Malaysia should tweak policies ahead of climate change forum

In November, the 197 parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change will meet for the 26th instalment of the Conference of Parties (COP26) in Glasgow, Scotland.

COP26, postponed by a year because of Covid-19, is the most significant UN climate conference to be held since COP21, during which the Paris Agreement was adopted.

This is because one of the key provisions in Paris was for countries to update their "nationally determined contributions" (NDCs) every five years.

In many countries, including Malaysia, NDCs set the tone and ambition for national climate-related policies, including for sectors as varied as agriculture, energy, transport, and waste, as well as more blanket policy options, such as carbon pricing.

Yet, the set of NDCs submitted by parties to the Paris Agreement would lead to an average global surface temperature rise of 2.8˚C, significantly higher than the target of "well under" 2˚C.

Given the clear need for increased climate ambition, 63 countries have proposed or submitted new NDCs ahead of COP26.

While some of these, such as those submitted by Australia, Brazil, Mexico and South Korea, do not feature NDCs that reflect increased climate ambition, many others do.

The NDC submitted by the United States, for instance, to reduce emissions by at least 50 percent relative to 2005 levels, is almost significant enough to be consistent with a 1.5˚C pathway, and can play an important role in ensuring that one of the world's biggest polluters achieves its goal of net-zero emissions by 2050.

China is becoming the standard-bearer for Asian nations.

Its latest NDCs feature several targets set for 2030, including peak in carbon-dioxide emissions, reduction in the carbon intensity of production by at least 65 per cent, and increase in its share of renewable energy consumption to 25 per cent by deploying solar and wind technology.

China's approach focuses on multiple metrics that underscore its climate ambitions.

Malaysia is in the process of updating its NDC.

The country's pledge is to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emission intensity of gross domestic product (GDP) by 35 per cent (or 45 per cent conditional on international support) by 2030, relative to 2005 levels.

The shortcomings of this approach are well documented. In essence, it overlooks the root cause of climate change: total emissions.

This is because as long as the growth rate of GDP exceeds the growth rate of emissions, emission intensity of GDP will decrease, even if no action is taken to, for example, reduce the dependence on fossil fuels (around 92 to 95 per cent of electricity generated in Malaysia is derived from coal, natural gas and oil).

Malaysia's NDC, therefore, does not necessarily incentivise the adoption of low-carbon practices and technologies.

Yet, these shifts are important should Malaysia wish to address the issue of climate change.

As COP26 draws closer, more attention will need to be paid to what Malaysia can do to establish itself as a regional or even international climate leader.

There is a need for a whole-of-nation approach to understanding feasible long-term low-emission pathways and strategies available, but until then, and given the absence of a detailed policy document on climate change, the importance of Malaysia's NDCs to domestic climate action cannot be understated.

Malaysia's foremost NDC should involve a commitment to either a peaking of emissions or outright emission reductions by a specified date.

This would boost the development of low-carbon industries, drive sustainable, cross-sectoral economic growth, attract international climate finance and investment and ensure progress in Malaysia's achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, many of which are linked to climate action.

Ultimately, it is imperative that the NDCs Malaysia announces are broad in terms of scope, in that they necessitate decarbonisation across industries and sectors, and ambitious to ensure that national climate-related policies put long-term downward pressure on the trajectory of future emissions.

For a start, Malaysia must ensure its GHG emissions do not continue rising and beyond this, put in place a robust climate policy ecosystem that would allow for an effective low-carbon transition.

The writer is an analyst with the Technology, Innovation, Environment and Sustainability division at the Institute of Strategic and International Studies Malaysia


The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the New Straits Times

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