Current:Home > ScamsHere's what happened on Day 5 of the U.N.'s COP27 climate talks -MacroWatch
Here's what happened on Day 5 of the U.N.'s COP27 climate talks
View
Date:2025-04-22 23:32:30
The war in Ukraine is driving a new push for fossil fuels, putting climate goals at risk
With the war in Ukraine disrupting natural supplies to Europe, many countries have been scrambling to replace gas exports coming from Russia, often from nations much farther away. Those gas supplies are super-cooled into a liquid that can be loaded onto tanker ships. The tankers dock in the importing countries at huge facilities that turn their cargo into gas again to send through pipelines.
Since the invasion of Ukraine, 26 of these massive facilities have been announced in the European Union, according to a new report from Climate Action Tracker, a climate think tank,.
Extracting more natural gas to offset the losses from Russia could lock in fossil fuel use for decades. If the proposed terminals and others under construction now around the world come online, they could more than double the emissions from natural gas by 2030, according to the report. That could jeopardize any commitments that governments make in the COP27 negotiations to rein in the pollution driving global warming.
To keep the world's goal of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius within reach, there should be no investment in new fossil fuel supplies, the International Energy Agency said.
Members of Congress start to arrive
Nancy Pelosi arrived in Egypt with a delegation of 13 other House Democrats, including the current chairs of multiple committees that work on climate policy.
A delegation of Congressional Republicans are enroute to the talks as well.
Congress passed a massive spending bill that puts more than $1.2 trillion toward infrastructure, including rebuilding roads and bridges to be more resilient to climate change, putting more electric vehicles on the road, upgrading public transit and expanding clean sources of electricity.
But control of Congress is still up in the air after Tuesday's election, and the future of U.S. spending on climate change also hangs in the balance. Among other policies, Republican lawmakers have argued against government funding of renewable energy, and in favor of investments in natural gas and other fossil fuels.
Scientists say reliance on fossil fuels needs to plummet immediately in order to avoid catastrophic global warming later this century.
White House calls for federal contractors to disclose climate information
The Biden administration wants big federal contractors to publicly disclose information about their greenhouse gas emissions and the financial risks they face from climate change, and to set targets for cutting emissions.
The U.S. government is the world's largest buyer of goods and services, the White House said, and the proposed rule would make federal supply chains more efficient and resilient to the impacts of global warming.
"Suppliers understand that you cannot manage what you don't measure — tracking emissions and setting and meeting targets can increase resilience and reduce costs," the White House said in a statement.
The administration made the announcement a day before President Joe Biden is scheduled to speak at the United Nations' annual climate conference in Egypt.
Under the proposed rule, the largest federal contractors — those with annual contracts of more than $50 million — would have to disclose emissions from their own operations and from the energy they buy, as well as certain emissions from their customers and suppliers. They would also have to provide information about their climate-related financial risks, and set science-based targets for cutting emissions.
Companies with annual contracts of $7.5 million to $50 million would only have to provide information about the emissions from their own operations and from their energy purchases. Companies with smaller contracts would be exempt.
"With this proposed rule, the Administration is providing a valuable model for other stakeholders as it becomes increasingly important for governments and corporations to provide visibility into their climate risks and resilience across their supply chains," Pankaj Bhatia, global director of the Greenhouse Gas Protocol, said in a statement.
However, the proposal is likely to face pushback, says Arthur Wheaton, director of labor studies at Cornell University's School of Industrial and Labor Relations.
"The big question is how the administration will monitor and enforce these restrictions," Wheaton said in a statement.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has proposed its own rule to require companies to disclose information about climate-related risks and greenhouse gas emissions. That proposal has faced fierce corporate opposition.
Climate news from the actor formerly known as Rainn Wilson
Actor Rainn Wilson, who is most famous for his role as Dwight Schrute in the U.S. version of the television show The Office, says he has changed his name.
He says he now goes by Rainnfall Heat Wave Extreme Winter Wilson.
In a video, Wilson says his goal is to draw attention to the effects of climate change in the Arctic. Indeed, more variable and extreme rain and heat waves are wreaking havoc in the Arctic, where temperatures are rising about four times faster than the global average.
Wilson also suggested new climate-related names for other celebrities, such as:
- Cardi the Arctic B. Melting
- Jack Black Carbon Is Killing Us
- Ty-phoons Are Increasing Burrell
- Amy Poehler Bears Are Endangered
- Harrison Why Not Drive an Electric Ford
veryGood! (893)
Related
- Global Warming Set the Stage for Los Angeles Fires
- National Chicken Wing Day 2023: Buffalo Wild Wings, Popeyes, Hooters, more have deals Saturday
- 4 killed in fiery ATV rollover crash in central Washington
- 'Wait Wait' for July 29, 2023: With Not My Job guest Randall Park
- Meet the volunteers risking their lives to deliver Christmas gifts to children in Haiti
- What's Making Us Happy: A guide to your weekend listening and viewing
- These are the classic video games you can no longer play (Spoiler: It's most of them)
- Is 'Hot Girl Summer' still a thing? Here's where it originated and what it means.
- New Mexico governor seeks funding to recycle fracking water, expand preschool, treat mental health
- After cop car hit by train with woman inside, judge says officer took 'unjustifiable risk'
Ranking
- South Korean president's party divided over defiant martial law speech
- 150 years later, batteaumen are once again bringing life to Scottsville
- Buckle up: New laws from seat belts to library books take effect in North Dakota
- 'Once in a lifetime': New Hampshire man's video shows 3 whales breaching at the same time
- Where will Elmo go? HBO moves away from 'Sesame Street'
- Chick-fil-A to build new restaurant concepts in Atlanta and New York City
- Cardi B Throws Microphone at Audience Member Who Tossed Drink at Her
- Drake scores Tupac's custom crown ring for $1M at auction: 'Slice of hip-hop history'
Recommendation
NHL in ASL returns, delivering American Sign Language analysis for Deaf community at Winter Classic
8 dogs going to Indiana K-9 facility die from extreme heat after driver’s AC unit fails
Ohio man convicted of abuse of corpse, evidence tampering in case of missing Kentucky teenager
'Haunted Mansion' is a skip, but 'Talk to Me' is a real scare
Federal Spending Freeze Could Have Widespread Impact on Environment, Emergency Management
Going on vacation? 10 tech tips to keep your personal info, home safe
GM, BMW, Honda, Hyundai, Kia, Mercedes and Stellantis to build EV charging network
LeBron James' son is released from hospital days after suffering a cardiac arrest