The European Union is set to propose new requirements on companies seeking to promote goods sold in Europe with labels like "natural", "climate neutral" or having "recycled content".

A draft of the proposal said to use such labels, a company must first carry out a science-based assessment, assessing all significant environmental impacts, to prove that its product lives up to the claim, or have it verified under an environmental labelling scheme.

An accredited verifier - independent of the company - would then need to check the claim, before a company can publicly use it. Companies that make climate-friendly claims without proof could face financial penalties.

The UAE aims to reduce potable water consumption by 20% and increase the reuse of treated water to 95%. 

The strategy complements the UAE's Updated Second Nationally Determined Contribution and the UAE Net Zero by 2050 Strategy.

UAE's Minister of Climate Change and Environment HE Mariam Almheiri said: ", the UAE's joint initiative with the United States, partners have committed $8 billion for investment in climate-smart agriculture and food systems benefiting long-term water security.

The UAE hosts the 28th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28) in November 2023. 

 S&P Global on Friday raised its sovereign rating on Saudi Arabia to "A/A-1", citing expected reform and diversification plans to boost development of the kingdom's non-oil sector and shift dependence away from oil.

Rival ratings agency Moody's also said that Saudi Arabia's plans will support it amid volatile oil price cycles and a global transition to sustainable energy. Moody's changed its outlook on the kingdom to "positive" from "stable", and reaffirmed its "A1" rating.

Saudi Arabia's reform plans complement its "longstanding position as the world's largest oil exporter, with spare installed capacity providing it the ability to adjust production swiftly when market conditions change.

Many green activists are calling for taxes on oil and gas companies. However, oil producers such as Russia, America and Middle Eastern countries would say no. Implementing such a tax in a piecemeal way would just drive production elsewhere, often to jurisdictions with low environmental standards.

There are better ideas. One is to ramp up taxes on carbon emissions. Another is to tax methane emissions, something the United States is planning as part of its Inflation Reduction Act.

The European Union already requires planes operating within its territory to buy carbon emission permits and is planning something similar for ships. Japan has proposed a global carbon tax for shipping to raise $56 billion a year.