‘THE END OF COAL IS IN SIGHT’ PLEDGE LEADERS AT COP26

 

more than 40 countries have pledged to quit coal – the single biggest contributor to climate change – and transition to clean power generation. announced by the UK government at COP26, the deal includes 18 countries committing for the first time to phase out and not build or invest in new coal power, including poland, vietnam, and chile.

 

the agreement commits major economies to phase out coal power in the 2030s, and in the 2040s for smaller economies. over 100 international organizations have also signed the pledge, including financial institutions that have committed to stop funding the coal industry.

 

the UK’s business & energy secretary kwasi kwarteng said about the pledge, ‘today marks a milestone moment in our global efforts to tackle climate change as nations from all corners of the world unite in glasgow to declare that coal has no part to play in our future power generation.’

 

‘spearheaded by the UK’s COP26 presidency, today’s ambitious commitments made by our international partners demonstrate that the end of coal is in sight. the world is moving in the right direction, standing ready to seal coal’s fate and embrace the environmental and economic benefits of building a future that is powered by clean energy.’

 

however, the deal brokered by the UK government has been criticized as it misses the three biggest coal consumers – china, india, and the US. 

 

the burning of coal supplied over one-third of the world’s electricity in 2019 and was responsible for 44% of global carbon dioxide emissions. 

 

 

main image by @chrisleboutillier via unsplash