Web 57DHYAFZZFLMB November 12 2026 COP 31 in Turkey and US Climate Cut Investigations
At the Residents Against Wood Smoke Emission Particulates November Twelfth of Heaven
Topics include Thursday actions at COP 31 in Turkey and U S Climate Cut Investigations.
At COP 31 UN Secretary General António Guterres urged nations to end addiction to fossil fuels.
Fossil fuels must go the way of the dinosaurs. The dinosaurs did not have a lobby, but fossil fuels do.
Saudi Arabia’s energy minister, Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, said that cutting emissions could happen through “available techniques,” and emphasized the importance of “maintaining energy security.”
Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman means Saudi Arabia intends to lower greenhouse gas emissions
through technological fixes such as carbon capture, energy efficiency, and flaring reduction
rather than phasing out or abruptly cutting back on the production and export of fossil fuels.
Think of this like repairing a car’s tailpipe emissions with filters and fuel adjustments rather than
getting rid of the car itself. What “Available techniques” Means in Practice Carbon capture, utilization, and storage CCUS, methane leak reduction, hydrogen development, and energy efficiency upgrades which allow fossil fuels to keep burning while capturing some of the resulting carbon.
“Maintaining energy security” Means in Practice Ensuring a steady, uninterrupted supply of oil and gas
to the global economy, preventing price spikes, and protecting Saudi state revenues from a rapid, forced contraction of the hydrocarbon market. Speakers on the side of protecting the earth will include
newcomer to COP31 Prime Minister Andy Burnham of Britain, who is scheduled to speak on Thursday.
He was expected to be the only leader of the Group of 7 wealthy nations to attend the climate summit.
Nations agreed three years ago to transition away from fossil fuels, starting with steps this decade. But some oil- and gas-exporting countries have since ramped up production. Carbon emissions continue to rise. Countries like Saudi Arabia and Russia have blocked recent U.N. conferences from revisiting the deal and fleshing out specifics. Speaker calling for more action to be taken include President Hilda Heine of the Marshall Islands, and newly re-elected President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva of Brazil who said climate change had “disappeared” from the global stage over the past two years. Without directly mentioning the United States or President Trump, who has imposed steep tariffs on Brazilian products, he said, “We started talking more about weapons and tariffs than the survival of future generations.” Andrea Woods, a spokeswoman for the American Petroleum Institute, the main oil and gas lobbying group in the United States, said the industry has significantly reduced emissions since 2015, and “Rather than restricting the infrastructure needed to meet growing energy demand, policymakers should be focused on practical solutions that build on this progress and strengthen global energy security,”
U S Climate Cut Investigations in Two Thousand Twenty Seven will be led by U S Representative Zoe Lofgren, Democrat of California, who is expected to chair the House Science Committee next year, and
U S Representative Jared Huffman of California the top Democrat on the House Committee on Natural Resources who put his own likely targets on notice to preserve documents, including some agencies
also contacted by the Science Committee. Zoe Lofgren for the Science Committee asked about the rare earths deal after several Democratic lawmakers warned that the arrangement the White House struck has the appearance of corruption. The deal calls for the government to invest as much as One point Six Billion Dollars in USA Rare Earth, a mineral company based in Oklahoma, in exchange for a Ten percent stake in the firm. Democrats say the company leveraged the government investment to raise One point Five Billion Dollars in private funds, using Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick’s former firm as a placement agent. The Science committee is investigating a report published by the Energy Department that designed to undermine the credibility of climate science while Trump prepared to roll back landmark rules limiting carbon emissions. Energy Secretary Chris Wright handpicked five researchers to work on the report in secret. The Science committee also investigates Trump efforts to dismantle the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Colorado. A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction blocking the Trump plan. Democrats suspect Trump of trying to improperly transfer the agency’s space weather program to a private company. Jared Huffman of California sent a letter to Lithium Americas, a mining operation in which Trump claimed a Five percent equity stake. Large oil companies among the biggest beneficiaries of the administration’s regulatory rollbacks were sent directives to preserve documents.
Similar justifications for fossil fuel burning continuing are made for continuance of wood burning.