EU's environment commissioner urges global focus on climate agreement implementation

The G20 environment and climate sustainability ministers convened in Chennai to reassert their commitment to combatting climate change and usher in a new era of environmental responsibility.

Virginijus Sinkevicius, the Commissioner for Environment at the European Union in an interview to CNBC-TV18, emphasised the significance of the agreements reached in the past, such as the Paris Agreement, the Global Biodiversity Framework, and the BBNJ Agreement. These milestones marked the commitment of world economies towards mitigating climate change and preserving the planet's biodiversity. However, Commissioner Sinkevicius stressed that the time has come to focus on translating these agreements into action.

“World economies had reached on historic agreements on climate change- starting with the Paris Agreement, the Global Bio-diversity Framework, the BBNJ Agreement, but now we need to focus on implementation,” Sinkevicius said.

Commissioner Sinkevicius further brought attention to the ongoing environmental damage resulting from the Russia-Ukraine war. The conflict has inflicted significant harm on the environment, leading to a dire accumulation of pollution, which could have far-reaching consequences for the region and beyond. The Black Sea, in particular, stands as a potential recipient of this mounting pollution.

“Environmental damage due to the Russia Ukraine war is piling up every day and it is going to have long term consequences. So all of this pollution due to war will end up at the Black Sea,” Sinkevicius said.