Turkiye set to declare goals for climate change fight at COP27

The COP27 summit opened in Egypt on Sunday, bringing together the international community to tackle climate change. The 12-day event on climate change comes as the world also grapples with multiple crises, including high inflation, food shortages and an energy crunch.

For its part, Türkiye, which took major steps to help solve the international struggle, will present its work on its contribution to the Secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change at the summit.

Environment, Urban Planning and Climate Change Minister Murat Kurum announced the plan last week as he chaired a meeting of the Climate Change and Adaptation Coordination Committee in the capital Ankara, where the ultimate discussions to put the final touches on the declaration were held. He said Türkiye would be an exemplary country in the fight against climate change in the new century and will be a “model” with its net-zero emission goal by 2053 and green development activities, which will be supported by the country’s Climate Law, expected to be enacted by the Turkish Parliament soon. He said ministries would coordinate the efforts for the development of Türkiye in an environmentally friendly way. “We are working to find common ground where no one, from industrialists and farmers to all citizens, is left behind,” he said.

Experts and academics expect Türkiye to set clear, concrete emission reduction goals.

Ümit Şahin, the coordinator of climate change studies at Istanbul Policy Center, said that although last year’s summit decided to reinforce national declaration of contribution, only 24 countries adopted the decision. Speaking to Anadolu Agency (AA), Şahin said the primary expectation from the summit was for other countries to declare new emission reduction goals complying with the global temperature rise limit of 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit). COP27 aims to limit global warming to that goal, as stated in the 2015 Paris Agreement.

Şahin said it was important to stop all new fossil fuel investments, including coal, and that a significant reduction in their use by 2050 was a necessity. Şahin also said COP27’s hot topic would be the allocation of funds for underdeveloped countries that suffered economic losses due to climate change-related disasters, with the said funds provided by developed Western countries that have a historic responsibility as actors in aggravating the climate crisis.

He said it was important for Türkiye to make a clear stand at the summit in terms of abandoning coal and setting a net-zero emission goal. “Last year, Türkiye supported decisions to that extent. Türkiye’s support for underdeveloped countries in compensation for their losses can make a difference,” he said. Şahin added that Türkiye did not adopt a “coal exit” policy yet, did not update its national contribution declaration and it should take faster and more determined steps. “It is high time to declare that we will have less greenhouse gas emissions in 2030, regardless of its volume,” he said. “Türkiye doesn’t have any more time to lose for green transformation, something unanimously agreed upon and something that will positively affect the Turkish economy as well.”

Citing a report by Istanbul Policy Center, Şahin said Türkiye is capable of reducing its carbon dioxide emissions by 32% more by 2030 compared to 2018 levels and will not have any economic problems due to the reduction. “The formula is simple. We have to end the use of coal in energy production by 2035 and stop building new coal plants. We have to at least triple the installation of renewable energy plants, primarily wind and solar power, and plan incentives to that extent. We have to start investing in energy storage to facilitate renewable energy’s integration into the current system. We have to increase the share of mass transportation in general transportation and increase the transportation of goods by railroad. We have to set out a goal to increase the sales of electric cars by at least 20% by 2030 and pursue active policies for energy efficiency in buildings and industries,” he said.

“These are not new issues for Türkiye and our country has enough expertise, economic actors and technology to achieve these. It is not about financing either. It is more about changing the funding priority and it entirely depends on political decisiveness,” he said.

Professor Ebru Voyvoda from Middle East Technical University (METU) in the capital Ankara, said she expects Türkiye to declare a “concrete and assertive goal.” “Such a goal will place the Turkish economy on the path of a serious technological, financial and structural transformation like in European Union and give a positive momentum for economic growth and climate goals,” she told AA.

“Turning the current energy crisis into an advantage for Türkiye and achieving a 35% emission reduction goal by 2030 compared to 2020 is a path that can be taken by abandoning coal immediately in energy production and boosting renewable energy capacity,” she said.