MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

COP30's final document leaves fossil fuels unmentioned

Corrêa do Lago acknowledged the disappointment of some attendees (Pic GETTY IMAGES)

The 30th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30) concluded in Belém, Brazil, with the approval of a final document that has drawn both consensus and sharp criticism for its lack of ambition, particularly its silence on the future of fossil fuels.

The “Collective Effort Decision,” adopted by consensus after intense negotiations —including a brief suspension due to objections from several Latin American nations— makes no explicit reference to a phase-out or transition away from coal, oil, and natural gas. This omission comes despite insistent pressure from the European Union (EU) and nations such as Colombia, France.

Conference Chairman André Corrêa do Lago acknowledged the disappointment of some attendees during his closing plenary speech, noting that some countries “had greater ambitions.”

To compensate for the glaring absence of concrete language on hydrocarbons, Corrêa do Lago, representing the Brazilian presidency, pledged to create two separate “roadmaps” over the coming year: one for the fossil fuel transition and another to reverse deforestation. The COP30 agreement was also criticized for failing to establish new commitments to halt deforestation or address global meat consumption.

The document does reaffirm a commitment to the 2015 Paris Agreement and the crucial goal of limiting the global temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

The plenary approved a definitive list of “indicators” intended to measure progress in climate change adaptation actions.

The chapter on financing maintains the agreement from COP29 in Baku, which “urges” wealthy nations to remain “on track” toward the goal of contributing US$300 billion annually to emerging countries.

The summit ended with a call for increased ambition in actions to address global warming, though the final text itself provided little immediate mechanism to achieve it.