Germany’s energy and climate minister said on Thursday that a group of seven rich countries could take the lead in ending the use of coal, a heavy fossil fuel pollutant that is responsible for one-fifth of the world’s man-made greenhouse gas emissions. Senior G-7 officials are holding a three-day meeting in Berlin to try to agree on common goals for the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy, the researchers said. which is urgently needed to prevent climate change.
“The G-7 could probably play a specific pioneering role in continuing to phase out coal for electricity generation and decarbonizing the transport system,” said Robert Habeck, Germany’s energy and climate minister. G-7 members Britain, France, and Italy have set a period to stop burning coal for electricity in the coming years; Germany and Canada want 2030. Japan wants more time, while the Biden administration has set the goal of ending the use of fossil fuels for electricity generation in the United States by 2035. Setting a typical timeframe will put pressure on other major polluters to honour the compromise agreement reached at last year’s UN climate summit, at which countries only promised to “reduce coal instead.” “Remove it—without a specific date.”
Habeck said the issue could be discussed after the G-7 leadership summit in Elmau, Germany, next month and then after a meeting of a group of 20 leading and emerging economies later this year. Getting the G-20 to join the ambitious goals set by some of the most advanced economies is important as countries like China, India, and Indonesia remain increasingly dependent on coal.
There is also pressure on rich countries to increase their financial assistance to poor countries ahead of the UN climate summit this year in Egypt. Developing countries, in particular, want a clear promise to receive money to cover the losses and damage caused by climate change. Rich countries reject this idea for fear of having to respond to costly disasters caused by global warming.
Habeck, a member of the Green Party, said Germany had pledged to comply with the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, despite attempts by new fossil fuel sources—including the United States—to rebuild Germany to reduce energy purchases from Russia. “What we’re seeing so far is accelerating environmental change,” he said.
The Berlin Assembly will also work to reach agreements to stop car engines, increase funding for biodiversity programs, protect the oceans and reduce plastic pollution.