Whatever. Putin Orders Russia To Pursue Paris Agreement Climate Goals; No Fossil Fuel Cuts

[hatrack]

MOSCOW (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree ordering the Russian government to work towards meeting the 2015 Paris Agreement to fight climate change, but stressed any action must be balanced with the need to ensure strong economic development.

Russia, the world’s fourth largest emitter of greenhouse gases, has previously signalled its acceptance of the accord even as environmentalists have criticised Moscow for shunning compulsory emissions targets for companies backed with fines.

In a decree published on Wednesday, a public holiday in Russia, Putin formally ordered the government to work towards a cut in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 of up to 30% below emission levels in 1990. That, said Putin, would mean harnessing the capability of forests and other eco-systems to absorb such gases.

Putin’s order came with a big caveat. He said any action to cut emissions must take account of the need to ensure steady and balanced socio-economic development, and ordered the government to draw up and ratify a socio-economic strategy up to 2050 that factored in lower emissions.

EDIT

https://www.reuters.com/article/russia-climatechange/putin-orders-russian-government-to-try-to-meet-paris-climate-goals-idINL8N2HR7PC

Russia has no plans to rein in its production of fossil fuels in the coming decades despite the global efforts to shift towards low-carbon energy, according to its energy minister.

Alexander Novak told the Guardian that Russia did “not see that we will achieve a peak in [gas] production anytime soon” because the world’s appetite for gas would continue to grow in the decades ahead despite its growing number of climate targets.

Instead, during a crucial decade in the battle to keep a lid on rising global temperatures, Russia will pair a 50% growth in gas production with plans to become a global leader in producing clean-burning hydrogen and developing carbon capture technology.

Russia intends to ramp up gas production from its vast and inexpensive reserves to reach 1tn cubic meters a year by 2035, from just under 680bn cubic meters last year. It also plans to increase the amount of gas it exports on giant super-chilled tankers more than four-fold, from 29m tonnes a year to 120-140m tonnes, while continuing to send about 200bn cubic meters of gas to Europe via pipelines including the politically contentious Nord Stream project.

EDIT

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/nov/01/russia-rules-out-cutting-fossil-fuel-production-in-next-few-decades

[MartyTheGreek]

1. But if Trump won, would have Putin have done this?...

Is this Putin trying to gain favor with the world post Trump?