Agriculture: Carbon Emissions

(asked on 7th July 2021) - View Source

Question

To ask the President of COP26, what steps he is taking to help ensure that the COP26 summit results in commitments to reduce emissions from (a) agriculture and (b) the wider land use sector, without those emissions being displaced to other countries.


Answered by
Alok Sharma Portrait
Alok Sharma
COP26 President (Cabinet Office)
This question was answered on 21st July 2021

As COP26 Presidency, we are calling for global ambition and action to reduce emissions across all sectors, in order to meet net zero by 2050 – including in agriculture, forestry and other land use, which is collectively responsible for 23% of global emissions.

We have already seized the opportunities of our G7 and COP26 Presidencies to drive international action and commitments on sustainable agriculture. The G7 Leaders’ Summit was a critical point as we work towards COP26. The G7 leaders committed to achieve net zero no later than 2050, with deep emissions reduction targets in the 2020s – consistent with keeping 1.5 degrees within reach. The G7 Leaders also acknowledged the harmful effects of some subsidies on the environment and the need to reform policies with recognised impacts on nature – and committed to work to accelerate an inclusive global transition to sustainable and climate resilient agriculture.

Together with the World Bank, we are co-hosting an international Policy Dialogue on the ‘Transition to Sustainable Agriculture through redirecting public policies and support and scaling innovation’. Through the Dialogue, we are developing a Policy Action Agenda on the transition to sustainable agriculture.

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