“Let me be very explicit,” began Wopke Hoekstra, European Commissioner for Climate Action. «We need to phase out all fossil fuels. It’s that simple,” added the Dutch politician. The community politician appeared before the media this Wednesday along with the third vice president of the Government and minister for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, Teresa Ribera, for holding the presidency of the European Union this semester. “We need clear language on the elimination of fossil fuels,” highlighted the Spanish politician.
In their speech, both leaders pointed out that the end of fossil fuels “is a key part for the EU and for our negotiating mandate,” Hoekstra stated. “This means that all 27 EU Member States want this to be part of the negotiated outcome,” he stressed.
In addition, the community commissioner issued a warning to the sectors that have difficult decarbonization, although he did not mention them. “Carbon capture and storage is not the solution,” he said. «We have recognized that it is difficult, but companies or countries cannot get away with these technologies. There is no alternative », he warned. “We have to be specific with these tools so as not to waste money,” explained Teresa Ribera.
CO2 capture and storage (CCS) is another point of debate and negotiation on the table at COP28, especially as a transitional solution for industries such as steel, chemicals or cement.
Increase taxpayers
In her speech, Teresa Ribera emphasized the position of Spain and Europe by underlining the words of Commissioner Hoekstra. Spanish policy asked the rest of the countries to follow the steps of the European Union and increase financing for the most vulnerable countries.
“We are going to continue helping the weakest, but we have to expand the taxpayer base,” he stated. «Companies, banks and governments have to do the right thing to reduce the impact of climate change. “We are in a critical decade,” he warned.
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