Too much focus on ‘fairytale solutions’ at Cop28 climate talks, warn activists

Sign up to the Independent Climate email for the latest advice on saving the planet Get our free Climate email Get our free Climate email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. But while experts say nothing short of that will do when it comes to tackling the climate crisis, a large amount of space at the summit is dedicated to the promotion of so-called “technical solutions” to global heating – the idea that new discoveries could allow us to keep emissions in check while continuing to exploit oil and gas for power. And despite there being no evidence yet that CCS technology can work on a large scale, negotiators from oil-producing countries are already talking about using it to “abate” or lessen the impact of fossil fuel burning, suggesting the final Cop28 deal should only target “unabated” fossil fuels. “Not only that, allows operations to extract fossil fuels to continue, it’s a bit of a get out of jail free card for fossil fuel companies.” Climate activists staged a protest against these technical proposals on Friday morning as they demanded a focus on “real solutions” instead, with chants of “our planet is not for sale” echoing out in front of the flag-lined boulevard where world leaders walked on the first day of the summit. But Shaw says the “majority of hydrogen” produced globally is “fossil hydrogen” – where the power to create the hydrogen out of water comes from burning fossil fuels.