COP27: UN climate summit applauds historic ‘loss and damage’ fund, but disappointed emissions deal
- Negotiators approved a deal to create a fund for compensating poor nations that are victims of extreme weather worsened by rich countries’ carbon pollution
- New agreement does not increase calls for reducing emissions, but retains goal of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius over pre-industrial times
For the first time the nations of the world decided to help pay for the damage that climate change has done to poor countries, but they finished marathon climate talks on Sunday with a deal that does more to address the impacts of the burning of fossil fuels than actually fight climate change’s cause.
The decision establishes a fund for what negotiators call loss and damage. It is a big win for poorer nations which have long called for cash – sometimes viewed as reparations – because they are often the victims of climate worsened floods, droughts, heatwaves, famines and storms despite having contributed little to the pollution that heats up the globe.
The agreement struck in this Egyptian Red Sea resort city is a victory for developing nations that have for decades fought for some form of compensation for the “loss and damage” they’re suffering due to floods, droughts, famine, heatwaves and storms worsened by climate change despite emitting a small fraction of heat-trapping carbon pollution.
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“Today, the international community has restored global faith in this critical process that is dedicated to ensuring no one is left behind,” said Antigua and Barbuda’s Molwyn Joseph, who chairs the organisation of small island states that has been vocal on loss and damage. “The agreements made at COP27 are a win for our entire world. We have shown those who have felt neglected that we hear you, we see you, and we are giving you the respect and care you deserve.”
A deal of sorts came after a game of climate change chicken over the cause of warming: fossil fuel burning.
The use of fossil fuels was a bone of contention at the two-week summit.
Early on Sunday morning, delegates approved the compensation fund but had not dealt with the contentious issues of an overall temperature goal, emissions cutting and the desire to target all fossil fuels for phase down. As dawn was breaking the European Union and other nations fought back what they considered backsliding in Egyptian presidency’s overarching cover agreement and threatened to scuttle the rest of the process.
The 27-nation bloc and other developed countries had pushed for stronger commitments to bring down emissions to achieve the aspirational goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius from pre-industrial levels.
“The European Union came here to get strong language agreed and we are disappointed we didn’t achieve this,” European Commission Vice-President Frans Timmermans told the closing session of the summit in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.
“What we have in front of us is not enough of a step forward for people and planet,” he said.
“It doesn’t bring enough added efforts from major emitters to increase and accelerate their emission cuts.”
The EU had threatened to walk away from the talks if it did not get better commitments on emissions, but it did not block the final statement following marathon talks that ended early on Sunday.
However, that fight was overshadowed by the historic compensation fund.
Harjeet Singh of the environmental group Climate Action Network International said the new fund had effectively “sent a warning shot to polluters that they can no longer go scot-free with their climate destruction.”
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“From now on, they will have to pay up for the damages they cause and are accountable to the people who are facing supercharged storms, devastating floods and rising seas,” he said.
The Egyptian presidency, which had been under criticism by all sides, proposed a new loss and damage deal on Saturday afternoon and within a couple hours an agreement was struck, but Norway’s negotiator said it was not so much the Egyptians but countries working together.
Germany climate envoy Jennifer Morgan and Chilean Environment Minister Maisa Rojas, who shepherded the deal on to the agenda and to the finish line, hugged each other after passage, posed for a photo and said “yeah, we made it!”
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According to the agreement, the fund would initially draw on contributions from developed countries and other private and public sources such as international financial institutions. While major emerging economies such as China would not initially be required to contribute, that option remains on the table and will be negotiated over the coming years. This is a key demand by the European Union and the United States, who argue that China and other large polluters currently classified as developing countries have the financial clout and responsibility to pay their way.
The fund would be largely aimed at the most vulnerable nations, though there would be room for middle-income countries that are severely battered by climate disasters to get aid.
Negotiators early on Sunday approved a historic deal that would create a fund for compensating poor nations that are victims of extreme weather worsened by rich countries’ carbon pollution, but an overall larger agreement still was up in the air because of a fight over emission reduction efforts.
Talks on the overall agreement were put on hold while delegates were given time to read what they were going to vote on besides the compensation fund they approved to their own applause.
Additional reporting by dpa, Agence France-Presse, Associated Press
