Climate change: 8 billion reasons to worry

Presented by Clean Fuels Alliance America: Your guide to the political forces shaping the energy transformation

Nov 16, 2022 View in browser   By Arianna Skibell Presented by Clean Fuels Alliance America Traffic and pedestrians mingle in Uttar Pradesh, India's most populous state. | Ritesh Shukla/Getty Images The number of people who stand to bear the brunt from climate change just got bigger. According to a new estimate from the United Nations, 8 billion people are living on the planet now, up from 7 billion in 2010. Most of that growth is happening in poorer nations that have contributed the least to the climate crisis — and yet are vulnerable to its impacts and lack the resources to adapt to a warming world. Key to adaptation: sustainable, affordable energy. "Ensuring that people have affordable access to clean energy, water and education is going to be key for these countries to be able to adapt to the hardest climate change impacts," said Vanessa Pérez-Cirera, the director of the World Resources Institute's Global Economics Center. "Still, the greatest consumption of resources per capita is coming from the North." While U.S. population growth has slowed dramatically and its greenhouse gas emissions have fallen since 2005 , the country is still one of the world's leading carbon polluters, second only to China. Populations are also growing slowly or even declining in other wealthy, industrialized countries that have contributed mightily to the globe's warming for more than a century. But meeting the world's climate targets means all countries need to move away from burning fossil fuels for energy, the main cause of human-driven climate change. Helping poorer countries make the switch is a key focus of the international climate summit happening in Egypt this week — as is paying reparations for the climate damage they have already incurred, a major flashpoint in the talks. More than half of projected population increases are concentrated in eight countries already grappling with climate-fueled disasters: the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines and Tanzania. India, which is projected to surpass China as the world's most populous country next year, experienced a deadly heat wave this spring that disproportionately affected the millions of people who lack air conditioning. In Pakistan, nearly 2,000 people died this year after massive flooding inundated the country. Overall, the rate of global growth is slowing, and the world's population is expected to peak at 10.4 billion by century's end. The challenge is the speed of change in a world still heavily reliant on fossil fuels. The hurdle for poorer countries to transition to cleaner power is greater. Pérez-Cirera said that in the past 20 years, only 2 percent of renewable investment has gone to Africa, contributing to delays in planned adaptation projects . Sub-Saharan Africa is expected to contribute more than half the anticipated population increase through 2050, according to the United Nations. "When you hear that, it's really a wake up call," she said.   It's Wednesday — thank you for tuning in to POLITICO's Power Switch. I'm your host,  Arianna Skibell.  Power Switch is brought to you by the journalists behind E&E News and POLITICO Energy. Send your tips, comments, questions to  askibell@eenews.net. Listen to today's POLITICO Energy podcast Today in POLITICO Energy's podcast: With Democrats controlling the Senate and Republicans likely holding a majority in the House, Ben Lefebvre and host Josh Siegel discuss what to watch in the energy policy space. Russia's war Ukraine needs key components like generators, pipes and valves to repair its infrastructure. | Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images Ukraine says it is running out of options to bring heat and power back online as it prepares for another round of Russian attacks on its energy infrastructure, write Erin Banco and Andrew Desiderio. Ukrainian officials have in recent days asked their American counterparts and more than half a dozen European countries for assistance preparing for a prolonged period with limited electricity and gas — a scenario Kyiv expects to complicate fighting on the ground.   A message from Clean Fuels Alliance America: Clean fuels such as biodiesel, renewable diesel, and sustainable aviation fuel are good for our farmers, our rural and urban communities, our economy, our country, and our planet. Representing fuel and feedstock producers and other members, Clean Fuels Alliance America is moving the industry onward to an even brighter future. Learn more at cleanfuels.org.   Power Centers Huts made of branches and cloth provide shelter to Somalis displaced by drought. | AP Aid paradox New climate aid is finally beginning to flow to poorer nations that burn fossil fuels. Left on the sidelines are countries that use some of the smallest amounts of energy in the world, writes Jean Chemnick from Egypt. Many of the programs unveiled at COP27 benefit emerging countries with power grids that buzz with electricity derived from coal. They so far are not helping nations where electric lights and gas cooking remain stubbornly elusive. Hydrogen battle brews The developer of a $4.5 billion hydrogen project in Louisiana is in a legal battle with local lawmakers in a case that analysts say could preview conflicts around the country, writes David Iaconangelo. The captured carbon from the project would be piped into a permanent storage facility located deep beneath Lake Maurepas, a destination for sportspeople and commercial fishing that also borders a protected swamp. Accounting tricks? Some climate campaigners are alleging there's some hocus-pocus going on with the emissions reduction numbers the European Union is proudly touting at the COP27 climate summit, write Federica Di Sario and Louise Guillot. The EU says it's one of the few parties to the Paris Agreement to actually follow through with its promised carbon reductions. But climate nongovernmental organizations are lot more skeptical.   A message from Clean Fuels Alliance America:   in other news Brazilian President-elect Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. | AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty Lula's take: Brazil's incoming president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, laid out his vision at COP27 for the world's largest rainforest and the future of a warming planet. On the media: Scores of newspapers and news organizations across the world co-published a joint editorial calling for a windfall tax on fossil fuel companies.   POLITICO APP USERS: UPGRADE YOUR APP BY DECEMBER 19! We recently upgraded the POLITICO app with a fresh look and improved features for easier access to POLITICO's scoops and groundbreaking reporting. Starting December 19, users will no longer have access to the previous version of the app. Update your app today to stay on top of essential political news, insights, and analysis from the best journalists in the business. UPDATE iOS APP – UPDATE ANDROID APP .     Subscriber Zone A showcase of some of our best subscriber content. Frans Timmermans, executive vice president of the European Commission. | Nariman El-Mofty/AP Photo After years of hesitancy, the EU called for industrialized countries to begin paying nations that have suffered irreversible climate damage for their hardships. Landowner and conservation groups are petitioning the Interior Department to overhaul bonding rules for oil and gas drillers on public lands. Rhode Island regulators are considering shelving an offshore wind project's proposed transmission line amid economic pressures. That's it for today, folks! Thanks for reading.   A message from Clean Fuels Alliance America: Clean fuels such as biodiesel, renewable diesel, and sustainable aviation fuel are good for our farmers, our rural and urban communities, our economy, our country, and our planet. In fact, the economic impacts of the clean fuels industry are significant. As of 2021, the clean fuels industry contributed a total U.S. economic impact (direct, indirect, induced) of $23.2 billion; supported 75,200 U.S. jobs throughout the economy/country; and paid $3.6 billion in wages. Representing fuel and feedstock producers and other members, Clean Fuels Alliance America is moving the industry onward to an even brighter future. Learn more at cleanfuels.org.     Less than one month to go to our POLITICO Live's Sustainable Future Week! From November 29 to December 1, we will delve into climate geopolitics, the circular economy, green energy, mobility, and tech. Limited spots to join us in Brussels for exclusive closed-door debates and networking moments with top policymakers and industry leaders. Find out who is joining us and register today .       Follow us on Twitter Arianna Skibell @ariannaskibell   Follow us

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