UN chief criticizes fossil fuel industry and its supporters
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UN Secretary-General António Guterres said that countries must confront the fossil fuel industry and companies that support efforts to obstruct climate action.
The UN chief, a vocal critic of oil and gas companies’ impact on climate change, accused the industry of spending billions to “distort the truth, deceive the public, and sow doubt” about climate change.
He called for investments in clean energy and highlighted that the industry allocates “a measly 2.5%” of its total capital to clean energy alternatives.
During a speech at the American Museum of Natural History in New York, he said, “I call on these companies to stop acting as enablers to planetary destruction. Stop taking on new fossil fuel clients, from today, and set out plans to drop your existing ones.”
Additionally, he criticized financial institutions, media, and public relations firms for endorsing the industry’s advertisements and accepting content sponsorships.
Countries should ban such advertising, he said, as many countries do for tobacco and other products that have proven harmful to human health.
Guterres called on banks and investors to stop financing fossil-fuel projects and “provide public, credible, and detailed plans to shift funding from fossil fuels to clean energy, with clear targets set for 2025 and 2030.”
Read more: UN climate chief appeals for $2.4 trillion in climate finance
Over the next 18 months, Guterres emphasized the need for countries to prioritize reducing emissions, safeguarding people and nature from climate extremes, increasing climate finance, and curbing the fossil fuel industry.
“It is high time to implement an effective carbon pricing system and tax the windfall profits of fossil fuel companies,” Guterres stated.
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