UAE 'considering' net-zero emissions target ahead of COP26

The United Arab Emirates is looking at ways to meet a global net-zero emissions target set by the UK and the US, before the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) taking place in Glasgow this autumn. 

The deliberation over potential solutions comes as scientists predict countries in the Middle East are warming at twice the global average.

 “Don’t expect us to announce anything by the COP26, but we are considering a net-zero target like any other part of the world,” Qais Al Suwaidi, head of the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment told Bloomberg.

To hit the net-zero target, countries must balance out the amount of greenhouse gas emissions produced and the amount removed from the atmosphere.

In order to meet the global warming target set in the Paris Agreement – limiting the global temperature increase to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels – global carbon emissions must reach net zero by 2050.

Al-Suwaidi said the UAE is moving slowly on the issue because it wants to ensure that a net-zero commitment can be protected under law.

“There is a lot of talk: ‘We can achieve net zero, we’re going to do this, we’re going to do that’,” Al-Suwaidi said.

“But then in practice we see contrary action. We like to do things differently.”

He went on to add that the UAE needs to conduct more studies to see how quickly it can reach net zero.

Last year the UAE pledged to cut greenhouse gas emissions by nearly 25 percent over a 10-year period.