Greenpeace chief warns of ‘greenwashing’ at UN local weather talks

The head of environmental group Greenpeace on Thursday warned in opposition to efforts by international locations and firms on the forthcoming U.N. local weather talks in Glasgow to “greenwash” their ongoing air pollution of the planet.
The summit hosted by Britain has been described as “ the world’s last best chance ” to stop world warming from reaching harmful ranges, and is predicted to see a flurry of recent commitments from governments and companies to scale back their emissions of greenhouse gases.
But local weather campaigners say behind-the-scenes lobbying earlier than the summit might hamper efforts to realize an formidable deal that may make sure the world stands an opportunity of capping world warming at 1.5 levels Celsius (2.7 Fahrenheit) as agreed in Paris in 2015.
“This Glasgow meeting really is a vital moment where governments need to be courageous,” mentioned Jennifer Morgan, the chief director of Greenpeace International.
“They need to show they’ve understood the science, listen to their people and go much further than they’ve been stating thus far,” she informed The Associated Press in an interview.
The head of environmental group Greenpeace warned in opposition to efforts by international locations and firms to “greenwash” their ongoing air pollution of the planet on the upcoming U.N. local weather talks. (AP)
By doing so, governments would “give that kind of hope and confidence to their people that they got this and that they’re willing to do things that their corporate interests don’t want them to do,” she added.
Morgan pointed to leaked paperwork exhibiting how international locations akin to Australia, Brazil and Saudi Arabia are apparently attempting to water down an upcoming U.N. science panel report on world warming as proof of the way in which wherein some governments’ public help for local weather motion is undermined by their efforts behind closed doorways.
Documents obtained by Greenpeace point out how these international locations wished the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change to take away references to the necessity to shut down coal-fired energy stations, scale back meat consumption and deal with precise emissions cuts fairly than methods to seize carbon already launched into the environment.
In this Feb. 1, 2020, file photograph a fireplace burns within the grass close to Bumbalong, south of the Australian capital, Canberra. (AP)
A spokesman for the IPCC’s secretariat in Geneva downplayed the influence such lobbying efforts have on the panel’s ultimate stories.
“Review by governments and experts is a fundamental part of the IPCC process for preparing reports,” mentioned the spokesman, Jonathan Lynn. “The IPCC principles are designed to ensure that this review contributes to a comprehensive, balanced and objective assessment in an open and transparent way.”
Australian Minister for Industry, Energy and Emissions Reduction Angus Taylor’s workplace mentioned in an announcement that to say Australia “commenting on a draft is somehow ‘interference’ is categorically false.”
All feedback acquired by the IPCC are revealed with their stories as they’re finalized. “This ensures complete transparency,” the assertion mentioned.

Greenpeace’s Morgan mentioned a lot of the lobbying is pushed by firms, a few of which will even be on the so-called COP26 talks — together with as a part of authorities delegations.
“They’ll try and use this COP to show that they care, that they are really doing a lot,” mentioned Morgan. “There’ll be a big greenwashing effort in Glasgow that needs to be called out and recognized.”
Governments, too, are possible to make use of the U.N. talks to announce new local weather measures, at the same time as they foyer in opposition to others, she mentioned.
“If you look at what they’re doing to try and hold back the world from moving forward, it’s stunning,” she mentioned. “It’s immoral, it’s unacceptable.”

Greenpeace and different environmental marketing campaign teams have been important of a wave of bulletins by international locations and trade teams, starting from airways to transport corporations, to goal for ‘net zero’ emissions. Rather than lower greenhouse gasoline emissions to nil, these aiming for internet zero pledge to launch solely as a lot carbon dioxide or different pollution into the environment by a sure date as may be captured once more.
The math round internet zero is murky and activists say if it’s not scientifically rigorous that concentrate on dangers detracting from the hassle to chop emissions as shortly as potential.
“(Some companies) want to continue what they’re doing, but they want to pay just to plant trees somewhere else,” mentioned Morgan. “That is not the solution to the nature and biodiversity crisis.”

She cited a latest report by the International Energy Agency which concluded that there may be no extra new coal mines or oil and gasoline wells if the Paris objective is to be achieved. Yet final week, a separate U.N.-backed research discovered that even present fossil gasoline manufacturing plans for the approaching decade would lead to over twice the emissions allowed for the world to take care of an opportunity of assembly the Paris targets.
Morgan mentioned the highlight being placed on the talks in Glasgow and a few events’ efforts to bloc agreements on delicate points might embolden these international locations that need an formidable deal.
“They have to be ready to move, go beyond their comfort zones and come together because you can see the level of opposition that’s coming in at them,” she mentioned.
A bunch of 9 nations, together with Costa Rica, Sweden and the Marshall Islands, on Thursday known as for international locations that haven’t but performed so to replace their local weather targets forward of the Oct. 31-Nov. 12 talks in Glasgow. They additionally backed a long-standing demand from poor nations for wealthy international locations to make good on their pledge of offering $100 billion in support every year to deal with local weather change.