COP26 Glasgow: World leaders pledge to eliminate deforestation by 2030

Over 100 World leaders have pledged to eliminate the significant environmental issue 'Deforestation' by 2030. This is the first major deal of the climate summit, which is taking place in Glasgow.

COP26: Over 100 World leaders have pledged to eliminate the significant environmental issue ‘Deforestation‘ by 2030. This is the first major deal of the climate summit, which is taking place in Glasgow.

The leaders will be signing the deal today (the second day of the 2-weeks global climate summit). This pledge includes almost £14bn ($19.2bn) of public and private funds, which will be signed by countries including – Canada, Brazil, Russia, China, Indonesia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

A £1.1bn fund will be authorised to preserve the world’s second-largest tropical rainforest, which is in the Congo Basin.

Out of the total amount of pledge, some of its funding will be provided to the developing nations so as to restore their damaged lands, tackle wildfires and support indigenous communities.

Governments of 28 countries will also commit to exclude deforestation from the global trade of food & other agricultural products such as palm oil, soya and cocoa. At the same time, over 30 of the world’s biggest companies will pledge to end investment in activities that are associated with deforestation.

The experts have warned about the move noting that the previous deal, which was signed in the year 2014 was failed.

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who is hosting the global meeting in Glasgow, called Tuesday’s deal a – “landmark agreement to protect & restore the earth’s forests”.

“These great teeming ecosystems – these cathedrals of nature – are the lungs of our planet”.

An expert on climate and forests at University College London – Prof Simon Lewis, further cited that, “It is a good news to have a political commitment to end deforestation from so many countries, and significant funding to move forward on that journey”.

He noted that this new deal does not tackle the growing demand for products such as – meat grown on rainforest land – which would need high levels of meat consumption in the nations like the US and UK to be addressed.