Hailing it as an “historic package to accelerate climate action” COP28 President Sultan Al Jaber quickly gaveled in approval of the historic UAE Consensus Wednesday, leaving no time for comments from negotiators on the final global stocktake document.
For the first time in nearly 30 years of UN talks, the official document text includes the words fossil fuels, reading: “Transitioning away from fossil fuels in energy systems, in a just, orderly and equitable manner, accelerating action in this critical decade, so as to achieve net zero by 2050 in keeping with the science.”
A key accomplishment was getting Saudi Arabia to agree to the Consensus because up until Wednesday morning, they flatly refused to include the words fossil fuels in the text. They did, however, succeed in getting mention of carbon capture and storage (CCS) in the global stocktake (GST.)
Detractors claim the text contains “a litany of loopholes.”
From The Guardian, Dr. Friederike Otto of London’s Imperial College and World Weather Attribution group issued strong misgivings over the Consensus.
“The lukewarm agreement reached at Cop28 will cost every country, no matter how rich, no matter how poor. Everyone loses. It’s hailed as a compromise, but we need to be very clear what has been compromised. The short-term financial interests of a few have again won over the health, lives and livelihoods of most people living on this planet.
“With every vague verb, every empty promise in the final text, millions more people will enter the frontline of climate change and many will die. At 1.2C of warming, we’re already seeing devastating climate impacts that disrupt economies, destroy livelihoods and claim lives.
“Climate change is driving instability. Nearly every country wants stability, but until fossil fuels are phased out, the world will continue to become a more dangerous, more expensive and more uncertain place to live.”
Climate experts concur the Consensus did not do what needed to be done to prevent global temperatures from rising above 1.5 degrees Celsius by 2050.
Al Jaber leaves the summit with ‘permission’ for his country to continue drilling for oil as the consensus does not call for a “phase-out” of fossil fuels in a more aggressive and timely manner. His company, Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. can continue to produce up to 5 million barrels of crude oil daily, according to ABC News.
“The problem with the text is that it still includes cavernous loopholes that allow the United States and other fossil fuel producing countries to keep going on their expansion of fossil fuels,” Jean Su Center for Biological Diversity energy justice director said to the AP. “There’s a pretty deadly, fatal flaw in the text, which allows for transitional fuels to continue.” Transitional fuels refer to liquid gas which also emits carbon.
Former US Vice President Al Gore called the document an important milestone representing “the bare minimum” with “half measures and loopholes.’' “Whether this is a turning point that truly marks the beginning of the end of the fossil fuel era depends on the actions that come next,” Gore said.
"The Global Stocktake showed us clearly that progress is not fast enough," said UNFCCC executive secretary Simon Stiell. "Undeniably it is gathering pace, and I firmly believe this is because the political and economic logic is increasingly unsurmountable."
“Whilst we didn’t turn the page on the fossil fuel era in Dubai, this outcome is the beginning of the end. Now all governments and businesses need to turn these pledges into real-economy outcomes, without delay.”
With the world still on a path towards 3 degrees Celsius this century, Stiell said nations "needed to move the needle further.”
COP28 delivered on some significant priorities, Stiell said, including “tripling renewables and doubling energy efficiency, operationalizing the loss and damage fund and creating a framework for the Global Goal on Adaptation.”
“Whether you like it or not, fossil fuel phase out is inevitable. Let’s hope it doesn’t come too late,” said UN Secretary General António Guterres.