MOSCOW (AP) — A large Russian island north of Japan will be a testing ground for Moscow’s efforts to reconcile its prized fossil fuel industry with the need to do something about climate change. More than two-thirds of Sakhalin Island is forested, and authorities there have set an ambitious goal of making the island carbon neutral by 2025. Tree growth will absorb as much planet-warming carbon dioxide as the island’s half-million residents and businesses produce. Moscow hopes to apply the idea to the whole country. The plan reflects a marked change of mood in Russia toward climate change. Still, a senior Russian official at the climate talks in Glasgow says Moscow has no plans to turn off the flow of fossil fuels soon.
Russia comes in from cold on climate, launches forest plan
