Tonga is fully behind the Pacific Island position of a lower than 1.5 degree Celsius temperature rise target and a stand-alone loss and damage mechanism in the proposed Paris Agreement on climate change, says Deputy Prime Minister Siaosi Sovaleni
In an in interview at the margins of COP21 negotiations for a new global agreement on climate change that enter its second and final week today, Deputy PM Sovaleni said any temperature increase above 1.5 degrees will severely impact the island kingdom.
He added Tonga is playing its part in proposing mitigation and adaptation goals through the submissions of its Intended Nationally Determined Contributions, INDCs to the UNFCCC. Key targets in Tonga’s INDC include;
· 50% of electricity generation from renewable energy by 2020, and 70% by 2030
· Reducing electricity line losses to 9% by 2020 to improve energy efficiency
· Doubling the 2015 number of marine protected areas by 2030
“For renewable energy, we are looking at a combination of solar, wind and biomass. Right now we are 10% into renewable energy, so we need to up this by 40% by 2020,” said DPM Sovaleni.
His country’s INDC submission also noted that whilst the kingdom’s contribution to global greenhouse gas emissions is negligible, damage from destructive tropical cyclones cost on average 20% of its GDP. In addition, 30% of the kingdom’s ODA in the past six years is being used to save the kingdom’s coastline from constant soil loss.
Tonga is playing a key role in advocating the Pacific position at COP21 as its Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Mahe ‘Uli’uli Sandhurst Tupouniua is the current chair of the Pacific members of SIDS (small island developing states).
Ambassador Tupouniua convenes a meeting of Pacific negotiators including ministers to discuss negotiation positions and strategies on a daily basis at the venue of COP21 in Le Bourget