Azerbaijan Calls For $1 Billion Fund To Deal with World Warming – Is This A Joke?

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Azerbaijan, the host nation for the following world local weather assembly — COP 29 — is asking rich nations and fossil gas firms to contribute to a $1 billion fund that may assist poor nations address the accumulating horrors of an overheating planet. The Local weather Finance Motion Fund will take monetary contributions from fossil gas producing nations and corporations and use the cash to put money into tasks within the creating world that cut back greenhouse fuel emissions and assist construct resilience to the impacts of maximum climate.

Yalchin Rafiyev, the chief negotiator for the COP29 presidency, mentioned, “Conventional funding strategies have confirmed to be insufficient to the challenges of the local weather disaster, so we have now selected a special strategy. The fund might be capitalised with contributions from fossil-fuel nations and corporations and can catalyse the personal sector. Any creating nation might be eligible [to receive money from] the fund.”

Contributions to the fund might be voluntary and no mechanism is proposed to require the nations and corporations most chargeable for greenhouse fuel emissions to pay into it. Local weather advocates odor a rat and say the proposal by Azerbaijan falls nicely wanting the levy on fossil fuels that some campaigners have been calling for.

Bronwen Tucker, the general public finance lead on the marketing campaign group Oil Change Worldwide, instructed The Guardian, “This can be a harmful distraction from the sturdy new local weather finance purpose and nationwide plans that COP29 should guarantee for a good, full and quick fossil gas phase-out.” Harjeet Singh, the worldwide engagement director on the Fossil Gasoline Non-Proliferation Treaty Initiative, added, “Whereas the announcement of a brand new fund for creating nations echoes the lengthy standing calls for for holding the fossil gas trade accountable, it should not function a free cross for continued extraction of fuel, oil and coal. The fossil gas trade has triggered the local weather disaster and should be adequately penalized to pay for the transition and local weather damages.”

Establishing the fund at COP29 does characterize a primary try inside the UN local weather negotiations to hyperlink fossil gas producing nations and industries — which produce the majority of the world’s greenhouse fuel emission — with a duty to assist poor nations pay for the results they face from the local weather disaster. Azerbaijan is in search of a minimal of $1 billion from not less than 10 nations and large firms to capitalize the brand new fund. It will likely be headquartered in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, and its overseeing board might be made up of representatives from the contributors. It’ll function independently of current multilateral growth banks because the World Financial institution and the Worldwide Financial Fund.

Bronwen Tucker mentioned, “Polluters should pay for his or her local weather crimes on the dimensions of trillions, not with a $1 billion voluntary fund that offers Large Oil resolution making powers. Fossil gas pursuits have knowingly and systematically blocked, delayed and undermined mandatory local weather options and shouldn’t have a seat on the desk.” Azerbaijan has not but been particular about its personal contribution to the fund, although it has pledged to make one. No different nations have but signed as much as contribute to the fund.

The fund is not going to put money into any fossil fuels, together with fuel. Any income generated by the fund, comparable to from investing in renewable power, might be plowed again into the fund so there might be no alternative for profit-taking by personal sector buyers and governments. Bob Ward, a coverage director on the Grantham Analysis Institute on Local weather Change and the Surroundings on the London College of Economics, warns, “The Local weather Finance Motion Fund might be thought to be local weather washing whether it is supposed to alleviate the stress to part out oil, coal and fuel.”

Simon Stiell, the UN local weather chief, who has been visiting his dwelling in Grenada the place the homes of relations have been severely broken by Hurricane Beryl, known as on all nations to supply stronger plans to chop emissions, and to help the poor nations worst hit by the local weather disaster. “The importance of this [COP] course of is that it’s humanity’s finest hope of fixing the local weather disaster, reaching decarbonization and constructing local weather resilience. This course of does ship outcomes, as we have now seen.”

Azerbaijan & COP 29

Actually, Simon? The endless string of COP conferences over the previous 28 years have made no extra distinction to the wrestle to maintain the Earth liveable for people than a pisshole in  the snow. They usually entice extra fossil gas shills and lobbyists than delegates and wind up being a celebration of an oil and methane financial system that threatens us all. And to not put too superb some extent on it, Azerbaijan itself is a shining monument to the harmful energy of fossil fuels. The Caspian Sea — as soon as a pristine physique of water — is now a festering sinkhole of sludge, because of a long time of fossil gas extraction. Having Azerbaijan comply with Dubai because the host nation for this yr’s COP is an insult to everybody who needs to see actual motion taken to restrict world overheating.

Why can we even trouble with these COP conferences that are themselves little greater than greenwashing? After COP28 in Dubai, response was decidedly pessimistic. Writing within the Washington Publish, Shannon Osaka mentioned, “The issue with each nation’s promise to part out fossil fuels is that no person is de facto planning for a fossil gas phaseout.” In different phrases, everyone seems to be paying lip service to the thought expressed by the delegates in Dubai, whereas speeding full pace forward to extract each molecule of coal, oil, or methane that also lies hidden beneath the Earth.