Leaders at COP30 should promote solar and wind power over mega-dams

"The COP30 climate meeting in Brazil is being framed as a ' conference of implementation ', with the emphasis shifting from making new pledges to fulfilling existing climate commitments by boosting the transition to green energy."

"As your News feature highlights, China, Brazil and India have made rapid advances in this area (see )."

"However, this progress includes the development of large hydropower projects in ecologically fragile regions such as the Himalayas and the Amazon rainforest."

COP30 in Brazil emphasizes implementing existing climate commitments and accelerating the shift to renewable energy rather than creating new pledges. Major emerging economies including China, Brazil and India have rapidly expanded renewable capacities and are driving much of the global green-energy transition. Much of the recent capacity growth has included large hydropower projects sited in ecologically sensitive areas. Those projects risk damaging mountain and rainforest ecosystems, altering river flows, fragmenting habitats and affecting biodiversity in the Himalayas and the Amazon rainforest. Balancing rapid decarbonization with protection of fragile ecosystems presents a central implementation challenge.

Read at Nature