Malaysia aims to become a carbon-neutral country by 2050, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaacob, adding that economic instruments such as carbon pricing and a carbon tax will be introduced.
As UN Secretary-General, António Guterres remarked, "Climate change is the defining issue of our time – and we are at a defining moment." Such an ambitious goal is a great move to tackle climate change and not be akin to "putting the cart before the horse."
"Environmental threats are accompanied by a recognition that ecological interdependence does not respect national boundaries and that issues once considered to be matters of national concern have international implications at the bilateral, subregional, regional or global levels that can often only be addressed by international cooperation", according to Philippe Sands and Jacqueline Peel.
"Climate change, ozone depletion, loss of biodiversity, toxic and hazardous pollution of air and sea, pollution of rivers and depletion of freshwater resources are among the issues given that land, sea and the air spaces of planet Earth are shared and are not naturally distributed among the states of the world. Economic activities can have an effect directly or cumulatively on environment."
Unabated climate change will transform our global economies and societies by a series of unprecedented disasters and slow onset events. A safe and sustainable future can only be achieved through a fundamental transformation into low emission and climate-resilient economies and societies (Hermwille, 2016; Kinley, 2017).
In reducing greenhouse gas emissions, the best practices would include energy efficiency, green buildings, technology, conservation, re-engineering and other means. Although Malaysia contributes less than 0.7 per cent of the world's emissions, public policy support at the national level will be needed to operationalise a robust approach for the market's future activities, international environmental law depends on their effectiveness on domestic implementation.
One of the issues raised is that "phasing out coal as a primary source of energy generation could also increase the price of electricity if done without an adequate substitution plan, adding that it would have a knock-on effect of causing prices to rise for consumers".
However, according to a report by financial analytics company TransitionZero., China could stand to benefit economically if it can successfully replace coal with renewable energy. China has also embraced the 'green growth' approach for responding to the challenges of climate change.
China has become the world leader in technology investment and installed capacity in wind and solar power, as well as in introducing electrical cars, as stated by Korsnes. The development of energy-efficient technologies, as well as further non-fossil development of solar and wind power, will be crucial for tackling emissions.
These efforts have yielded results: China has emerged as the world leader in renewable energy and also leads in electric vehicle use and battery production. It is crucial for Malaysia to prioritised measures, laws and policies to reduce coal consumption and develop renewable energy, especially solar and wind.
The multi-dimensional targets defined by the 2015 Paris Agreement and UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) imply the need for drastic changes in energy investment patterns over the coming decades, both in total volume and composition (Hasegawa et al., 2018; McCollum, Echeverri, et al., 2018; McCollum, Zhou, et al., 2018).
"Covid and climate have brought us to a threshold. We cannot go back to the old normal of inequality and fragility; instead, we must step towards a safer, more sustainable path. This is a complex policy test and an urgent moral test. With decisions today setting our course for decades to come, we must make pandemic recovery and climate action two sides of the same coin" as stated by Guterres.
Although the details of carbon reduction in Malaysia have yet to be finalised, fixing a goal to achieve carbon neutrality as early as 2050 would trigger a major shift in the country's energy policy, moving towards renewable technologies to meet Malaysia's energy needs and create more green jobs.
As such, national policies in Malaysia also shape the landscape of energy in important ways as fundamental transformation into low emission and climate-resilient economies to achieve a safe and sustainable future.
Thus, Malaysia's commitment to becoming a carbon-neutral country by 2050 should be applauded.
* The writer is a law graduate and youth advocate, who is passionate about youth empowerment, climate change, human rights, social justice and quality education in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals or New Urban Agenda to build more sustainable, inclusive and resilient cities