G-7 countries commit to restrict international coal funding

Environment and climate leaders from Group of Seven (G-7) countries, made up of several advanced economies, said Friday that they will aim to put restrictions on funding for international power produced from coal. 

“Recognising that continued global investment in unabated coal power generation is incompatible with keeping 1.5°C, we stress that international investments in unabated coal must stop now and commit to take concrete steps towards an absolute end to new direct government support for unabated international thermal coal power generation by the end of 2021,” the officials said in a joint policy paper.

The officials from the U.S., United Kingdom, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan also reaffirmed their country’s 2016 commitment to phase out “inefficient” fossil fuel subsidies by 2025. 

In 2013, then-President Obama moved to restrict U.S. financing of coal production abroad. 

An analysis from the Natural Resources Defense Council showed that public institutions in Japan were among the largest financers of overseas coal projects as of 2016, though the country put additional restrictions on such financing last year. 

EPA Administrator Michael Regan expressed support for the joint statement in a statement of his own. 

“I’m proud to endorse the G7 Climate and Environment Ministers Statement, which includes concrete steps to combat the urgent threat of the climate crisis while lifting up vulnerable communities across the world,” Regan said. 

The countries also said they would “champion” goals, including conserving or protecting at least 30 percent of global land and ocean by 2030 in an attempt to mitigate biodiversity loss and climate change. 

President Biden has similarly set the goal of conserving 30 percent of U.S. land and water by that date.