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This week, a new report from scientists said there was little time to lose in tackling climate change as South Korea, Japan and the EU backtrack on previous climate pledges. And check out today’s ESG Spotlight for a report on an Egyptian startup aiming to turn more than five billion plastic bags into tiles.

U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres warned the “climate time bomb is ticking” as he urged rich nations to slash emissions during a recorded address at the launch of the sixth “synthesis report” from the U.N.’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

“Concentrations of carbon dioxide are at their highest in at least 2 million years. The climate time-bomb is ticking.”

The synthesis report summarized findings from three expert assessments published between 2021 and 2022 that looked at the physical science, impacts, and mitigation of climate change. According to the IPCC, emissions must be halved by the mid-2030s if the world is to have any chance of limiting temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels – a key target enshrined in the Paris climate accord.

U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres speaks at U.N. headquarters in New York City, New York, U.S., Feb 22, 2023. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz

Although the IPCC report outlines the urgency of cutting back emissions by the 2030s, nations around the world have recently been rolling back their commitments.

This week, South Korea revised down its 2030 targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the industrial sector but maintained its national goal of cutting emissions by 40% of 2018 levels in what it called a reasonable adjustment.

Under the plan, the industrial sector will be required to cut emissions by 11.4% from 2018 levels by 2030, compared with the 14.5% goal set in late 2021, the Presidential Commission on Carbon Neutrality and Green Growth said. The gap will be filled by switching more energy sources to renewables and making more reductions overseas, it said.

South Korea derives more than 40% of its electricity from coal and has vowed to halve that proportion by 2030, but environmental groups including Greenpeace have said the goals are too low and criticized its plans to build more coal-fired plants.

But it’s not just South Korea backpedaling on its net zero promises, as the Japanese government and its power utilities industry body have called for greater flexibility on energy transition rules, while some Group of Seven (G7) members want stricter rules on how countries should transition to cleaner energy. 

As chair of the G7 this year, Japan will host ministerial meetings on climate, energy and the environment in April ahead of a G7 summit in Hiroshima in May, to promote what Japan calls realistic energy transition.

Meanwhile, the European Commission has proposed allowing the sale of new cars with internal combustion engines after 2035 if they only run only on climate-neutral e-fuels, a document showed.

Yielding to German pressure, the Commission suggested that such vehicles could be among those allowed from 2035, but their technology must prevent them from driving if other fuels are used, the document outlining the Commission’s proposals to Germany’s Transport Ministry showed. 

Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg speaks during a demonstration in connection with the action against the wind turbines at Fosen, in Oslo, Norway March 2, 2023. NTB/Javad Parsa via REUTERS 

Fiona Duggan, policy lead at climate solutions charity Ashden, reacts to the IPCC’s Synthesis Report:

“The report made crystal clear that we need to be fighting climate breakdown on all fronts, in all countries, at rapid speed – it was a no-holds barred message of warning and hope.

“We were delighted to see such strong emphasis on the urgent need for policy action and government and financial support to vulnerable communities that are already suffering from climate impacts. 

“The report authors’ strongest warning – that we can no longer put off decisions about how to decarbonize because consequences to food and water supply and nature are urgent and dire – was a message that must be shouted from the rooftops by all in their wake.

“Importantly the report gave huge emphasis to the co-benefits of rapid decarbonization throughout – that reducing climate emissions will have huge co-benefits on health, economies, communities and the natural environment.

“In the global South it means supporting renewable energy take-up that will allow countries to leapfrog the carbon intensive infrastructure that has done so much damage to the world into clean, renewable, cheaper energy, accessible to the poor and the rich.

“As the IPCC pointed out, what is crucial is that investors, banks and governments get behind them, immediately and at scale.”

Gavin Maguire, global energy transition columnist at Reuters, writes about East Asia being set to remain the top wind power production region thanks to a project development pipeline that will expand current wind power capacity by 65% by the end of 2030, according to data from Global Energy Monitor (GEM). Click here for more.

An employee of TileGreen factory works at eco-friendly tile made from different types of plastic and waste Cairo, Egypt. March 15, 2023. REUTERS/Hadeer Mahmoud

Today’s ESG Spotlight shines a light on an Egyptian startup aiming to turn more than five billion plastic bags into tiles. Keep scrolling for more on how electric motorcycles in Indonesia are getting a boost from state funding.

At the Egyptian company’s factory, on the outskirts of Cairo, workers carry large barrels loaded with mixed plastic waste to be melted down and compressed. The resulting tiles are sold to real estate developers and contracting companies for use in outdoor paving.

“So far, we have recycled more than five million plastic bags, but this is just the beginning,” TileGreen co-founder Khaled Raafat told Reuters. “We aim that by 2025, we will have recycled more than five billion plastic bags.”

Indonesian President Joko Widodo sits on an electric motorcycle Alva One during Indonesia International Motor Show in Jakarta, Indonesia, Feb 16, 2023. REUTERS/Willy Kurniawan

Indonesia will allocate 7 trillion rupiah ($456 million) in state funds to subsidize electric motorcycle sales through 2024, officials said, as it pushes mass adoption of EVs with the aim of attracting investment in the domestic industry.

The government will also announce incentives for electric cars on April 1, said senior cabinet minister Luhut Pandjaitan. Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said the subsidies would cover sales of 800,000 new electric motorcycles and the conversion of 200,000 combustion engine motorcycles.

“This stark warning from the world’s leading scientists reaffirms that the climate crisis is a matter of global injustice. It’s clear that serious cash is needed to fund the financial and technical support necessary to address the climate emergency, and the world can’t wait for the present cost of living crisis to pass before this gets into gear.”

Dorothy Guerrero, head of policy and campaigns at Global Justice Now, a UK-based NGO

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