COP28 Meeting in Dubai Centers on 'Phase Out' or 'Phase Down' of Fossil Fuels
2023-12-06
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1The world's climate negotiators are meeting this month in Dubai for the COP28 United Nations Climate Conference.
2Activists, scientists and U.N. officials want the representatives to make plans to "phase out" the use of fossil fuels as an energy source.
3However, some representatives are using the term "phase down" instead.
4To "phase out" means to end something slowly through a planned series of steps.
5But to "phase down" means to slowly reduce the use of something instead of stopping completely.
6The concern, say climate scientists, is that the time for a "phase down" is over.
7Bill Hare is a climate scientist and the CEO of Climate Analytics.
8He said unless the result of the meeting is a "phase out," there is unlikely to be an "improvement in temperature."
9The COP28 meeting runs until December 12.
10During last year's COP27 event, negotiators agreed to plans that would limit global temperature warming to only 2.4 degrees Celsius over pre-industrial times.
11But a recently updated report found that the world is going in the wrong direction.
12The report, called the Climate Action Tracker, found that the world is on target for a 2.5-degree rise.
13It added that several nations, including Indonesia and Iran, have increased their use of fossil fuels.
14These increases are part of why the world is warming more quickly.
15Adnan Amin is the leader of COP28. He is former Director-General of the UN's International Renewable Energy Agency.
16He said the negotiators have so far produced a "pretty comprehensive" draft for a central outline of the meeting.
17The draft is called the Global Stocktake. He said he expects a "very intensive engagement process" between the negotiators during the next week of meetings.
18The draft is 24 pages long and covers a number of issues.
19However the greatest concern is the choice between a "phasedown of ... coal power" or "an orderly and just phase out of fossil fuels."
20Amin noted that, coming into the event, he did not believe it would be possible to even include "phase out" language in the document.
21He said some countries are not prepared to agree to a phase out because they require fossil fuel energy to grow their economies.
22Critics and activists note that some countries signed on to last year's plan but moved forward with expanding their use of fossil fuels.
23Ana Missirliu is an analyst at the New Climate Institute.
24She said she has seen "worrying announcements" in the last year.
25She pointed to the host nation of COP28 - the United Arab Emirates - announcing a $150-billion expansion of its oil and gas industry.
26She also pointed to expansions in the United States, Britain and Saudi Arabia.
27Several protest groups are in Dubai.
28They are holding up signs in "action zones" near the UN event.
29The protesters are asking the representatives to push for a "phase out."
30Although there may be some nations pushing for language that does not require a "phase out," many countries are planning to increase their use of renewable energy.
31More than 100 countries say they will triple their ability to create clean energy and double their energy efficiency by the end of the decade.
32I'm Dan Friedell.
1The world's climate negotiators are meeting this month in Dubai for the COP28 United Nations Climate Conference. Activists, scientists and U.N. officials want the representatives to make plans to "phase out" the use of fossil fuels as an energy source. 2However, some representatives are using the term "phase down" instead. 3To "phase out" means to end something slowly through a planned series of steps. But to "phase down" means to slowly reduce the use of something instead of stopping completely. 4The concern, say climate scientists, is that the time for a "phase down" is over. 5Bill Hare is a climate scientist and the CEO of Climate Analytics. He said unless the result of the meeting is a "phase out," there is unlikely to be an "improvement in temperature." 6The COP28 meeting runs until December 12. During last year's COP27 event, negotiators agreed to plans that would limit global temperature warming to only 2.4 degrees Celsius over pre-industrial times. 7But a recently updated report found that the world is going in the wrong direction. The report, called the Climate Action Tracker, found that the world is on target for a 2.5-degree rise. It added that several nations, including Indonesia and Iran, have increased their use of fossil fuels. These increases are part of why the world is warming more quickly. 8Adnan Amin is the leader of COP28. He is former Director-General of the UN's International Renewable Energy Agency. He said the negotiators have so far produced a "pretty comprehensive" draft for a central outline of the meeting. The draft is called the Global Stocktake. He said he expects a "very intensive engagement process" between the negotiators during the next week of meetings. 9The draft is 24 pages long and covers a number of issues. However the greatest concern is the choice between a "phasedown of ... coal power" or "an orderly and just phase out of fossil fuels." 10Amin noted that, coming into the event, he did not believe it would be possible to even include "phase out" language in the document. He said some countries are not prepared to agree to a phase out because they require fossil fuel energy to grow their economies. 11Critics and activists note that some countries signed on to last year's plan but moved forward with expanding their use of fossil fuels. 12Ana Missirliu is an analyst at the New Climate Institute. She said she has seen "worrying announcements" in the last year. She pointed to the host nation of COP28 - the United Arab Emirates - announcing a $150-billion expansion of its oil and gas industry. She also pointed to expansions in the United States, Britain and Saudi Arabia. 13Several protest groups are in Dubai. They are holding up signs in "action zones" near the UN event. The protesters are asking the representatives to push for a "phase out." 14Although there may be some nations pushing for language that does not require a "phase out," many countries are planning to increase their use of renewable energy. More than 100 countries say they will triple their ability to create clean energy and double their energy efficiency by the end of the decade. 15I'm Dan Friedell. 16Dan Friedell adapted this story for Learning English based on a report by the Associated Press. 17____________________________________________________ 18Words in This Story 19phase (out or down) -v. to introduce something slowly 20global -adj. having to do with the whole world 21comprehensive -adj. including many, or most, things 22draft -n. writing or a document that is the first version of something, not the final 23engagement -n. the act or state of being involved with something 24analyst -n. a person who studies a topic and then makes a recommendation 25triple -v. to increase something by 300 percent or three times 26efficiency -n. the ability to do something or produce something without wasting resources 27We want to hear from you. Do you think COP28 will produce a clear plan that nations will follow?