The United States has urged the president of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Felix Tshisekedi, to stop oil development in the forests and peatlands of the Congo Basin in order to protect one of the most important systems for capturing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
It’s crucial to keep in mind that peat is composed of burned plants that are common in moist soils in temperate regions and that, in the first stage, degrade slowly to produce charcoal.
According to a report by the Bloomberg news agency, Tshisekedi defends Congo’s right to use its carbon resources in light of the contentious proposal to divide 30 oil and natural gas exploration sectors, some of which pose a threat to the environment. A working group was established by the United States and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to study methods to save the forest and grasslands of the Congo.
In order to safeguard the woods, we’ve requested them to take some areas out of the running for drilling, said US special presidential climate envoy John Kerry to media in Kinshasa today.
“We are extremely certain that there is ample space for growth, job creation, and sustainable resource usage, while at the same time safeguarding the most sensitive sections of the basin,” he continued.
Kerry: America requests a halt to oil drilling bids in the Congo Basin forests.
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