MEXICO: Experts have warned that Mexico is likely to declare a jumble of outdated, insufficient, and undeliverable climate pledges that will render its Paris commitments meaningless. Mexico is one of the world’s largest emitters of greenhouse gases.
Under Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s administration, climate action has taken a tumble in the country. Mexico’s top court had to intervene to prevent him from reversing Mexico’s modest Paris greenhouse gas commitments even as emissions have increased.
The Mexican president, often known as Amlo, will make a significant declaration regarding his country’s climate obligations during Cop27, according to the US climate envoy John Kerry.
Amlo won’t likely be present at the UN meeting in Egypt, but rumours indicate the following announcements will be made:
- A reduction in methane emissions from the state-owned oil company, Pemex.
- A 1,000MW state-opened solar plant – construction is already underway for a 180MW project.
- Mexico has the ninth largest identified deposits of lithium – crucial for electric vehicles and other green technologies.
The climate policies of Mexico under Amlo “continue to go backwards, as fossil fuel use is prioritized and climate-related policies and institutions are dismantled,” according to the Carbon Action Tracker. It is a nonprofit science organization that monitors government climate action.
Mexico needs to change its policies, get off fossil fuels, support renewable energy, and take on the transportation sector if it wants to meet even its dated 2030 climate commitments.
The purchase and construction of new oil refineries were one of Amlo’s ten-point climate action plans, which he revealed at the major economies energy and climate meeting hosted by Joe Biden in June.
The national institute for climate change and the federal climate change fund were also abolished by his administration, ranking Mexico as one of the worst climate regimes in the world.
Mexico has enormous potential for renewable energy, but Amlo has abandoned some projects and comes under fire for enforcing others on the territories of indigenous peoples without adequate consultation.
The environment ministry announced on Tuesday that Mexico would increase its objective to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 30% by 2030 from the Paris goal of 22%.
However, it was unclear how Mexico would fulfill the previous goal, much less the more challenging new one, given Amlo’s pro-fossil fuel and anti-renewable posture.
Also Read: British PM Sunak to Pledge Renewables Plan at COP27 Summit
