- The Guardian
- Issue #2171
Wind farm. Photo: M Santos.
As the COP30 UN climate conference began in Belém, Brazil, Greenpeace Australia Pacific has urged the Australian government to drive forward the action needed to close the 1.5C ambition gap and end forest destruction.
The COP30 climate conference commences in Belém, Brazil – 10 years on from the landmark Paris Agreement.
The annual climate talks begin as Super Typhoon Uwan batters communities across the Philippines – the second typhoon to hit the country in just a week – leaving a trail of destruction and deaths. A recent report shows Australia has been expanding fossil fuel production faster than any other major producer, including doubling its gas production, since the Paris Agreement.
Shiva Gounden, Head of Pacific at Greenpeace Australia Pacific, said: “The COP30 conference comes at a critical moment for climate action globally. We are dangerously off course from the 1.5°C goal, and soaring fossil fuel production is driving climate pollution to disastrous new highs.
“As delegates meet to begin negotiations today, over one million people across the Philippines have been evacuated from their homes as Super Typhoon Uwan makes landfall, the second severe storm to hit in just one week. Last year, over half a million people were displaced by Brazil’s most catastrophic floods on record. This same story is playing out in the Pacific and around the world as climate-fuelled disasters accelerate, driven by the rampant expansion of the fossil fuel industry.
“In Belém, we ask governments not to lose sight of the significance of the decisions being made in air conditioned rooms over the next two weeks. Every fraction of a degree of avoided heating will be measured in lives and livelihoods saved, cultures protected, the places we love safeguarded.
“Australia must confront its status as a major driver of the climate crisis globally and uphold the 1.5°C Paris Agreement target. 1.5°C must remain the goal, the scientific imperative, our legal obligation, and the lifeline for Pacific and Australian communities. We have the solutions and what matters is the action we take now.”
In Belém at COP30, Greenpeace Australia Pacific has called on the Australian government to:
Keep the 1.5C Paris Agreement goal alive by halting new fossil fuel projects, committing to a fast, fair phase out of fossil fuels including exports, and revising Australia’s NDC to a science-aligned target.
Ensure more grant-based climate finance for mitigation, adaption, and loss and damage.
Introduce a ‘polluters pay’ mechanism that would unlock climate finance, and ensure fossil fuel corporations pay their fair share for climate damage.
Support action to protect forests and biodiversity, including a new 5-year Forest Action Plan to fulfil the goal of ending deforestation and forest degradation by 2030.
Carolina Pasquali, Executive Director, Greenpeace Brazil said: “COP30 needs to be a turning point. We can no longer treat forest protection, transitioning away from fossil fuels or adaptation as a menu of options. The climate crisis is advancing on all fronts, and the response needs to be ambitious, courageous and immediate.
“Brazilian President Lula made this clear at the Leaders’ Summit, stating that COP30 must deliver concrete road maps to reverse deforestation and to overcome our dependence on fossil fuels. He has sent the political signal; now it is time to turn it into real action.
“The world expects more than ambition in speeches, it expects leadership through action. That means concrete plans to end deforestation by 2030, to transition away from fossil fuel dependence, strengthening adaptation to increase climate resilience, and ensuring the finance needed to make it all real. The era of partial answers is over.”
