Sessions resume after fire in the event structure; final document is the target of protest from 30 countries for not drawing up a roadmap to end the use of oil and coal
This Friday (21) begins its last official day of climate negotiations with a strong division over fossil energy, after a fire inside the headquarters forced the evacuation of thousands of participants and the suspension of meetings the day before.
The enclosure in the so-called City Park, built especially for the occasion, suffered a fire that damaged part of the national pavilions area, close to the entrance. Brazilian authorities have not yet announced the cause of the flames, which pierced the canvas roof. Twenty people received medical attention due to smoke poisoning.
The plenary sessions resume this Friday, the date on which COP30 should end with the participation of almost 200 countries and around 43,000 accredited people.
This is the first COP held in the Amazon, whose mascot is Curupira, a guardian of the forests for some indigenous people, with a mane of hair in the shape of flames.
After the fire, the Brazilian presidency of the event asked in a joint message that delegates return to the negotiating table in a spirit of determination and solidarity.
Fossil energies
But consensus still seems to be a long way off.
The Brazilian presidency of COP30 published this Friday, as desired by around 30 countries. The word “fossils” does not even appear in the main text of the commitment.
The European Union (EU) said it was “disappointed” with this proposal. “This is by no means close to the ambition we need for (climate change) mitigation. We are disappointed with the current text on the table,” EU climate commissioner Wopke Hoestra said in a statement to AFP.
France denounced the “incomprehensible omission” of fossil energy.
“This is an important and absolutely central topic at the COP, but it is a topic that divides many countries. There are many producers, many consumers and many concerned about the cost of this transition”, he told CNN Brazil the president of the COP, from Lago.
Thirty countries asked for the inclusion of a roadmap to abandon fossil energy, according to a letter released by the Colombian delegation. “We are deeply concerned about the current proposal, which is to accept or reject,” write Colombia, France, the United Kingdom, Germany and other countries in the letter provided by Colombia. France and Belgium confirmed their signature.
“We have to be honest: in its current form, the proposal does not meet the minimum conditions for a credible result at this COP”, continue the countries. “We cannot support a text that does not include a roadmap for a fair, orderly and equitable transition away from fossil fuels.”
The production of oil, coal and gas, largely responsible for global warming, returned strongly to the debate in Belém, despite being a topic that seemed impossible to return to since a first call at COP28 in Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, two years ago.
The president of Brazil, Luiz Inácio da Silva, in turn, defends the creation of a “road map” to accelerate the energy transition and ensure that global warming can be limited to 1.5ºC.
However, according to a negotiator who spoke on condition of anonymity, China, India, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria and Russia categorically reject this proposal.
‘Anywhere’
COP30, which began on November 10, suffered several incidents.
The Brazilian COP presidency last week received a complaint from the UN, after an indigenous group forced the security device during a protest. In the document, the head of the UN for Climate, Simon Stiell, complained about security, but also about water leaks, which, according to the Brazilian government, have been corrected.
“The operational difficulties just before the COP suggested that an incident of this type could happen,” he told AFP a source from the organization, who did not want to be identified.
The Minister of Tourism, Celso Sabino, came to the defense of his country. The fire “could happen anywhere on the planet”, he highlighted.
*With information from AFP
Published by Nícolas Robert
