Monday, December 04, 2023

(COP28) Initiative to protect glaciers launched at COP28 China Pavilion


Source: Xinhua
Editor: huaxia
2023-12-03 

DUBAI, Dec. 3 (Xinhua) -- An initiative to protect the world's glaciers was launched here on Sunday at the China Pavilion of the COP28 climate change conference.

At the side event of COP28, or the 28th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, delegates and scientists shared their views on the risks of melting glaciers and ways to slow down that process.

A project named "Memory of Glaciers: Global Exploration Initiative" was launched to step up research and protection of glaciers as well as raise public awareness.

Glaciers bear witness to the history of climate change on the planet, and melting glaciers will bring a series of risks aside from rising sea levels, delegates said.

Potential risks will include damage to high mountain ecosystems, increased hazards of landslides and floods, as well as losses of tourism and cultural assets, delegates added.

Measures that need to be taken include limiting global warming through reducing greenhouse gas emissions and enhancing adaptation strategies which can help reduce hazardous impacts. ■

India and China opt out as 118 nations commit to tripling global renewable energy at COP28

04-12-2023 | 

Although China and India have expressed endorsement for the threefold increase in renewable energy by 2030, neither of them formally supported the comprehensive pledge on Saturday


India and China, two major economies and leading coal consumers, chose not to join a pledge made by 118 nations at the UN’s climate summit (COP28) on Saturday. The pledge aimed to triple the global capacity for renewable energy generation to at least 11,000 GW and double the average annual rate of energy efficiency by 2030.

Despite India's previous commitment to tripling global renewable energy capacity during its G20 presidency, both India and China refrained from formally endorsing the comprehensive pledge at COP28.

A total of 118 countries, including Japan, Australia, Canada, Chile, Brazil, Nigeria, and Barbados, supported the initiative to triple global renewable energy capacity by 2030 during the UN's climate talks. The primary goal of the pledge is to decrease reliance on fossil fuels in global energy production.

The commitment not only involves tripling clean power but also reducing the use of fossil fuels. This includes the phasing down of unabated coal power, aligning with global efforts to transition away from coal-based energy, and ceasing the financing of new coal-fired power plants.

Half of Malaysia’s bank likely to align with climate-supporting activities

December 4, 2023

BERNAMA – Malaysia is expecting to see at least half of new financing by the banks aligned with climate-supporting or transitioning activities by 2026, said Bank Negara Malaysia’s (BNM) Governor Datuk Abdul Rasheed Ghaffour.

He said there is currently growing focus and concrete climate actions taken by financial institutions in Malaysia and to date, the industry’s financial commitment stands at over USD43 billion for environmental, social and governance (ESG) purposes.

“That said, Malaysia cannot do this on its own. As stated in the National Energy Transition Roadmap (NETR), the government anticipates that Malaysia will require investments of about USD280 billion by 2050 to meet our energy transition needs,” Abdul Rasheed said in his opening address at Malaysia’s Climate Finance Day at the 28th Conference of Parties (COP28) in the United Arab Emirates.

He said that it is hoped that the Malaysian financial sector to play a key, vibrant role in mobilising capital to address the enormous climate financing needs of the world at large which is estimated at USD275 trillion by 2050.

“Our vision for Malaysia to facilitate and catalyse green finance flows for the betterment of the planet aligns closely with our aspiration of becoming the renewable energy hub for ASEAN, as well as to serve as an international gateway for Islamic finance.

“We see the opportunity for more innovative solutions such as blended finance to support a just and orderly transition. To illustrate, by combining concessional financing and commercial funding, blended finance can help increase the bankability of high-risk green and transition projects,” he said.

Abdul Rasheed said blended finance can also ease transition costs, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). “Being a nation blessed with unparalleled biodiversity, nature conservation holds paramount importance for Malaysia. Our rich ecosystems not only contribute to the global tapestry of life but also form the backbone of our economy and the livelihoods of many Malaysians,” he said.

S’pore and Paraguay close to signing agreement allowing bilateral carbon credit trade

The announcement comes after Paraguayan President Santiago Pena and Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean met on the sidelines of COP28. 
PHOTO: MCI

Cheryl Tan

DUBAI – Singapore is a step closer towards signing an agreement with Paraguay that would allow Singapore companies to purchase carbon credits from projects there to offset part of their carbon tax.

Both countries will sign the agreement in early 2024, which would potentially be Paraguay’s first such agreement and Singapore’s first with a country in Latin America, said Singapore’s National Climate Change Secretariat (NCCS) on Dec 3.

The agreement will enable the bilateral transfer of carbon credits that is aligned with Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, which sets out criteria and processes for carbon credit projects to be developed and traded.

The announcement comes after Paraguayan President Santiago Pena and Senior Minister and Coordinating Minister for National Security Teo Chee Hean met on the sidelines of the COP28 climate conference in Dubai.

Mr Teo said: “We are concluding negotiations on the implementation agreement which, when fully operationalised, will allow carbon credits to be traded between Singapore and Paraguay in line with the rulebook for Article 6 of the Paris Agreement.

“It underscores both countries’ belief in the potential of carbon markets to enable global climate ambition and achieve our climate targets through cooperation.”

Both countries will cooperate on a work programme to fully operationalise the Implementation Agreement, which can consist of exchanges of information and best practices, identification of potential projects, and mutual efforts to build capacities for Article 6 cooperation, said NCCS.

Paraguay’s Minister of Environment and Sustainable Development Rolando de Barros Barreto said: “We have laid the foundations for a bilateral agreement with the Republic of Singapore with the aim of advancing the country towards full sustainable development that benefits all Paraguayans.”

From 2024, Singapore’s carbon tax will increase from $5 per tonne currently to $25 per tonne. After the agreement with Paraguay is in place, companies in Singapore will be able to purchase carbon credits from projects there to meet up to 5 per cent of their carbon tax obligations.

Singapore has also substantively concluded similar implementation agreements on carbon credits cooperation with Ghana and Vietnam.

In the meantime, Temasek-owned investment platform GenZero is working on a carbon project involving restoring about 100,000ha of degraded land in Ghana, and growing cocoa trees sustainably in shaded farms to shield these plantations from potentially damaging climate impacts such as floods, heat stress and pests.

Ghana has a rich, diverse forest ecosystem and productive agricultural land, but this has been threatened by deforestation arising from agricultural expansion and logging.

Therefore, embarking on nature-based solutions could help the country with reforestation and remove the planet-warming gas from the atmosphere, which can generate carbon credits in the process.

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