Environmental groups said Saudi Arabia, the United States and Iran were blocking progress on fulfilling the goals of the 2015 Paris climate accord, as a UN meeting on the landmark deal ended in the western German city of Bonn on Thursday.

Saudi and US delegates reportedly questioned scientific research by the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) that found limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) would be safer than a 2.0-degree limit.

Read more: Germany pushes climate change as security risk

"Saudi Arabia is the main protagonist in this attack on science, although the US has come to its aid," Oxfam's Jan Kowalzig said.

The Saudi delegation also objected to including wording that welcomed the IPPC's findings or any mention of the scientific body's recommended emissions targets in a final text.

"Saudi Arabia, the US and Iran are forming an unholy alliance of science-deniers," Martin Kaiser of Greenpeace said.

'We're running out of time' on climate change Time is running out The protesters' symbol was a clock to signal to those meeting at the United Nations climate change conference (COP24) that time is running out if the world is to limit global warming to within 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit). Negotiations at the COP have been tough, with disagreements on financing for developing countries and on how states should report their emissions cuts.

'We're running out of time' on climate change Sending up Bolsonaro Some marchers made giant puppets, including of Brazil's president elect, Jair Messias Bolsonaro, to protest the leader's climate policies. Bolsonaro has threatened to follow US President Donald Trump and withdraw his country from the Paris climate agreement. Bolsonaro has also talked about loosening protections for the Amazon rainforest — the Earth's green lungs.

'We're running out of time' on climate change Air pollution woes About seven million people worldwide die prematurely due to air pollution every year. Poland's air quality is particularly bad because of the country's dependence on coal for electricity and heating. Some protesters decorated pollution masks to make a statement about Poland's coal policy. During the COP, the country's president said there was no intention to phase out coal.

'We're running out of time' on climate change 'Don't nuke the climate' Some groups, like the International Atomic Energy Agency, are promoting nuclear energy as an alternative to fossil fuels. It would provide a stable and greenhouse gas-emission-free energy source, says the IAEA. A number of protesters turned up to advocate against nuclear, because there is no good way to deal with the radioactive waste it produces and because it is potentially unsafe, they say.

'We're running out of time' on climate change A sustainable Christmas Sustaina Claus arrived at the climate march with his Christmas elves to preach the message of sustainability. The environmental activist says we need to stop overconsumption if we are to stop climate change and protect the planet's resources. Instead of buying mountains of gifts for your loved ones at Christmas, "you should give the gift of you."

'We're running out of time' on climate change Activists held at the border NGOs said a number of environmental campaigners were refused entry at the Polish border or deported from the country, having been deemed a "threat" to national security. Climate Action Network, an umbrella group of climate groups, called the actions worrying. A spokeswoman for Poland's border guards said she could not say whether the refusals were connected to the COP, according to Reuters.

'We're running out of time' on climate change Cycling for the climate Climate activist Lander Wantens cycled over 1,000 kilometers from Belgium to Katowice for the protest and to deliver a message to delegates to do more to combat climate change. He hopes that if the negotiators see "four guys from Belgium are crazy enough to bike to the climate summit in Poland in winter, maybe that's a signal that they have to work on an ambitious climate agreement." Author: Jennifer Collins, Louise Osborne



The 2015 agreement had set an upper limit of 2.0 degrees and an aspirational limit of 1.5 degrees. IPCC scientists predict that the very worst effects of global warming would occur above the 2.0-degree limit.

"This report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is so unambiguous in its message that any contradiction is irresponsible ignorance," Kaiser said.

The psychology behind climate inaction: How to beat the 'doom barrier'

No money for high risk countries

Talks since 2015 have focused on how governments can reduce their own greenhouse gas emissions to meet the global target. The technical meetings in Bonn were to prepare for a high-level UN climate summit in Chile later this year.

Delegates failed to make significant progress on "market mechanism" measures that allow countries to finance efforts to reduce emission in other countries while doing less themselves.

High-emission countries also clashed with others over how to compensate countries that are likely to experience the worst effects of global warming. The meeting ended with no agreement on how to raise the billions needed for a compensation fund.

"Are we keeping the promise we made in Paris of standing in solidarity with people facing climate emergency now?" said ActionAid's Harjeet Singh.

Read more: Net-zero by 2050: What does it mean?

UK commits to net zero by 2050

Chile's environment minister, who will preside at the UN summit in Santiago in December, urged the international community to take immediate action.

"We have been seeing all over the world what the effects of climate change are. It's not something that's going to happen in a 100 more years, it's something that we're seeing right now," Carolina Schmidt said.

The United Kingdom said Thursday that it was the first country to adopt a net zero emissions target by 2050 after Energy and Clean Growth Minister Chris Skidmore signed the pledge into law.

"Today we're leading the world yet again in becoming the first major economy to pass new laws to reduce emissions to net zero by 2050 while remaining committed to growing the economy," he said.

Germany's growing climate movement demanding action Striking for the future "Why study, if our future is being destroyed?" This sign features a sentiment shared by increasing numbers of German students, who have joined young people worldwide in using Friday school strikes to call for action on climate change. The movement was inspired by 16-year-old Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, who began her protests alone in front of the Swedish parliament in August 2018.

Germany's growing climate movement demanding action No time to wait With the 2015 Paris climate accord, nearly all of the world's countries committed to limiting global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius, preferably 1.5 degrees (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit), by 2100. The hope is that this target will prevent the worst effects of climate disasters. Concerned by the dire predictions from climate scientists, more and more people have called for immediate action.

Germany's growing climate movement demanding action Youth pressure Despite urgent warnings, politicians have dragged their heels on important climate decisions. It's become clear that Germany will miss its targets for 2020. Climate protection was an important factor in the European elections in late May, with the Greens winning more than 20% of the vote in Germany alone, more than double previous results. Among 18-24-year-olds, 34% backed the party.

Germany's growing climate movement demanding action Coal struggle in Hambach Germany's climate movement is fighting on many fronts. In recent years, activists have fought to preserve Hambach Forest in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia, building treehouses to prevent the old-growth forest from being felled to make way for the mining of lignite, or brown coal. Energy giant RWE has launched legal action, and police have cleared the camp several times.

Germany's growing climate movement demanding action Victory, for now In September 2018, a few days after the camp was removed again, a court ruling suspended the clearing of the forest until late 2020, after a lawsuit by environmental group BUND. RWE has argued that the forest has to be cut in order to ensure the coal necessary for Germany's electricity supply. Around 50,000 activists celebrated the victory.

Germany's growing climate movement demanding action Making headlines Protests organized by groups such as Ende Gelände have increasingly been making headlines. Thousands of young activists have come out to staged events, blocking railway tracks used to deliver coal to power plants near Cologne and occupying huge coal excavators, as seen here in the open-pit mine in the east German town of Welzow in 2016.

Germany's growing climate movement demanding action 20 more years? In January 2019, after seven months of negotiations, a coal commission set up by the federal government to work out Germany's plans to phase out coal power released its findings. It recommended that Germany should continue coal mining until 2038, at the latest —far too late for the country to meet the targets of the 2015 Paris climate accord.

Germany's growing climate movement demanding action No confidence in politics An increasing number of young people in Germany are demanding that the government find a way to meet the 1.5-degree target. The emerging Fridays for Future movement has been getting support from longtime environmentalists, teachers, academics and parents. They have called for all German coal-fired power plants to be shut down by 2030, and for renewable energy initiatives to be vastly expanded. Author: Gero Rueter



amp/sms(AFP, dpa, KNA)

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