Humanity has become a "weapon of mass extinction", it is time to stop the "war" waged "against nature", said United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who yesterday Tuesday called on the world's governments to take bold decisions on the eve of COP15 on biodiversity, warning that there is no time to lose.
"With its insatiable appetite for uncontrolled and unequal economic growth, humanity has become a weapon of mass extinction," he said, raising the curtain on this Montreal summit, which he called one of the last "opportunities" to "stop the orgy of destruction."
Since taking office in 2017, Portugal's former prime minister has put climate change front and center. His fiery denunciations before COP15 began showed that the fate of plants and animals threatened with extinction due to the destruction of the natural environment - an interconnected crisis - is something he also ranked high.
He spoke out shortly after the host, Justin Trideau's speech was interrupted by local indigenous tribal representatives. "Indigenous genocide = ecosystem murder" and "to save biodiversity, stop invading our lands," read the banner they held up for a few minutes, chanting slogans and cheering from part of the hall, before being escorted, in an atmosphere of calm, to the exit.
The challenges facing COP15 are great: a million species, mostly insects, are threatened with extinction, their extinction has been unprecedented for 10 million years; as many as 40% of soils are classified as degraded, fertile soils are disappearing; pollution and climate change are accelerating the damage to the oceans.
Chemicals, plastics and air pollution are choking the land, water and air, while global warming from burning fossil fuels is causing climate chaos - from fire waves and forest fires to droughts and giant floods.
Over 190 countries are meeting from today 7 to Monday 19 December to try to reach a 10-year agreement on nature and prevent mass extinction of species. But the outcome of the negotiations, which involve some twenty targets to protect ecosystems by 2030, remains highly uncertain.
"Today we are not in harmony with nature, instead we are playing a very different game": the "cacophony of chaos, with instruments of destruction", as the UN Secretary General put it.
"Ultimately, we are committing suicide by proxy," he added, pointing to the consequences for employment, hunger, disease and death. The economic losses due to deteriorating health and the destruction of ecosystems are estimated to amount to 3 trillion annually by 2030.
Although the scientists' findings are generally not disputed, there are still many points of friction between the parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) (195 states plus the European Union, but not the United States, which nevertheless participates as an observer - with great influence).
Among the twenty or so targets to be discussed, the ambition-light, known as 30×30, is to declare at least 30% of the world's lands and seas protected by 2030. Against respectively 17% and 10% foreseen in the previous agreement, in 2010.
Harmful subsidies in fisheries and agriculture, the fight against invasive species, the reduction of herbicide use will also be addressed.
Once again, the issue of financing the measures may prove to be the main obstacle: developing countries are calling for a special-purpose fund, such as the one agreed to be set up for the climate.
Once again, the issue of financing the measures may prove to be the main obstacle: developing countries are calling for a special-purpose fund, such as the one agreed to be set up for the climate.
The lack of political will and leadership is already tangible: apart from Canadian Prime Minister Trideau, no head of state or government is expected in Montreal, while more than 110 went to Egypt in November for COP27, the UN climate summit.
Source: CNA
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