The "COP26 Highlights" climate conference draft resolution was released, and car companies and airlines made commitments to reduce emissions

Reporter | Tian Siqi

The 26th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP26), hosted in the UK, is scheduled to conclude this Friday, but some discussions are likely to be extended.

The general assembly draft resolution has been released a few days ago, but British Prime Minister Boris Johnson stressed that the negotiations have become more and more difficult. While automakers and airlines continue to emphasize their commitment to reduce emissions, oil powers stress that the process of combating climate change should not oppose specific sources of energy.

On 10 November, the host country, the United Kingdom, released a political draft resolution for the congress. Negotiators from nearly 200 countries will reach a final agreement on the basis of the draft before the end of the conference.

The seven-page draft agreement focuses primarily on climate adaptation and financing, underscoring "the importance of multilateralism ... and the critical role of international cooperation in addressing climate change", arguing that high-income countries must increase their support for low-income countries, noting that global warming should be limited to 1.5 degrees Celsius. The draft also calls on countries to "revisit and strengthen their nationally set 2030 targets in order to align with the temperature targets of the Paris Agreement by the end of 2022." ”

Johnson said wednesday at cop26 that "there is still a lot of work to be done" in the final days of the conference. After announcing a "game-changing" climate policy last week, it is now becoming increasingly difficult for the general assembly negotiations. "The world is closer than ever to signaling the end of climate change in human activity, the best gift we can give to future generations and unborn generations," Johnson said. ”

At Wednesday's summit, some automakers and airlines unveiled a series of pledges to cut greenhouse gas emissions from global transportation.

Ford in the United States, General Motors in the United States and Daimler in Germany all plan to phase out fossil fuel vehicles by 2040. Toyota and Volkswagen have not yet made similar commitments.

Several airlines also intend to accelerate the development and use of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) to reduce emissions in air transport.

Made from renewable resources such as plants and used cooking oil, SAF can reduce emissions by up to 80 percent, but is more expensive than petroleum-based jet fuel and makes it difficult to achieve a large supply. Alaska Airlines, JetBlue Airways, United and Amazon Airlines have all said they will help drive production, price cuts and technological advancements for SAF.

Saudi Arabia's Energy Minister Abdul Aziz bin Salman Saudi said at COP26 on the same day that global efforts to combat climate change should not shy away from any specific energy source. "It's important that we recognize the diversity of climate solutions... Do not favor or oppose any particular energy source. ”

He also stressed the need for the international community to work together to address climate change and to help less developed countries "without compromising their path to sustainable development."

OPEC Secretary-General Mohammed Barkindo from Nigeria also said: "The claim that the energy transition is from oil and other fossil fuels to renewables is misleading. ”

Proponents of traditional fossil fuels argue that technologies such as carbon capture and sequestration – that is, capturing and storing emissions underground – can reduce emissions while preserving fossil fuels. But climate activists see such technologies as expensive, haven't been tested on a large scale, and are merely designed to keep oil companies operating.

On November 10, China and the United States issued a joint declaration at COP26, the United Nations Climate Change Conference, pledging to strengthen climate cooperation and defend the gains of the Paris Agreement. The two sides agreed to do more to reduce carbon emissions over the next decade. The two sides re-emphasized "common but differentiated responsibilities" and plan to establish a working group to promote the institutionalization of climate cooperation between the two countries.

Xie Zhenhua, China's climate envoy, said the two sides would take more measures to reduce emissions over the next decade to make possible the Paris Agreement's commitment to warming up — to limit the global average temperature rise below 2 degrees Celsius and to work towards limiting it to 1.5 degrees Celsius. The United States and China also proposed to implement the joint statement issued in Shanghai in April. There will be concrete actions in areas such as clean energy, coal, electricity, and forest protection.