BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 12. The US approved emissions tax in the oil and gas sector today, Senior Advisor to the President of the US on International Climate Policy John Podesta said during the COP29 summit on methane and non-CO2 greenhouse gases, Trend reports.
"The US remains committed to achieving net-zero emissions of all greenhouse gases no later than 2050, and we hope other countries will follow our lead by setting their own targets for all greenhouse gases. Over the past four years, the US has made significant progress in reducing methane and non-CO2 greenhouse gas emissions on its territory.
Last year, we announced new regulations to reduce methane emissions in the oil and gas sector, which is our largest source of methane, by 80 percent, and today, the US has approved a fee for emissions in the oil and gas industry under the Biden Inflation Reduction Act, which provides for an increase in the fee for major methane emitters to $1,500 per metric ton by 2026," Podesta added.
To note, the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29), which will run until November 22, opened on November 11 at the Baku Olympic Stadium.
The event is the largest organized by Azerbaijan to date and is the first time the region has hosted the event in Azerbaijan. Within COP29, the highest-level event - the summit of world leaders on climate action - will be held on November 12–13.
The main expectation from COP29 is to agree on a fair and ambitious New Collective Quantitative Goal (NCQG) on climate finance. The COP29 chairmanship has launched 14 initiatives that include linkages between climate action and the Sustainable Development Goals, including green energy corridors, green energy storage, harmony for climate resilience, clean hydrogen, methane reduction in organic waste, action on green digital technologies, and other topics.
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