Ranjit Baxi :
As the dust settles and the euphoria fades, trumpeted international accords often tend to look flawed or inadequate. This should not be the case of the COP21 deal struck in Paris in mid-December, for all the inevitable critical post-mortems.
That nearly 200 countries with diverse agendas concluded two decades of wrangling by signing a global agreement to cut greenhouse gas emissions and avoid the most noxious effects of climate change is an extraordinary feat. In essence, this historic and ambitious deal struck by most of the world’s nations signals the end of fossil fuels.
As well as agreeing to try to curb global warming to below a better-than-expected 2C, countries committed to a new goal to reach net zero emissions between 2050 and 2100 and to a review period every five years. Significantly, rich nations pledged to raise $100bn (£66bn) a year by 2020 to help poor countries transform their economies.
Rather than focusing on the agreement’s perceived shortcomings, we should therefore celebrate it for what it is: a massive step in the fight against climate change.
That is not to say that we should stop there. Those serious about tackling climate change should also start recognising the huge untapped potential of recycling as a green partner. A low carbon industry, recycling is currently reducing greenhouse gas emissions by an estimated 700 million tonnes per year (a BIR-conducted study actually confirms CO2 savings of 572 million tonnes for ferrous, copper, aluminium and paper alone). In concrete terms, this is more than the entire aviation industry generates in a year and would therefore offset the pollution of that sector.
Some regions, particularly Europe, are taking the lead by setting ambitious recycling targets and putting the right framework in place to make recycling an indispensable part of our societies and economies. However, in other parts of the world, namely Africa and Asia, recycling is less entrenched in everyday life, and much work remains to be done, particularly in terms of education and boosting free and fair trade. Otherwise, the very real danger is that CO2 emissions will increase together with the population of these areas.
This time bomb is bigger than one or two continents can defuse alone: a global approach required. The circular economy is a viable economic model, but should not be limited to Europe. If we are to see meaningful benefits for the environment, the circular economy needs to be adopted on a global scale.
At the Bureau of International Recycling, we also strongly advocate strengthening the impact of the Paris deal by formulating binding rules that would oblige countries receiving aid to earmark a portion of that funding for recycling projects.
Recycling is simply too vital a part of the war on climate change not to feature on the agenda of the next round of international talks – COP22 – open in Morocco in November 2016.
As the dust settles and the euphoria fades, trumpeted international accords often tend to look flawed or inadequate. This should not be the case of the COP21 deal struck in Paris in mid-December, for all the inevitable critical post-mortems.
That nearly 200 countries with diverse agendas concluded two decades of wrangling by signing a global agreement to cut greenhouse gas emissions and avoid the most noxious effects of climate change is an extraordinary feat. In essence, this historic and ambitious deal struck by most of the world’s nations signals the end of fossil fuels.
As well as agreeing to try to curb global warming to below a better-than-expected 2C, countries committed to a new goal to reach net zero emissions between 2050 and 2100 and to a review period every five years. Significantly, rich nations pledged to raise $100bn (£66bn) a year by 2020 to help poor countries transform their economies.
Rather than focusing on the agreement’s perceived shortcomings, we should therefore celebrate it for what it is: a massive step in the fight against climate change.
That is not to say that we should stop there. Those serious about tackling climate change should also start recognising the huge untapped potential of recycling as a green partner. A low carbon industry, recycling is currently reducing greenhouse gas emissions by an estimated 700 million tonnes per year (a BIR-conducted study actually confirms CO2 savings of 572 million tonnes for ferrous, copper, aluminium and paper alone). In concrete terms, this is more than the entire aviation industry generates in a year and would therefore offset the pollution of that sector.
Some regions, particularly Europe, are taking the lead by setting ambitious recycling targets and putting the right framework in place to make recycling an indispensable part of our societies and economies. However, in other parts of the world, namely Africa and Asia, recycling is less entrenched in everyday life, and much work remains to be done, particularly in terms of education and boosting free and fair trade. Otherwise, the very real danger is that CO2 emissions will increase together with the population of these areas.
This time bomb is bigger than one or two continents can defuse alone: a global approach required. The circular economy is a viable economic model, but should not be limited to Europe. If we are to see meaningful benefits for the environment, the circular economy needs to be adopted on a global scale.
At the Bureau of International Recycling, we also strongly advocate strengthening the impact of the Paris deal by formulating binding rules that would oblige countries receiving aid to earmark a portion of that funding for recycling projects.
Recycling is simply too vital a part of the war on climate change not to feature on the agenda of the next round of international talks – COP22 – open in Morocco in November 2016.
(Ranjit Baxi, President, Bureau of International Recycling).
