COP28 Promises Are Already In Tatters
But we can still remedy the situation.
Last year’s COP28 was a bit of a mixed bag. Many climate scientists decried the event as ineffective, not going far enough to implement the climate legislation we desperately need before it is too late and our delicate planet is destroyed, presuming after all it is not already too late. But, on the other hand, there were some major milestone agreements. For example, nearly 200 countries committed to tripling renewable energy capacity and doubling energy efficiency by 2030 — the most significant commitment to clean energy ever! This was one of the only silver linings of the event, yet a recent report by IRENA shows that even this agreement lies in ruin.
Over the past year, the world has seen a record uptick in renewables, mainly solar. In fact, renewables now account for more than 30% of the world’s electricity supply. However, IRENA recently revealed that, even with this record expansion, we are set to fall 34% short of our 2030 tripling renewable capacity goals! That is a considerable gap.
IRENA pointed out that solar power is growing fast enough to meet this target but that the other forms of renewable energy are falling short. Namely, onshore wind needs to triple, offshore wind needs to grow by six times, and geothermal needs to grow by 35 times compared to…
