Kuwait plans to cut emissions as temperatures rise

The Kuwaiti government has ordered a review into plans to reduce emissions from government projects, Bloomberg reported.

The cabinet told the Gulf state’s Environment Public Authority, EPA, to work on ensuring the implementation of Kuwait’s commitments and international agreements, according to a statement issued late on Monday evening.

In 2016, thermometers hit 54C, the highest reading on Earth in the last 76 years. Last year, for the first time, they breached 50 degrees Celsius (122 Fahrenheit) in June, weeks ahead of usual peak weather. Parts of Kuwait could get as much as 4.5C hotter from 2071 to 2100 compared with the historical average, according to the Environment Public Authority, making large areas of the country uninhabitable.

The cabinet told the Gulf state’s Environment Public Authority, EPA, to work on ensuring the implementation of Kuwait’s commitments and international agreements, according to a statement issued late on Monday evening.

The EPA can coordinate with the ministry of finance to allocate the funds needed, it said.

Kuwait has pledged to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 7.4 percent by 2035, a target far short of the 45 percent reduction needed to achieve the Paris Agreement's expanded target of limiting global warming to 1.5°C by 2030.