Brazil's Environment Minister Marina Silva called on all countries to have the courage to tackle the challenge of phasing out fossil fuels, calling the development of the roadmap an “ethical” response to the climate crisis.
However, she stressed that the process would be voluntary for those governments that wish to participate and would be “self-determined.”
This issue is one of the most controversial at present. KS30 Summit in Brazil, where countries debate whether and how such a roadmap can be discussed. As the host country, Brazil is carefully neutral about what may be included on the official agenda.
Silva praised the potential of the road map without committing Brazil to its implementation. She said: “When we have a pretty bleak place or environment, it's good that we have a map. But the map doesn't force us to travel or climb.”
In an exclusive interview with the Guardian, she added: “This map is a response to our scientific knowledge. [of the climate crisis]. This is the ethical answer.”
Many countries meet in Belem for UN Climate Summitwhich is entering its second week, wants to figure out how a global transition away from fossil fuels might work. They want to build on the historic resolution adopted two years ago at Cop28 in Dubai to “transition away from fossil fuels”.
There was no timeline attached to this promise or details of how it could be achieved, and although it was passed unanimously, some countries have since tried to disavow the promise. Attempts last year to clarify what this would mean in practice were blocked by opposition from oil states on Cop29 in Azerbaijan, which is heavily dependent on oil and gas exports.
As a result, there was no mention of the fossil fuel transition in the Cop29 results.
For these reasons, Brazil is afraid of calls some countries have set the transition to Cop30 agenda. But Silva worked hard behind the scenes to ensure that the promise could be discussed at the summit. off the official agenda.
She defeated Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who three times publicly mentioned the need to “move away from dependence on fossil fuels.” summit of world leaders leading up to Cop30and at the opening of the conference.
“We know that at some point this had to be brought forward because this is the only way to solve the problem at the root,” Marina Silva said. “We understand that this is not easy and we cannot sell false hopes. It is a brave thing to raise this topic, and I hope that [to see] this is the courage of everyone, producers and consumers.”
Brazil did not initiate the call for a phase-out because it was done at COP28, she said. Instead, it allowed discussions to proceed in accordance with the wishes of some countries. “We know that these topics are sensitive. We will provide an opportunity to discuss them,” she said.
There is not enough time at COP30 to draw up a roadmap, a process Silva said could take several years as many countries faced complex challenges related to fossil fuel dependence or wanted to use fossil fuel revenues to finance their development.
“Brazil is bringing this up because Brazil is both a producer and a consumer,” she said. “But Brazil is different because Brazil, if it wants it, should not depend on fossil fuels. We must understand that there are some countries whose economies depend on fossil fuels and do not have easy solutions, and there are others in which fossil fuels are the basis of their economy.
“To be fair is to be fair to everyone, but the basic, primordial justice is not to be unfair to the planet, because it is our home.”
If this promise receives enough support, Cop30 could create a forum where the process of developing a roadmap for the phase-out can begin.
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The process will require dialogue with all countries that are signatories to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and criteria for how the process will unfold, Silva said. “Once we have the criteria, the governance structure can be developed; Once we have a strategy and we create safeguards to establish trust in the process, I believe that with these elements we can turn good ideas into steps that are clearer and more specific.”
There is no guarantee that the proposal to begin drawing up a roadmap will be get approved on Cop30even if it does not require the formal consent of the conference, which is based on consensus and can be hijacked by special interests. Policing experts told the Guardian they believe such a proposal could gain support in around 60 countries, but at least 40 are believed to be opposed. 195 countries are represented at the negotiations.
Leo Roberts, program manager at think tank E3G, said: “Even though fossil fuels are the main cause of climate change, they are one of the most contentious issues in the UN negotiations, so to see a large group of countries openly supporting a path to a global phase-out is in itself quite ground-breaking.
“Simply put, there is no path to a world in which warming remains below 1.5°C and in which countries cannot discuss phasing out fossil fuels.”
Panama's climate negotiator Juan Carlos Monterrey said: “We really need this language in this conversation. It's pretty stupid to talk about anything other than this when fossil fuels are the real issue.”
Negotiations continued Saturday on four outstanding issues that have not yet been included on the official agenda: trade, transparency, finance and how to resolve problems. gap between countries' planned emission reductions and those that must comply with the temperature limit of 1.5°C.
Cop30 president Andre Correa do Lago promised to prepare a “note” that would address these issues after consultations ongoing since Monday proved inconclusive. He called on countries to accept “motorTo“spirit” meaning the spirit of cooperation and constructive discussion.
Work on other substantive issues, including adaptation to the impacts of the climate crisis, a just transition for those affected by the transition to a low-carbon economy and how to build institutional capacity in developing countries, has been productive, the president said.
Brazil's chief negotiator Liliam Chagas said the technical part of the COP process was nearing completion and the political phase was beginning, when ministers with the power to change their countries' positions would arrive.
