Sustainable Switch: Climate Focus-Plastic talks struggle
Nov 29 -By Edson Caldas
Newsletter Editor, Reuters Digital
edson.caldas@thomsonreuters.com
Hello!
I'm covering for my colleague Sharon Kimathi as she takes a well-deserved post-COP29 break. She will be back on Thursday.
In the meantime, let's talk about plastic.
South Korea is hosting delegates from about 175 countries this week at the fifth and final meeting of the U.N. Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee to agree globally binding rules to rein in plastic pollution.
Several participants have voiced frustration at the pace of the talks, amid disagreements over procedure, multiple proposals and some efforts to return to ground covered in the past.
The chairman of the meeting issued a document outlining measures that could furnish the basis of a pact, as a Dec. 1 deadline looms. This featured ideas such as a global list of plastic products to be managed and a financial mechanism to help developing countries act.
It mentioned, but did not confirm, some of the most divisive tasks, such as whether the treaty will set a global target to cut output of primary plastic polymers or skip it altogether.
We will keep following the latest on Reuters.com.
Climate Buzz
1. International court to begin hearings that may shape global climate litigation
The International Court of Justice next week will kick off hearings on the legal obligation of countries to fight climate change and the consequences for states contributing to global warming. Experts say the ICJ’s eventual opinion will likely be cited in climate change-driven lawsuits in courts from Europe to Latin America and beyond.
2. Landslides in Indonesia's Sumatra kill at least 29
Indonesian rescuers are searching for survivors buried in three cars and a bus at the base of a cliff after flash floods and landslides in the North Sumatra province. Torrential rain for the past week has triggered flash floods and landslides in four different districts, Indonesia's disaster agency has said.
3. Fifteen dead and more than 100 missing in east Uganda landslide
A landslide triggered by heavy rains buried dozens of homes across several villages in eastern Uganda, the prime minister's office and police said. Uganda has been hit by unusually heavy rainfall since October that has led to flooding and landslides in some areas.
4. Thousands evacuated as heavy rain continues in Malaysia
Three people have died and more than 80,000 have been evacuated from floods across several Malaysian states, as officials warned the monsoon season could bring the country's worst flooding in a decade. The government has deployed more than 82,000 security personnel as well as rescue boats, four-wheel drive vehicles and helicopters.
5. China scientists rush to climate-proof potatoes
China is the world's biggest producer of potatoes, which are crucial to global food security because of their high yield relative to other staple crops. But they are particularly vulnerable to heat, and climate change is pushing temperatures to dangerous new heights. This photo essay features scientists trying to solve that problem.
What to Watch
Cuba, which once produced millions of tons of sugar, expects an output of just 300,000 metric tons in 2025, as it struggles to find the resources to plant cane in a bitter symbol of agriculture's decline on the Caribbean island. Click here to learn more.
Climate Commentary
The U.S. indictment of Gautam Adani has thrown a spotlight onto the rolling risks of India’s solar industry, says Reuters Breakingviews columnist Shritama Bose.
Sustainability-related professions are scrambling to fill the 'extreme gap' in digital skills to harness the power of artificial intelligence, writes Catherine Early for The Ethical Corporation Magazine.
Corporate executives are seeing complications from more fund democracy, according to U.S. Sustainable Business Correspondent Ross Kerber.
Climate Lens
Pakistan's second-largest city of Lahore has been shrouded in a dense layer of hazardous smog for much of November, intensifying health concerns. Across the border in India, New Delhi faced a similar battle. The thick smog covering swathes of northern India and Pakistan was distinctly visible from satellite imagery.
Number of the Week
99%
Some of the world's biggest steelmakers still relied on fossil fuels for that much of their energy over 2022-2023. A survey of 18 leading firms showed that many are falling behind in the shift towards low-carbon production.
Sustainable Switch Climate Focus was edited by Alexander Smith
In India and Pakistan, a shared blight: smog PM2.5 peaks in Lahore and Delhi in November 2024 https://reut.rs/49quKTn
Latest News
Disclaimer: The XM Group entities provide execution-only service and access to our Online Trading Facility, permitting a person to view and/or use the content available on or via the website, is not intended to change or expand on this, nor does it change or expand on this. Such access and use are always subject to: (i) Terms and Conditions; (ii) Risk Warnings; and (iii) Full Disclaimer. Such content is therefore provided as no more than general information. Particularly, please be aware that the contents of our Online Trading Facility are neither a solicitation, nor an offer to enter any transactions on the financial markets. Trading on any financial market involves a significant level of risk to your capital.
All material published on our Online Trading Facility is intended for educational/informational purposes only, and does not contain – nor should it be considered as containing – financial, investment tax or trading advice and recommendations; or a record of our trading prices; or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instruments; or unsolicited financial promotions to you.
Any third-party content, as well as content prepared by XM, such as: opinions, news, research, analyses, prices and other information or links to third-party sites contained on this website are provided on an “as-is” basis, as general market commentary, and do not constitute investment advice. To the extent that any content is construed as investment research, you must note and accept that the content was not intended to and has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such, it would be considered as marketing communication under the relevant laws and regulations. Please ensure that you have read and understood our Notification on Non-Independent Investment. Research and Risk Warning concerning the foregoing information, which can be accessed here.
