G20 Fails to Reach Agreement on Fossil Fuel Cutbacks

G20 Fails to Reach Agreement on Fossil Fuel Cutbacks
photo:indoraya.news

The recent G20 meeting of member countries in India failed to reach a consensus on the gradual reduction of fossil fuel usage due to protests from fossil fuel-producing nations. The lack of agreement has left scientists and environmental activists frustrated, especially considering the ongoing extreme weather events affecting countries like the United States and China.

 

G20 member states are responsible for over three-quarters of global emissions, making collective efforts to decarbonize crucial in the global fight against climate change. On July 21, Reuters obtained a draft emphasizing the importance of gradually phasing out fossil fuels, taking into account the diverse national circumstances. However, during Saturday's meeting, G20 officials released a statement expressing concerns from some member nations about the proposed plan, which was not present in the earlier draft.

 

Indian Power Minister R.K. Singh stated that different countries have varying views on addressing the issues through carbon reduction and removal technologies, as reported by Reuters on Sunday (July 23). This disagreement led to the cancellation of a joint communique by G20 members at the end of the meeting.

 

Fossil fuel usage became a contentious topic during the G20 gathering. The original plan was to issue a joint communique highlighting the increase of renewable energy targets by threefold by 2020. However, this proposal faced opposition from some member countries who preferred to explore carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies rather than phasing out fossil fuels gradually.

 

Though Minister Singh did not disclose which countries proposed the CCS idea, some of the major fossil fuel-producing G20 members include Saudi Arabia, Russia, China, South Africa, and Indonesia. These nations are known to resist the threefold renewable energy capacity target for this decade.

 

The failure to secure an agreement on fossil fuel cutbacks raises concerns about the G20's commitment to combating climate change effectively. As extreme weather events continue to unfold worldwide, the need for concerted action and ambitious goals to reduce carbon emissions becomes ever more urgent. The international community awaits further developments and collaborative efforts to address this pressing global challenge.

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