Top climate officials from the World Bank said that the process of shifting from fossil fuels should be cautiously supervised to prevent the tragic burst of the so-called "carbon bubble."
Rachel Kyte, the Bank's special envoy for climate change, said that for decades, the world has depended on coal, gas and oil, making these products the center of the global economy. She added that as the world transitions to alternative energies, the polluting sectors defy a possible disastrous breakdown.
Kyte also told the AFP during the Bank's annual meeting in Peru that if we welcome the idea that we require to have less carbon, then a financial risk may arise because the companies that are significantly invested in carbon are outstanding in the economy. "That's the whole question of the carbon bubble," she said.
In December 2015, United Nations will conduct climate talks in Paris, France, and try to set an in-depth deal on slashing carbon emissions. However, arriving at a deal will give way to a massive debate among central bankers and finance ministers, in terms of how to put it into action, without shaking oil and gas companies, as well as carbon industries. According to Kyte, these sectors are already in the midst of an increasing divestment movement.
Wealthy nations have pledged to come up with the budget target of $100 billion per year by 2020 but as per Kyte, the real cost of restricting climate change and coping with its effects may entail far more than that. She added that the said target is politically essential because it was vowed by those who "caused the problem."
Above all, we have to tread the low-carbon path. This means having radical alterations and big investments for transportation, cities and industries.
"That's not a $100 billion problem, that's a trillion dollar problem," she closed.
Photo: Rennett Stowe | Flickr
