The Cop28climate summit on Wednesday approved a “historic” deal that would, for the first time, push nations to transition away from fossil fuels to avert the worst effects of climate change.
For the first time this deal, known as the Global Stocktake Agreement, directly addresses the use of fossil fuels, a key demand from many countries at this year’s talks.
It calls on countries to “transition away” from fossil fuels “in this critical decade”- a move which Irish transport minister Eamon Ryan has called “historic” though admitted it was not “perfect”.
He said: “It’s not the perfect text and there are ways we would do it better and differently. But by getting this agreement, it gives us the opportunity to take the next steps we need to make.”
Chairman of the Environmental Audit Committee Philip Dunne said: “The penny has dropped at Cop and all nations have agreed to move away from fossil fuels and to phase down the use of unabated coal power.
“While it’s disappointing there was not agreement to phase out fossil fuels, the final agreement recognises that the days of oil, gas and coal powering global economies are numbered.”
Corporate Cop28: How a defining moment for the climate has been taken over by fossil fuel executives
