Environmentalists have criticized the decision of leaders meeting in Japan to support the construction of new infrastructure for liquefied natural gas, a fossil fuel that warms the planet.
In its final statement, the Group of Seven countries said that “investment in this sector could be appropriate to deal with the current crisis and to deal with the potential shortage in the gas market resulting from the Russian-Russian war. Ukrainian”.
“In the exceptional circumstances of accelerating our gradual disengagement from our dependence on Russian energy, subsidized investments in the gas sector could be appropriate as a temporary response,” she added.
She also said this must be done in a manner consistent with efforts to reduce global warming.
Greenpeace International’s Tracy Carty said the approval of new fossil gas infrastructure was “outright denial of the climate emergency”.
“Fossil gas is one of the dirtiest forms of energy, and in its liquefied form its carbon emissions can be as harmful as coal,” she added.
Global Citizen’s Friederike Roeder said Germany’s role in the G7 talks “was particularly disappointing”.
“The EU’s role in international climate diplomacy is essential, but if Germany, as the largest member state, continues to focus its bargaining power on new gas investments rather than leading the way in a future without fossil fuels, this will not be possible,” she added.
German government spokesman Steffen Heppestreit noted that all G7 countries have now set targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to “net zero” by mid-century or earlier, which which means that the gas will only be used for a maximum of another 27 years.
“There will also be a need for gas during this period,” he told reporters in Berlin.
“In the past, Germany never said that it completely refused to exploit new gas fields,” Heppestreit said.
During their meeting in Hiroshima, the G7 leaders also expressed their support for energy saving measures and the rapid implementation of the production of renewable energies such as wind and solar power.
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