With 'Unstoppable' Momentum, Paris Climate Pact Set for Early November Entry Into Force
United Nations
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced today that the Paris Agreement on
climate change signed by world leaders this past April is set to enter into
force on 4 November, as enough countries have signed onto the landmark accord
to bring it to the emissions threshold that will trigger its implementation.
"This is a momentous occasion," said Mr. Ban as the
latest instruments of ratification ratification were accepted in deposit.
"What once seemed unthinkable, is now unstoppable. Strong
international support for the Paris Agreement entering into force is a
testament to the urgency for action, and reflects the consensus of governments
that robust global cooperation, grounded in national action, is essential to
meet the climate challenge," he added.
But he cautioned that the work of implementing the agreement still
lay ahead. "Now we must move from words to deeds and put Paris into
action. We need all hands on deck - every part of society must be mobilized to
reduce emissions and help communities adapt to inevitable climate
impacts," he stressed.
Adopted in Paris by the 195 Parties to the UN Framework Convention
on Climate Change (UNFCCC) at a conference known as COP21 this past December,
the Agreement calls on countries to combat climate change and to accelerate and
intensify the actions and investments needed for a sustainable low-carbon
future, as well as to adapt to the increasing impacts of climate change.
Specifically, it seeks to limit global temperature rise to well below 2 degrees
Celsius, and to strive for 1.5 degrees Celsius.
The pact - which was signed in New York on 22 April by 175
countries at the largest, single-day signing ceremony in history - will enter
into force 30 days after at least 55 countries, accounting for 55 per cent of
global greenhouse emissions, deposit their instruments of ratification,
acceptance or accession with the Secretary-General.
The requirements for entry into force were satisfied today when
Austria, Bolivia, Canada, France, Germany, Hungary, Malta, Nepal, Portugal and
Slovakia, as well as the European Union, deposited their instruments of
ratification with the Secretary-General.
Earlier this week, New Zealand and India signed onto the
Agreement, following the 31 countries which joined at a special event at the UN
on 21 September during the UN General Assembly's general debate. Earlier that
month, the world's two largest emitters, China and the United States, joined
the Agreement.
The Agreement will now enter into force in time for the Climate
Conference (COP 22) in Morocco in November, where countries will convene the
first Meeting of the Parties to the Agreement. Countries that have not yet
joined may participate as observers.
Rabi Island, Fiji. Rising sea levels
and more extreme weather events pose an imminent threat to low-lying atoll
islands across the Pacific.
- 11 October 2016
- Visited: 5692
- News ID: 3818
- Source: