‘Disappointing’ omissions in COP30 agreement highlight need for national action

‘It is disappointing that references to phasing out fossil fuels and action on deforestation were not included in the COP30 draft agreement,’ said Bishop John Arnold. ‘These issues are at the heart of the climate crisis and affect the poorest and most vulnerable communities.’

COP30 finished on 22 November, after negotiations had continued through the night. The final agreement includes plans for a just transition mechanism to ensure countries coordinate their efforts to support workers and communities and protect human rights throughout the green transition, and a promise to triple adaptation finance by 2035 (a date some warn is too late) to help the most vulnerable countries build their resilience to climate change.

However, references to phasing out fossil fuels and preventing deforestation were removed from the final agreement under pressure from petro-state Saudi Arabia and its allies.

Although the roadmap to phase out fossil fuels did not make it into the final agreement, the COP30 presidency hopes that it will nevertheless gain momentum as a voluntary initiative, with more than 90 countries currently on board.

John Arnold, lead bishop for the environment for the Catholic bishops conference of England and Wales, expressed his disappointment that it was removed from the agreement, but also said, “I was pleased to see that so many countries, including the UK, expressed support for building a roadmap to end fossil fuel use globally and pledged to strengthen efforts to tackle climate change in line with the global 1.5C goal.”

He stressed that the inadequate deal does not take the pressure off individual countries to do their bit, and that there is much potential for national and bottom-up action: “These meetings require consensus across all participant countries. Failure to achieve that consensus is not an excuse for inaction either by our own government or through other multilateral forums.

“We were reminded once again of the pressing need to transition away from fossil fuels and recommit to keeping the global temperature rise below 1.5C degrees. The time has passed for scepticism or delay on climate change. We are already seeing its effects in this country and around the world – and they will only worsen.

“As Pope Leo reminded the delegates at the start of the summit: ‘As stewards of God’s creation, we are called to act swiftly, with faith and prophecy, to protect the gift He entrusted to us. But we must be honest: it is not the agreement that is failing, we are failing in our response. What is failing is the political will of some.”

Bishop Arnold also emphasised that the ability of 194 countries to come together and produce an agreement together, against all the odds, is in itself a sign of hope: “While the challenges remain, I was encouraged by the renewed spirit of multilateralism during the summit.”

He praised the “leadership” of “young people, indigenous communities and faith groups” in “keeping the care of the common home at the heart of the discussions”.

COP30, dubbed the “People’s COP”, had the highest Indigenous participation of any of the previous UN climate conferences, although critics point out that they were still massively outnumbered in the negotiating “blue zone” by delegates linked to the fossil fuel industry.

Brazil was also the first COP since Glasgow in 2021 to take place in a country that allows public demonstrations and protest, which enabled the public to make their voices heard and put pressure on the negotiators through civic mobilisation.

Nature4Climate, a coalition for environmental organisations, suggests that the Forest and Land Tenure Pledge, in which governments and philanthropic donors promised 1.8 billion dollars to support Indigenous and local communities to secure land rights and strengthen their role in ecological stewardship, and the Intergovernmental Land Tenure Commitment to recognise and strengthen 160 million hectares of Indigenous lands, are among the most important and meaningful outcomes of Belém.

The Amazon location was intended to bring the importance of forests to the forefront of the discussions, but the deforestation roadmap proposed by Brazilian environment minister Marina Silva did not make it into the final agreement after it was tied to the fossil fuel roadmap, which was removed under pressure from petrostates. Nevertheless, Brazil launched the Tropical Forests Forever Facility (TFFF), a fund to support nations to protect their forests.

Bishop Arnold said, “I encourage Catholics to pray that we become ever-more effective stewards of God’s creation and that our political leaders act accordingly. I also invite political leaders, once more, to recommit to their pledges to reduce carbon emissions, promote policies that preserve the natural environment whilst also extending support to poorer countries which are already suffering from effects of global warming.”

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