Ecology, Energy, EU – Baltic States, Legislation, Lithuania

Photo: lrp.lt

"A global agreement binding all countries to combat climate change is useful for Lithuania, as it increases energy security, reduces dependence on fossil fuel imports," Grybauskaite said in a press release circulated by the President's Office.

In her words, such pact would also encourags businesses and industry to invest into renewables, energy efficiency and innovative green technologies.

The president emphasized that if no effective and global measures to curb climate change were taken in time, consequences could be catastrophic for all the countries in world. Global warming results in the expansion of the deserts, reduction of arable land and scarcity of water and other natural resources, which fuels armed conflicts and growing migration.

Lithuania has made significant progress in fighting atmospheric polluteon and is ready to join the European Union's (EU) ambitious goal to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent by 2030, she added.

"Lithuania has successfully proved that the sustainable development of the state can be nature-friendly. Over 25 years of independence, we have reduced atmospheric pollution by as much as 56 percent, we produce 23 percent of our total energy from renewables, and our economy has grown by one third over the same period," Grybauskaite said.

Scheduled for ten days, the Conference has gathered 147 top-level delegations and around 40,000 participants to negotiate environmental commitments after 2020 with the goal of keeping the average temperature increase at under 2 degrees by the end of the century.