The absence of a ‘phase-out’ let petrostates off the hook, but there are other ways to end the era of coal, oil and gas
Petrostates fought fiercely against the call from 130 nations at Cop28 for a fossil fuel phase-out. That is because they are engaged in a colossal fossil fuel phase-up, already working on double the extraction that the planet can cope with.
It’s happening: the city of Albuquerque (population 1 million) is permanently eliminating public bus fares, becoming the largest US city to embrace this critical step toward racial and economic equity. A coalition headed by Together for Brothers – a community-organizing and power-building group led by and for young men of color – made the victory possible.
The UN climate summit—hosted this year by the United Arab Emirates, a major oil producer—begins Thursday in Dubai. It will review the progress on countries’ 2015 Paris Agreement commitments toward limiting rising global temperature to 2 C, preferably 1.5 C, above pre-industrial levels. It will also define what new commitments countries can agree on to avoid planetary catastrophe.
“This (IEA) report is a stunning rebuke to all the Canadian oil executives and politicians claiming that they can simply slap on some government-funded carbon capture and continue with business as usual in a world rapidly weaning itself off of oil and gas," said Keith Stewart, senior energy strategist for Greenpeace Canada, in an email Thursday.
