COP26 president says ‘coal must go’ if planet is to meet climate targets

COP26 president says ‘coal must go’ if planet is to meet climate targets

This year's COP26 climate change conference must consign coal to the past, according to the U.K. lawmaker who will lead formal negotiations at the summit. In a wide-ranging speech delivered on Friday, COP26 President-designate Alok Sharma sought to emphasize the importance of ending international coal financing, an ambition he described as "a personal priority." "We are urging countries to abandon coal power, seeking the G-7 to lead the way," he said. "At the same time, we are working with developing countries to support their transition to clean energy." "The days of coal providing the cheapest form of power are in the past, and in the past they must remain," he went on to state. Sharma said the science was clear that "coal must go" in order to keep the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. The above target was laid out in the Paris Agreement on climate change, which was agreed at 2015's COP21 summit in the French capital. Described by the United Nations as a legally-binding international treaty on climate change, the accord aims to "limit global warming to well below 2, preferably to 1.5 degrees Celsius, compared to pre-industrial levels." The COP26 summit is set