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The 2022 FIFA World Cup is slated to happen in the Gulf nation of Qatar, but climate activists around the world have taken exception to this prospect.

Qatar is one of the world’s worst for CO2 emissions, the country’s annual emissions output approximately 44 tons per capita. The country, with a population of just over 2 million, has been one of the worst CO2 polluters for years. Despite a recent improvement, it still remains in the top two for CO2 emissions.

In October 2014, Qatar was ranked as having the second-highest ecological footprint in the world, down from the first spot in 2012, according to the World Wide Fund for Nature--Kuwait is ranked as the worst now.

Since being designated the host country for the 2022 World Cup by FIFA leader Sepp Blatter, who has since stepped down amid corruption charges, concerns have been raised about Qatar’s seeming disinterest in curbing carbon emissions. Critics of the choice say hosting the World Cup will only exacerbate the carbon emissions.

The concerns are especially relevant in light of the COP21 UN Climate Change Conference recently held in Paris from 30 November to 12 December, in which 196 nations met and negotiated a plan to lower carbon emissions collectively. The consensus desire was to limit warming of the planet to less than 2 degrees Celsius, compared to pre-industrial levels.

As part of the agreement signed, parties have vowed to make efforts to keep warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius during the rest of the 21st Century--a possibility some scientists say will require zero carbon emissions between 2030 and 2050.

While many activists and scientists argue that the agreement does not go nearly far enough, the Paris climate change talks are being hailed as a significant diplomatic victory.

However, renowned climate activist Bill Mckibben argues that the agreement is not only too late, but writing in a New York Times op-ed, describes it as “something like a climate accord, albeit unenforceable.”

Either way, Qatar is playing along, officially submitting its new climate action plan to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change ahead of the conference.

And other severe criticisms have been leveled at the Gulf nation, not the least of which is a dismal human rights record.

In December, Amnesty International released a report outlining Qatar’s abuse of migrant workers.

Mustafa Qadri, a Gulf Migrant Rights Researcher at Amnesty International stated in reference to the report, “Too little has been done to address rampant migrant labour abuse. Qatar’s persistent labour reform delays are a recipe for human rights disaster. The reforms proposed by the government fail to tackle the central issues that leave so many workers at the mercy of employers, yet even these changes have been delayed.”

Qadri added a call for action and responsibility on the part of World Cup attendees, saying “Unless action is taken – and soon – then every football fan who visits Qatar in 2022 should ask themselves how they can be sure they are not benefiting from the blood, sweat and tears of migrant workers. FIFA has played its part in this sorry performance. It knew there were labour rights issues in Qatar. It must work closely with the Qatari authorities and business partners to ensure the World Cup is not built on exploitation.”