As the energy ministers of the powerful G7 club of industrialised countries gathered in Rome, Greenpeace Italy activists greeted them with a giant thermometer, urging them to further speed up the transition from fossil fuels to clean energy and to reject the US administration’s attempted roll back on climate action. The activists were received by Italian Energy minister Carlo Calenda, head of Energy G7, and delivered him a letter asking for more ambition in the fight of climate change.
“These are exciting times. Renewable energies like solar and wind have made a global breakthrough and are ready to replace our dirty old energy systems. All these ministers now need to do is to let it happen - by removing the remaining barriers from accelerated clean energy transition, and by rejecting the attempted sabotage of those wanting to hold us back”, said Luca Iacoboni, Climate and Energy campaigner at Greenpeace Italy.
Last year marked an astonishing turning point for coal, the largest single source of CO2 emissions, with three of the G7 countries announcing dates by when they would phase out coal completely. Meanwhile, retirement of old coal plants continued in the U.S. and the EU, constructions of new coal plants were frozen in more than 100 sites in China and India and globally the world saw a dramatic 62 % decline in new construction starts.
“The future is renewable. Yet, some are trying to block efforts from getting there. US President Trump has just announced a roll-back of US federal climate policies in order to please his fossil fuel cronies. But these attempts are doomed to fail. We are here to remind the G7 to stick to the commitments they’ve made to their people and to the world in the Paris Agreement. This means accelerating the transition to clean and safe renewable energy for all”, said Iacoboni.
According to the White House, President Trump is aiming to announce by the G7 Summit next month whether the US remains in or leaves the Paris Agreement.
“Instead of just sitting there and waiting for what Trump may or may not decide, the Italian government should now make its own move. Announcing a clear coal phase-out date for Italy too, as part of our new national energy strategy, along with new actions for smart and clean energy, would show the kind of leadership the world is now expecting”, said Iacoboni.
Of the G7, France, UK and Canada have already announced coal phase-outs (by 2023, 2025, and 2030 respectively) and Germany's climate plan de facto implies one. Italy doesn't have a decision on a phase-out, but the prospects for any new coal plants seems unlikely. That leaves Japan and the US as the only G7 countries trying to still build new coal plants, but the economics aren’t on their side. On the contrary, the retirement of coal power plants will likely continue in the US, due to market fundamentals, and in Japan too projects are being cancelled.
Pictures here: http://media.greenpeace.org/shoot/27MZIFJJE4KZC
Report:
Boom and Bust - Tracking the Global Coal Plant Pipeline. CoalSwarm, Greenpeace USA, and Sierra Club. March 2017
http://endcoal.org/global-coal-plant-tracker/reports/boom-bust-2017/