“There is no reason for the UK reducing the quantity of coal we burn when we then trundle to Africa and line our pockets by encouraging African states to use more of it.”
That was UK Pm Boris Johnson's message to African heads of state gathered working in london now to speak investments.
As the UK prepares to drag from the EU, it has turned a number of its attention to the African continent, where it intends to compete for business.
Johnson promised the UK would end all direct support for coal mining and coal-fired power plants overseas. Instead, he pledged to assist African countries “extract and use gas and oil within the cleanest, greenest way possible” while “turbocharging our support for solar, wind and hydro”.
In recent years, the UK had largely stopped financing coal mines and coal-fired power plants abroad but continues to spend billions in supporting oil and gas projects. About lb2bn worth of oil and gas deals in Africa were announced soon after the summit.
Environmentalists blasted hypocrisy, warning the announcement was “a stop by the ocean” compared with ongoing support for foreign oil and gas projects.
Carbon sinks
In other UK news, a fifth from the country's agricultural land needs to be released for climate mitigation if it is to attain carbon neutrality by 2050, government advisers have said.
That means planting trees, restoring peatlands and soils and growing bioenergy crops with carbon capture and storage. Use of carbon-intensive food such as beef, lamb and diary also needs to be reduced with a fifth and thus does food waste.
The report comes as britain's first climate citizen assembly is a result of meet a few days ago to thrash out solutions to attain the net zero emissions goal by 2050.
Ireland and France also have used citizens assembly to inspire climate policies and Spain could soon follow suit.
'Prophets of doom'
Climate change was the topic in Davos. Greta Thunberg reminded the world's rich and robust from the science, warning the fir.5C goal risked slipping out of reach because the world rapidly consumes its remaining carbon budget to limit warming underneath the Paris deal temperature target.
“We don't have to lower emissions, our emissions have to stop,” she said.
Donald Trump lamented missing Thunberg's speech. There was no eye roll this time but the US president hit back at climate activists, denouncing them as “prophets of doom” because he boasted concerning the economy. Expect much more of this within the run-up to November’s presidential election.
Gullies
In Nigeria, where global warming is causing more serious downpours, land is opening up under people's feet, swallowing homes, farms, businesses and roads.
The erosion crisis is exacerbated by more frequent landslides and it has been estimated to cost as much as $100 million every year. Up to 90% of agricultural yield happen to be lost consequently in some areas.
Linus Unah reports from Nigeria.
Icy ruling
Norwegian intends to drill for additional gas and oil in the Arctic do not violate people's rights for a healthy environment.
The ruling by the Oslo Court of Appeals endorsed a previous court decision vindicating the government's providing of oil exploration licences in the Arctic. However, a legal court acknowledged that emissions from burning Norwegian non-renewable fuels abroad should be included in assessing environmental damage.
Greenpeace, which brought the lawsuit, said hello would go ahead and take case towards the Supreme Court.
Quick hits
- Erosion crisis swallows homes and livelihoods in Nigeria
- UK to stop funding coal abroad but will help Africa with oil, gas
- Thunberg says only 'eight years left' to avert 1.5°C warming
- Trump criticises 'prophets of doom' in Davos and touts fossil fuels
- UK must cut land use emissions by sixty-six per cent to satisfy 2050 goal, advisers warn
- Oslo court backs Arctic oil exploration in defeat for environmentalists
And in climate conversations
- 2023 may be 'last opportunity' to limit warming to 1.5°C
