China, the world’s biggest emitter of CO2, has made a historic pledge to become carbon neutral in 2060.
The announcement was made by the Chinese President Xi Jinping when he spoke via video at the annual General Debate of the 75th session of the United Nations General Assembly on Tueday.
In his speech, President Jinping stated: “The Paris Agreement on climate change charts the course for the world to transition to green and low-carbon development.
“It outlines the minimum steps to be taken to protect the Earth, our shared homeland, and all countries must take decisive steps to honour this Agreement.
“China will scale up its Intended Nationally Determined Contributions by adopting more vigorous policies and measures.
“We aim to have CO2 emissions peak before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060.
“We call on all countries to pursue innovative, coordinated, green and open development for all, seize the historic opportunities presented by the new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation, achieve a green recovery of the world economy in the post-COVID era and thus create a powerful force driving sustainable development.”
The Paris Agreement pledges to limit global warming to less than 2C and allows countries to set their own targets for emissions reduction.
China’s announcement comes as a boost towards the prospects of COP26, a United Nations climate change conference to be held in Glasgow, which had to be postponed to 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
