Takeaways from the latest climate summit and what it means for Alaska
- Kate Troll
- 3 days ago
- 4 min read
By Kate Troll
Officials from nearly 200 countries recently gathered in Belem, Brazil, to attend the latest United Nations climate summit, called COP30. Given the magnitude of the task, i.e. to keep the Earth livable, COP30 is probably the most important international gathering in the world. And yet, for the first time ever, the United States was absent from the summit as President Trump continues to call the climate crisis a “hoax.”
The absence of the U.S. in combination with the Trump administration’s efforts to slam the door on renewable energy, created a huge opportunity for China. At COP30 China didn’t just walk through the open door on clean energy, they shifted the market. According to an article in POLITICO, “In the Biden era, countries interested in clean energy were motivated to buy things from the U.S. But now Beijing has few rivals.”
The energy economic data presented at the summit showed that wind and solar power expanded quickly enough to meet all the world’s new power demands, and it projected that fossil fuel power generation will not increase this year for the first time since the COVID pandemic. Economic data also shows that green technology exports from China are exceeding the value of all fossil fuel exports from the U.S. This means, as summarized by Vice-President Al Gore, “One sector is an appreciating asset, the other is a diminishing asset and the U.S. is on the wrong side of the equation.” Essentially at COP30, the U.S. ceded any ability to compete more effectively with China. This is the first big takeaway from COP30.
The second takeaway from analysis presented at COP30, is that if countries keep to their pledges on renewables, energy efficiency and methane, we could avoid 0.9 degree Celsius of global heating and give the world a hint of hope in avoiding total climate breakdown. This is good news and herein Alaska can make a difference. As I’ve written before, Alaska has plenty of methane to make a difference. Back in 2023 Exxon pledged to reduce methane; aiming for near-zero methane emissions from its oil and gas operations by 2030.
Wouldn’t it be instructive to learn how ExxonMobil intends to reduce methane emissions from their North Slope operations as part of their global commitment? What about Conoco-Phillips and Hillcorp? While they did not sign the COP28 pledge, do they still intend to reduce methane? If so how much of a reduction will they publicly commit to? Is the State of Alaska’s oversight agency, the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, actively looking to reduce methane emissions? These are the type of questions our state leaders should be willing to ask, particularly since Alaska continues to reel from climate-related disasters.
The third takeaway comes from scientists skeptical that countries and corporations will meet their pledges on reducing emissions. They see the pledges as a big IF. Johan Rockström of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, who is one of the chief scientific advisers to COP30 says removing carbon from the atmosphere will be necessary to avoid catastrophic tipping points, as even in the best-case scenario the world will heat by about 1.7C. above preindustrial levels. Mr. Rockstrom estimates that about 10 billion tons of carbon dioxide will need to be captured each year.
In January 2025, Senior Researcher for the Alaska Center for Energy and Power, Qwen Holdmann, wrote an informative opinion piece making the case that Alaska, thanks to unique geology and the presence of depleted oil and gas fields, has some of the best carbon storage potential in the world. According to Ms. Holdmann, Alaska’s wealth of volcanic rocks and glacial silt makes Alaska uniquely positioned to explore innovative carbon storage and capture methods i.e. turning atmospheric carbon into stone.
Ms. Holdmann is not alone in talking up carbon capture and storage (CCS). Exxon Mobil is positioning itself to be a global leader on CCS. Wouldn’t it be useful to convene an informative hearing on CCS and ultimately develop a strategy on how best to position Alaska in this emerging field? It’s also important to learn early on what the trade-offs are so that Alaska’s existing resource-dependent industries are not harmed. The bottom line of this third takeaway from COP30 is that if CCS is going to become a global business, Alaska needs to become more informed about safe, innovative ways to advance CCS opportunities here in Alaska.
Put all three of these COP30 takeaways together, and it’s clear that Alaska needs to up the ante on climate change. We need to 1) assess how China’s dominance will affect future renewable energy projects, 2) aggressively reduce methane flaring and venting and 3) figure out how best to move forward on the business of CCS.
• Kate Troll, a longtime Alaskan, has more than 25 years of experience in coastal management, fisheries and energy policy and is a former executive director for United Fishermen of Alaska and the Alaska Conservation Voters. She’s been elected to local office twice, written two books and resides in Juneau.
