COP28: Infinite idiocy of net zero

True climate action demands the application of the “polluter pays” principle across the producer-consumer chain. Net Zero is a climate con that allows even the fossil fuel industry to declare itself sero emitter. This is because it only certified the manufacturing process and not the product.

?

K Yatish Rajawat and Dev Chandrasekhar

?

The COP28 climate summit in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, concluded yesterday after a tense period of extended negotiations, with the potential breakdown of talks looming, due to the wide differences between countries' positions on the future of oil, gas, and coal.? The COP28 statement shows? the heft the fossil fuel industry has over this environmental confabulation and the world’s future. Despite being the first COP where the term "fossil fuels" has been explicitly included in the resolution it has not done much.

Instead of clear phasing out of fossil fuels which are the largest emitter of emission a loose definition of transition has been adopted. But environment watchers and scientists should not be surprised. As has been its wont, Fossil Fuel Inc. continues to change, bend, and distort accepted definitions and norms relating to emissions and net zero and make a mockery of them.? Unfortunately, this mockery continues because a conspiracy of silence allows the fossil fuel industry to wipe itself green and even allows it to control the COP.?

Given that Dr Sultan Al Jaber, CEO of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), was the COP28 president there were more fossil fuel lobbyists at this conference than ever in the past. Expectedly, Dr Sultan of Jabberwocky has unleashed a new doublespeak in COP28: emissions can never be eliminated, but net zero can still be achieved. Yet, for anyone who does not hold any conflict of interest, the technical definition of net zero is simple, clear, and unambiguous: the elimination of all greenhouse emissions.?

On 2 December, the third day of the meeting, COP28 President Dr. Sultan Al Jaber announced the?Global Decarbonization Accelerator (GDA). The umbrella plan for the energy, industry, and transport sectors, which are collectively responsible for the bulk of global greenhouse gas emissions.

The 50 companies that produce over 40 percent of global oil signed the?Oil and Gas Decarbonization Charter (OGDC), which aims to eliminate the release of methane gas by 2030 by eliminating routine flaring and ensuring that all operations are net zero by 2050. 29 National Oil Companies (NOCs) have also signed on to this pledge. The sign-ons included ExxonMobil, Total Energies, BP, and Shell, alongside state energy companies Saudi Aramco and Adnoc. ?

Now, for some between-the-lines decoding: the GDA is voluntary and accounts for a mere 15 percent of total global emissions; the agreement to eliminate methane emissions and eliminate routine flaring by 2030 does not include the bulk of “fugitive” emissions from coal mines; the Hydrogen Declaration does not specify if the certifications will certify whether the hydrogen is made from renewable energy sources.?

It did not take long for the callouts to arrive. UN secretary-general António Guterres said the emissions reduction plans “clearly fall short of what is required”, that the pledge to reduce methane leaks from pipelines by 2030 is a “step in the right direction”, but also that the issue of eliminating emissions from fossil fuel consumption has not been addressed. Mr Guterres did not but should have, noted that the net zero promises by these companies is a fake.?

How are these fossil fuel companies to become net zero when, as producers of oil and gas, they are the biggest emitters? This is where technicality plays a role.?

Fossil fuel companies guarantee that their plants will become net zero. not their products. The simplest analogy to understand this is that a potassium cyanide-producing plant gets a good manufacturing practice (GMP) certification. Potassium cyanide is the most poisonous chemical made and GMP certification is typically sought by pharmaceutical companies. Now, the cyanide-producing plant claims based on the GMP certification that it is a pharmaceutical company. This is exactly what is happening with the net zero hypocrisy around the world. Production processes are being greenwashed but the end product remains polluting and hazardous. The silence of the many–this includes the mainstream news media and auditors–giving such certification ensures that these fossil fuel companies can make fallacious claims to be “green”. Unfortunately, the language of ’transitions’ is a loophole designed to allow the fossil fuel industry to continue to invest billions of dollars.

To cut to the chase, despite lofty commitments to net zero emissions by 2050, the world remains on a trajectory towards an irreversible climate catastrophe.

Worse, instead of calling out such blatant and brazen greenwashing. COP28 appears to have added some extra floors and layers of glossy paint to this skyscraper of hypocrisy.

At the heart of this disconnect lies the infinite hypocrisy of net zero–the notion that we can continue to pollute the planet while somehow offsetting our emissions through carbon capture and other mechanisms. While governments and corporations proclaim their dedication to net zero, fossil fuels continue to dominate the global energy mix and contribute 75 percent of the greenhouse emissions and 90 percent of the carbon dioxide.

Net zero is a dangerous mirage, a false promise that allows those responsible to shirk their responsibility for the harm they are causing. True climate action demands a paradigm shift, one that embraces the "polluter pays" principle at every stage of the fossil fuel chain. The simple yet powerful concept posits that those who cause pollution should bear the cost of cleaning it up. This principle should be applied across the entire fossil fuel chain, from extraction and transportation to refining and consumption.

Fossil fuel extractors, such as oil and gas companies, should be held accountable for the environmental damage they cause. This includes the pollution of waterways, air quality degradation, health impact on the population and the destruction of ecosystems.

Shippers of fossil fuels, who transport these dangerous substances across the globe, should also be held responsible. The responsibility for shipping a potentially hazardous emission-generating fuel should carry a penalty as it promotes its consumption which leads to obvious emission.

Refiners who process raw fossil fuels into usable products should also be held responsible as they are making it possible to consume this fuel. The liability cannot be limited to their production processes but the impact of the end use of their product.

Manufacturers of downstream petrochemical products, such as plastics and fertilizers, should be responsible for the environmental impact of their products. This includes the greenhouse gas emissions from their production, the pollution from their disposal, and the microplastic pollution that enters our oceans and waterways.

Recently, the Indian government levied a variable penalty on car companies for not meeting their emission standards. This is a great beginning as it shows that the government is looking at extending the application of the polluter pays principle into the supply chain of producers. Large cars and SUVs produce a disproportionate amount of pollution for the same effort and need to be taxed accordingly as the state will bear the health impact of the pollution they cause. Auto companies have shirked their responsibility in the past, as have buyers of large fuel-guzzling vehicles.

The world leaders in Dubai have been bamboozled yet again by the show and dance of the fossil fuel industry. They must recognize that net zero is a fake garb that allows the real polluters to hide their emissions. They must embrace the polluter pays principle and implement concrete measures to hold fossil fuel companies and their customers accountable for the damage they cause.

Specific actions might include: Implement a global carbon tax that applies to all fossil fuels, from extraction to consumption; enact strict regulations on fossil fuel extraction, transportation, refining, and use. Penalties and taxation always attract strong lobbying and the fossil fuel industry has the strongest lobbying army with every government. Hence it is important to build financial incentives for energy companies and consumers that are moving away from the extraction, refining, distribution, and use of fossil fuels into green energy.

?This is the moment for impactful action, the world must collectively apply the polluter pays principle down the fossil fuel supply chain. We cannot afford to continue down the path of net zero hypocrisy or idiocy. The planet cannot be run as a confederacy of dunces that silences and fools the world into fake narratives and false standards.?

--ends

K Yatish Rajawat and Dev Chandrasekhar are researchers at Centre for Innovation in Public Policy, a New Delhi based think and do tank.

?

?

?