Posted
Germany says a failure to curb climate change could
cost the world "a lot more" than the trillions of dollars US President
Donald Trump has claimed he is saving by quitting the 2015 Paris accord.
Key points:
- Mr Trump says if the US remained in the Paris accord it "would be paying trillions of dollars"
- Germany says if land becomes uninhabitable due to climate change it will "trigger gigantic costs"
- UN climate talks are taking place in Poland
German Environment Minister Svenja Schulze said on Friday "if we let entire stretches of this planet become uninhabitable, then it will trigger gigantic costs".
Mr Trump said in an interview with Fox News that if the US had remained in the Paris accord "we would be paying trillions of dollars, trillions of dollars for nothing, and I wouldn't do that".
The Paris accord requires countries to reduce their emissions, something scientists say will involve a wholesale shift in their economies.
Rich countries have also committed themselves to providing financial support to poor nations to tackle global warming.
Mr Trump last year announced his intent to withdraw the US from the 2015 Paris deal to combat climate change, though the country cannot do so until after the 2020 presidential election.
Ms Schulze told reporters at UN climate talks in Poland that investing in developing technologies to protect the climate would give Germany "an enormous competitive advantage".
Negotiations are taking place at the climate meeting over the first comprehensive draft agreement to emerge after almost two weeks of talks.
Ministers and senior officials from almost 200 countries were due to hold further meetings on Friday before convening in plenary in the afternoon to address remaining differences.
Among the key pitfalls to emerge overnight was the question of how to establish a functioning international market in carbon credits and whether some countries should get money for damage already caused by climate change.
The meeting is meant to finalise the rulebook for the 2015 Paris climate agreement, provide assurances to poor nations on financial support for tackling global warming, and send a message that countries are committed to stepping up their efforts in the coming years.
AP
No comments:
Post a Comment