World leaders at the G7 Summit hosted by the UK in Cornwall, south-west England, concluded on Sunday with a plan to be setting out tough climate action targets and a restriction of the use of coal and fossil fuels.
The leaders of the UK, the US, Canada, France, Germany Italy, Japan, alongside India, Australia, South Africa and South Korea met for the third and final day of the Summit in Carbis Bay, Cornwall, on Sunday.
To battle global warming, these countries agree to cut carbon emissions, including measures like “ending all unabated coal as soon as possible, ending almost all direct government support for the fossil fuel energy sector overseas and phasing out petrol and diesel cars.”
These are part of the plans to transform the financing of infrastructure projects in developing countries as part of measures to target climate change and preserve nature.
“Coal power generation is the single biggest cause of greenhouse gas emissions,” the seven nations stated in a singe statement, adding “continued global investment in unabated coal power generation is incompatible with keeping 1.5°C within reach.”
“We stress that international investments in unabated coal must stop now and we commit now to an end to new direct government support for unabated international thermal coal power generation by the end of 2021,” they said.
“We will focus on accelerating progress on electrification and batteries, hydrogen, carbon capture, usage and storage, zero emission aviation and shipping, and for those countries that opt to use it, nuclear power,” the communique said.
G7 leaders will commit to increase their contributions to international climate finance to meet the target USD 100 billion a year, which will help developing countries deal with the impacts of climate change and support sustainable, green growth.
“Protecting our planet is the most important thing we as leaders can do for our people. There is a direct relationship between reducing emissions, restoring nature, creating jobs and ensuring long-term economic growth,” said British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
“As democratic nations we have a responsibility to help developing countries reap the benefits of clean growth through a fair and transparent system. The G7 has an unprecedented opportunity to drive a global Green Industrial Revolution, with the potential to transform the way we live, he said.
The G7 is also expected to endorse a Nature Compact to stop and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030 including supporting the global target to conserve or protect at least 30 per cent of land and 30 per cent of ocean globally by the end of the decade.
