Croatia will protect 30 percent of the Adriatic Sea under its jurisdiction and plant an additional million trees a year by 2030, Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said in Glasgow on Tuesday, noting that climate change would irreversibly worsen lives, but that more ambitious action could alleviate it.

Plenković spoke at the United Nations Conference on Climate Change (COP26), where world leaders presented their countries' plans and promises for environmental protection.

"Croatia intends to compensate for the impact of tourists on carbon dioxide emissions by planting more than a million additional trees a year by 2030," the Croatian Prime Minister said in a speech at the COP26 conference.

"As a country of a thousand islands, Croatia intends to contribute to the global goal of protecting the oceans by protecting 30 percent of the sea under national jurisdiction," the Prime Minister announced.

Croatian Prime Minister talks climate change at COP26 - Photo Vlada Twitter 

The Prime Minister also announced that the country will stop all coal use by 2033.

Plenković told Croatia that he "takes nature protection seriously", and that Croatia has the fourth lowest carbon footprint per capita in the European Union, and that a total of 38 percent of the country is under protection.

"Croatian forestry has a centuries-long tradition of sustainable management. With 93 percent of certified forests, our carbon per capita absorption rate is twice as high as the EU average," Plenković said.

He warned that climate change would irreversibly worsen the lives of future generations "even with the most determined action now", but that the deterioration could be mitigated.

"It is up to us, as leaders, not just as concerned individuals, to adopt and implement policies that will achieve this. At the very least, we must achieve the goals of the already concluded climate agreements and work harder to meet them," he said, urging more ambitious policies to combat climate change.

“To properly understand the effects of climate change through awareness-raising and education is key to winning the battle against climate change,” the Prime Minister said.