The Cop26 climate talks were long past their official deadline of 6pm on the Friday, but there were strong hopes that the big issues had been settled. A deal was tantalisingly close.
The “package” on offer was imperfect - before countries even turned up in Glasgow they were meant to have submitted plans to cut global carbon output by nearly half by 2030 to limit global heating to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels. Although most had done so, the plans were not strong enough and analysis found they would lead to a disastrous 2.4C of heating.
The gap between targets and the emissions cuts that scientists say are needed had been known before the talks. What was crucial in Glasgow was to find a way to closing it, which involved forcing some swift revisions. Finally, after two weeks of wrangling, a "ratchet” had been settled, with countries agreeing to return next year, and the year after, with amendments.
The Cop26 president, Alok Sharma, approached the podium, ready to push through an agreement between nearly 200 countries. But there was a last-minute hitch. What followed reduced Sharma almost to tears. China and India wanted to reopen a vital clause that enjoined countries to "phase out" coal-fired power generation. No dates were given for the phase-out, and no more commitment than "accelerating efforts towards the phase-out of unabated coal power and inefficient fossil fuel subsidies”.
Abandoning coal, the dirtiest fossil fuel, is essential to staying within 1.5C. The International Energy Agency has said 40% of the world's existing 8,500 coal-fired power plants must be closed by 2030 and no new ones built to stay within the 1.5C limit.
Denne historien er fra November 19, 2021-utgaven av The Guardian Weekly.
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Denne historien er fra November 19, 2021-utgaven av The Guardian Weekly.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Starlink's conquest of the Amazon leaves Brazil in a dilemma
The helicopter swooped into one of the most inaccessible corners of the Amazon rainforest. Brazilian special forces commandos leaped from it into the caiman-inhabited waters below.
Dalai Lama's mountain town feels the strain of tourist boom
SUVs and saloon cars pass slowly along McLeod Ganj's narrow one-way Jogiwara Road, blaring horns at pedestrians and scooter riders and playing loud music.
'I am all the world' The brutal rule of a West Bank settler
Palestinians tell ofblacklisted Yakov's reign across the Jabal Salman valley and heisjust one of many violent bosses
Stormy waters New flashpoint emerges in South China Sea dispute
Hopes that tensions in the South China Sea might ease have been short lived.
'Justice delayed' Why trust in public inquiries to bring closure is fading
After the final report of the Grenfell fire inquiry was published, Hisam Choucair, who lost six family members in the blaze, said: \"We did not ask for this inquiry... It's delayed the justice my family deserves.\"
Celeriac soup with almond pangrattato
I'm not ashamed to say that as soon as September hits, my stick blender comes out. Just as I embrace salads when the clocks go forward in the UK, I wholeheartedly throw myself into soup season once the summer holidays end. Autumn is approaching in the northern hemisphere and I'm ready with my ladle. Celeriac is one of my favourite soup heroes, because it gives the creamiest, silkiest finish with little effort. You don't have to make the almond pangrattato, but it is a wonderful addition.
Are smoke signals telling me to make an oil change in the kitchen?
Should you that is, not can you) cook with extra-virgin olive oil? Antonio, Atlanta, Georgia, US
Going underground
A darkly humorous encounter between an American spy-cop and the members ofan eco-commune she is hired to infiltrate
All work and no play
Hard Graft, a powerfulnew London exhibition, focuses onworkers’ exploitation, from the ruined hands ofa washerwoman to mothers forced to sell their bodies
What the princess and the shaman tell us about hereditary privilege
It should have been an Instagram-perfect wedding image, but it turned out to be something more embarrassing.