slow down the rise of global warming.
The agreement outlined the aim to limit global temperature increase in this century to 2C above preindustrial levels, while pursuing the means to limit the increase to 1.5C.
It contains commitments from all major emitting countries, including the US and UK, to continue to cut emissions and strengthen that commitment as the years go on.
The accord also created framework for more developed countries to aid poorer ones with financial assistance.
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Which countries are not meeting their targets?
Climate Action Tracker has found plenty of countries are not on track to meet their climate change targets by 2030, ranking them five different categories, from critically insufficient to Paris agreement compatible.
China, the world’s biggest emitter of carbon dioxide, is ranked highly insufficient by the tracker, with its current aims likely to lead to 3C of global warming.
India is in a similar position to China, with its coal emissions are expected to increase from over 200 GW to almost 266 GW by around 2030, putting it on course for 4C or more of warming if urgent action isn’t taken.
Russia has been branded “critically insufficient” by the tracker, which says its current actions “reflect minimal to no action and are not at all consistent with the Paris Agreement”.
Mr Putin is not attended the COP26 meeting in Glasgow, but a spokesperson said prior to the event that global warming was “important” to Russia – yet this remains to be seen.
The EU has pledged for net zero emissions by 2050 – a common date set by many countries, including the UK.
But the tracker says the EU needs to ramp up its efforts to accelerate phasing out harmful coal emissions, as well as increasing international finance for poorer countries to help them meet their goals.
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What’s more, as it currently stands many EU nations do not have plans to phase out coal use by 2030 – a major roadblock in the EU’s goals.
New Zealand is one of the few countries in the world to have enshrined its net zero emissions by 2050 goal in domestic law – but the tracker claims its policies do not line up with its ambitions, being rated as “highly insufficient”.
The only two countries in the world that are remarkably already meeting a net zero target are Suriname and Bhutan.
Bhutan is one of the greenest countries in the world, and has already reached carbon negative status thanks to its vast greenery, which has turned the small nation into a natural carbon sink.
The country removes almost three times the amount of CO2 it emits each year – sticking to a pledge it made in 2009 to remain carbon neutral for the rest of time.
Where does the UK stand?
The UK has stepped up its climate commitments over the last six months to set ambitious 2030 and 2035 targets, such as decarbonising the power system – with Climate Tracker giving it a rating of “almost sufficient”.
If these materialise, the UK will be on course to be “1.5C compatible domestic emissions reduction trajectory”, according to Climate Action Tracker – meaning the UK will be on course to achieve the 2050 net zero target.
However, experts have observed there is a considerable gap between the UK’s proposals and its current level of action.
The Climate Action Tracker has commended the UK for its domestic emissions targets, but points out the UK’s contributions to global climate finance is inadequate.
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