Throughout UNFCCC negotiations, ECO has exposed a number of “elephants in the room.” Now, it’s beyond time to acknowledge another one. It has been there waiting since negotiations began before 1992.
It might feel unsettling or even scary to address this particular elephant, because it is armed and dangerous. But ECO wants to speak out anyway, because the creature we are looking at could be emitting as much as 5% of global greenhouse gas emissions!
Yesterday ECO was present at an event where the governments of Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova were sharing how war could affect climate reporting. These presenters showed us some terrifying numbers. It is estimated that during seven months of Russian invasion of Ukraine, the conflict brought into the world around 33 million tons of climate pollution. Two thirds of those come from burning forests. And don’t forget that entire cities would need to be rebuilt after the war, which could result in additional 50 million tons of emissions.
ECO has not forgotten that under the Paris Agreement, countries are not obliged to cut their military emissions. However, there is no automatic exemption for them either. So, it all becomes voluntary. And as we know – if countries can avoid doing something while not being called out for it, this is what they will do.
So how do we even approach this elephant? It is not on the official agenda for this COP. The scientists say there is no clear methodology for counting military and conflict emissions. The issue has been in the drawer for years. Emissions monitoring is a worthwhile place to start.
ECO has watched while Ukraine has fought for years for UNFCCC not to accept Russia’s greenhouse gas inventory, which included occupied Crimea and Donbas. It is equally important to hold the aggressors accountable under UNFCCC processes for war related emissions. So let’s get to it.