COP26: Leaked document reveals nations lobbying the UN to change climate report
The leak has shown how some countries are trying to change a key climate change report to minimise impact of fossil fuels
By Grace Almond
A massive leak of documents has revealed how countries are trying to lobby the United Nations to minimise their findings in the upcoming UN climate report.
The International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) are working towards their upcoming Sixth Assessment Report, which will have a significant impact on the upcoming COP26 summit in Glasgow, as well as the new targets governments will have to meet.
Over 30,000 files have now revealed how the likes of Saudi Arabia, Japan and Australia have tried to urge members of the IPCC to minimise the need for nations to move away from the use of fossil fuels.
The damning documents, obtained by Greenpeace, also show a number of attempts to downplay fossil fuel impact, including by Brazil and Argentina, who have allegedly encouraged the deletion of messages promoting the climate benefits of a plant-based diets. Brazil and Argentina are two of the world’s biggest producers of beef.
Unearthed have reported that the document showed a senior Australian government official deny the claim that to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, coal-fired power stations must be phased out.
Better-known as the COP26 summit, the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties will be held in Glasgow between Oct. 31 and Nov. 12 2021. The purpose of the conference is to push governments forward in meeting the targets set at the Paris Agreement and to encourage international cooperation on meeting those targets.
Multiple nations have already caused frustration in the lead-up to the summit, with travel restrictions limiting the ability of delegates from some Pacific countries to attend the conference, despite the fact that they are some of the most at-risk countries in the world.
In addition, the Kremlin reported on Wednesday (Oct. 20) that Russian President Vladimir Putin will not attend the summit. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “Unfortunately, Putin will not fly to Glasgow,” asserting that climate change was “one of our foreign policy’s most important priorities”.
Scientists have said that five to 10 billion tonnes of CO2 need to be extracted from the Earth’s atmosphere every year, to meet climate change targets and make a significant impact on curbing the worst effects of climate change. Pupils at Stamford Welland Academy in Lincolnshire have captured carbon dioxide in a bottle to present to world leaders at the upcoming summit, inviting COP26 President Alok Sharma to receive it.
Prominent figures set to attend the COP26 summit include Boris Johnson, Sir David Attenborough, Greta Thunberg, The Queen and Pope Francis.