COP26: 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference

Tens of thousands of protesters filled the streets of Glasgow over the weekend, continuing to put pressure on those inside the walls of the SECC to figure out a way to avoid catastrophic climate change.

Although the protests rightly filled many papers and our television screens, there has also been significant announcements from within the conference over the past 7 days. Here is our breakdown of the important takeaways from the first week of COP26 in Glasgow.

1. Pledge to reduce methane

The Global Methane Pledge was launched in September as a joint EU and USA pledge to reduce methane emissions by 30% by 2030 from 2020 emissions. At COP26 this week over 100 more countries joined the pledge to reduce methane emissions, including the UK. Methane emissions globally according to the UN are from 3 main sectors agriculture (40%), fossil fuels (35%) and waste (20%) in the UK methane emissions are sourced from agriculture (44%), waste (36%), and Energy from fossil fuels (18%). The main focus of the pledge is set to be on the fossil fuel industry, and it is expected that the majority of the reduction can be easily achieved from that sector. However, with the UKs significant methane emissions from agriculture, this pledge, although non-binding, may put pressure on policymakers to focus energy on methane emissions from livestock.

2. Policy Reform in Agriculture

The UK government alongside the World bank and the Just Rural Transition set out pathways and action to support a transformation in our food systems to help adapt and mitigate climate change. This was supported by 150 governments, organisations and farms from all across the world. The UK government announced funding towards this mainly focused on helping farming transition in the global south however Scottish government pledged an additional 55 million towards the Nature Restoration Fund aimed at large scale multi year projects focusing on biodiversity and climate.

3. An end to deforestation

Over 100 nations have committed to ending deforestation by 2030; the countries that have signed up have over 85% of the world forests. The IPCC estimates that food and drink are responsible for up to 75% of deforestation globally and this deforestation occurs predominantly in the global south. Over 14 billion has been pledged to support land restoration where land has been degraded for agriculture or other activities and funding will focus on the global south. This could result in a change in supply chains over the next decade as industries move away from a model of deforestation, this may be particularly important where soya is concerned, over 75% of soya imported into Europe is estimated to be associated with deforestation.

4. Net zero transition Plans

The UK government has announced that it aims to be the worlds first Net-Zero aligned financial Centre. Included in this is that large UK firms and financial institutions will need to show how they are going to hit emissions reductions target with Net zero transition plans. These plans are set to become a requirement by 2024. Although this focus is on large companies and financial institutions, it will inevitably trickle down to farm businesses and increase the markets preference of low carbon activities, which is becoming more common in the food supply chain.

In terms of setting targets that will help ‘keep 1.5 alive’ the emissions commitments set out so far in Glasgow are closer to a 2-degrees warming although significant progress has been made this week. The hope is discussion this week and beyond will get closer and closer to a global commitment to 1.5 degrees warming and avoid catastrophic climate change for people in the Caribbean and other low lying island nations.

Séamus Murphy, SAC Consulting, for the Farm Advisory Service.

It feels like COP has passed over Glasgow like a tsunami, but now the storm has  died down, what have been the key outcomes and what does this mean going forward?

There feels a general sense of disappointment overall, even acknowledged by core negotiators, that what was hoped to become the most momentous COP since Paris(?) has resulted in watered down targets and no more clarity on big issues like climate finance mechanisms and many caveats. However, with such  complex negotiations involving hundreds of stakeholders with competing priorities, some progress in the right direction is arguably better than none.

Highlighted outcomes include:

• National determined contributions (NDCs) – targets for countries’ GHG  mitigation – are now required to be reviewed and resubmitted every year, rather than every 5 years, in an effort to keep reductions (more) on track;

• A ‘phase down’ of coal (rather than ‘phase out’) by 2030, largely pushed by  India so not to disadvantage developing countries – ‘pulling up the ladder’ argument;
• Pledges for $100+bn a year of climate finance for mitigation & adaptation for developing countries, though so far this target not yet met. Still yet to turn this ambition into solid mechanisms;
• Still strong push for a 1.5 degree (or ‘well below 2 degree) warming limit, but acknowledged that under current trajectory this will be unlikely; we are on trend of existing commitments, carbon emissions are set to rise 13.7% by 2030;
• An agreement to halt and reverse deforestation by 2030;
• Inclusion of the term agroecology in the full Glasgow Climate Pact text –  written in to improve soil health & sequestration;
• Global Methane Pledge to reduce methane emissions at least 30% by 2030 (from 2020 levels) (not signed by all countries including some of the top emitters, so applicable to around 50% of emissions);
• Agreement to avoid double-counting of emissions reduction, in which more than one country could claim the same emissions reductions as counting toward their own climate commitments.

In summary, Antonio Gueterres described COP26 outcomes as “building blocks for progress”. The summit may have kept the concept of a 1.5 degree warming limit alive, if not yet paved the route for its reality (see https://www.carbonbrief.org/analysis-docop26-promises-keep-global-warming-below-2c).

This article was first published in the December 2021 Agribusiness News

The 26^th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26), which is the biggest international climate conference globally, was being held in Glasgow earlier this month. It was the first time since the COP21 Paris Agreement in 2015 that governments submitted new greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction targets. With agriculture a key focus of the Scottish Government’s Update to the Climate Change Plan 2018 – 2032 and accounting for 15.7% of Scotland’s GHG emissions in 2019, farming has an important role to play in helping reduce Scotland’s emissions. In its plan, the Scottish Government has pledged to ‘support farmers, crofters and agricultural businesses to cut their emissions to the lowest level possible’[1].

Rising to the challenge of reducing Scotland’s agricultural emissions requires farmers and crofters to understand how they are performing now and what options are open to them to adopt more sustainable practices in the future. There are two aspects to this:

1. Adapting to Scotland’s changing climate including unpredictable weather events.
2. Adopting more climate friendly farming practices to reduce emissions and mitigate the effects of climate change.

An Integrated Land Management Plan (ILMP) provided through the Farm Advisory Service (FAS) can help Scottish farmers, crofters and land managers to do these things, and find their way to a sustainable and profitable future. An ILMP can help you set out a clear vision for your farm or croft by providing a clear, achievable, step-by-step action plan that will help you achieve your goals.

FAS can help farming businesses access up to 80% of the total cost of consultancy support (up to a maximum of £1,200), for a professional farm adviser to carry out an ILMP on behalf of the participatory business. This typically includes:

• An assessment of strengths, weakness, opportunities and threats as they relate to your vision for your business.
• A basic habitats, biodiversity and conservation review.
• A financial performance analysis.
• A cross-compliance assessment to highlight where there may be risk areas for the business.

In addition to the ILMP, you can choose to benefit from up to two further specialist advice plans, for which funding is also available.

For more information or to apply for business resilience support, please visit https://www.fas.scot/integrated-land-management-plans-ilmps/

To receive a hardcopy application pack, please contact FAS by calling 0300 323 0161 or emailing advice@fas.scot

[1] https://www.gov.scot/publications/securing-green-recovery-path-net-zero-update-climate-change-plan-20182032/pages/13/