India plans to spend $6 billion on new forests to help meet Paris targets
India’s government plans to spend $6.2 billion to increase the country’s green cover and help meet the targets it has set under the Paris climate agreement. The bill, which has already been passed by lawmakers in India’s lower house this week and is now waiting to be passed by the upper house, aims to increase India’s forest cover from 21.34% of the total land to 33%. The money comes from the fee paid by various private companies and other entities to the Indian government since 2006 for allowing them to set up projects on forest land. “Our forest cover will dramatically increase and it will result in achieving our target 33% of tree cover and most importantly 2.5 billion tonne of carbon sink as we have indicated in our intended nationally determined contributions (INDC),” India’s Environment Minister, Prakash Javadekar said. However, experts have expressed their doubts, saying a mechanism is needed to monitor that the funds are used correctly. (Quartz)
Tax
US launches crackdown on international tax evasion
Barack Obama is launching a crackdown on international tax evasion in response to recent disclosures in the Panama Papers. The US President will take executive action to close loopholes used by foreigners in the US and call on Congress to pass legislation. The package of measures is among the most comprehensive responses yet to the Panama Papers revelations. The initial measures outlined by the White House largely focus on increasing transparency regulations as a tool to flush further offshore tax abuses into the open. The White House and Treasury have also called on Congress to pass a series of detailed measures they say would more directly tackle the problem of offshore tax avoidance in the longer run, such as countering money laundering and corruption, and cracking down on tax evasion. (Guardian)
Policy
International coalition formed to boost green city planning
The Coalition for Urban Transitions, a new initiative launched yesterday at the ongoing Climate Action 2016 Summit in Washington, brings together over 20 major public and private institutions, including Siemens, PwC and the UK Department for International Development (DFID). It aims to make the economic case for greener and more sustainable urban development by helping ministers around the world put city infrastructure investment “at the heart of their growth strategies”. The coalition will work in a number of rapidly-urbanising countries, such as China and India, to support development of mass transport systems and smart city technology. The news comes just days after Japanese car manufacturer Nissan last week announced the launch of a cross-industry advisory board on the future of mobility. (Business Green)
Shower gel plastic beads may face UK ban
The UK government says it will consider a unilateral ban on plastic microbeads in shower gels and facial scrubs if the EU doesn’t prohibit their use. Several nations, including the US, have already banned microbeads in cosmetics because of their impact on marine life. The beads are so tiny they slip through water treatment works and enter the ocean, where they are ingested by fish and other creatures. Scientists say a ban on the tiny beads wouldn’t solve plastic pollution, but it is an easy place to start. MPs on the Environmental Audit Committee are due to start hearings on microplastics on Monday. Prof Richard Thompson from Plymouth University told the committee in written evidence that one third of 504 fish tested from the English Channel had plastic in their digestive tract. (BBC)
Climate Change
Plans for coal-fired power in Asia are ‘disaster for planet’ warns World Bank
Plans to build more coal fired power plants in Asia would be a “disaster for the planet” and overwhelm the deal forged at Paris to fight climate change, said Jim Yong Kim, President of the World Bank. He noted that countries in south and south-east Asia were on track to build hundreds more coal fired power plants in the next 20 years, despite promises made at Paris to cut greenhouse gas emissions and pivot to a clean energy future. On their own, China, India, Indonesia and Vietnam are expected to build three quarters of new coal fired power plants around the world in the next five years. “If all of the business-as-usual coal-fired power plants in India, China, Vietnam and Indonesia all came online that would take up a very significant part – in fact almost all – of the carbon budget,” said John Roome, the Bank’s senior climate change official. (Guardian)
Image source: Moss sun same wall green city by Mermyhh / Public Domain
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