COP29:the priority is, as usual, the agreement on the carbon credit market

The first results of COP29, the United Nations Conference on Climate Change, do not seem to give much hope regarding a real possibility of change with respect to environmental policies.There are numerous partners of the event involved in the fossil energy sector, while the president of Azerbaijan (COP host country), Ilham Aliyev, himself defined oil and gas as a "gift from God".In this context, the first results of the Conference were an estimate of the investments necessary, by the Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs), for the financing of sustainable policies by 2030 and the achievement of a official agreement on the global carbon market under the auspices of the United Nations.The latter, however, constitutes a form of true neocolonialism, as it is based on the exploitation of the lands and resources belonging to local communities to allow large companies to continue polluting undisturbed.

The adoption of a global carbon market has been scope completed thanks to the work of a small group of technicians from the Supervisory Body and could be in operation as early as next year.This is a solution that would not change the system underlying the environmental problem one iota, and would actually risk encouraging it.In fact, large companies will be able to continue to undisturbed emitting greenhouse gases and polluting thanks to massive operations greenwashing:the revenues from the carbon quotas of climate-changing companies should in fact, at least in theory, finance decarbonisation, but, according to what has been found by environmental associations, less than 58% of the proceeds have so far been reinvested in projects useful for the climate.In this way, therefore, nothing else is done regulate a system that exploits emissions to create a new business and therefore new profits.As reported by Reuters, the International Emissions Trading Association (a business group that supports global carbon markets) said that total trading in the UN-backed market could generate, by 2030, 250 billion dollars a year.All without taking into account the political, social and economic consequences that will be suffered by the populations whose territories are part of the carbon market projects and who will therefore be depleted of their resources.The carbon credit market puts in fact on motorbike real mechanisms neocolonialism, as it is based on the theft of lands and resources to local communities and indigenous populations to be able to support projects that operate within this market.

In addition to this, it was established that the investment of the MDBs (which include the World Bank, the European, Asian, African, Inter-American and Islamic Development Banks, as well as the European Investment Bank and the New Development Bank ) to finance sustainable policies should amount to a total of 170 billion dollars.Of these, approximately 120 billion they will serve to finance climate projects for low- and middle-income countries, while 50 billion will be allocated to high-income countries.There is, however, very little information about how the money will be spent, which constitutes an alarm signal above all to the light from the little transparency which distinguishes bodies such as the World Bank when it comes to "climate" investments.

[by Michele Manfrin]