Planting The Seed To Stop Global Warming by Deutsche Welle / Reuters / The Independent 8:42am 17th Dec, 2004   December 26, 2004    "Bush Left in the Cold by Climate Allies", by Geoffrey Lean. ( The lndependent/UK)    George Bush's two closest allies in his attempt to sabotage international action to combat global warning last week dramatically distanced themselves from him.    Saudi Arabia announced that it had approved the Kyoto Protocol, the treaty on climate change which President Bush has been trying to kill. And Australia, while still rejecting it, parted company from the United States by saying that it was prepared to negotiate its successor.    The moves follow a tense international negotiating session in Buenos Aires where, as The Independent on Sunday reported last week, the US brought the talks to the brink of collapse by obstructing even anodyne proposals. This breached an assurance given by President Bush in 2001, when he pulled out of the protocol, that America would not try to stop other countries reaching agreement.    New negotiations are due to begin next year on a successor to Kyoto, which will come into force in February, following Russia's decision to ratify it last autumn. Tony Blair regards progress on climate change as one of the top priorities of Britain's presidency of the G8 group of the world's most powerful nations.    US opposition endangers both initiatives, but Mr Bush suffered a blow on Tuesday when the Saudi cabinet approved the treaty. A royal decree is being prepared to endorse it officially. The decision is significant, since the Saudis worked closely with the US in Buenos Aires, but the Australian initiative is more important, as it has so far marched in step with the US to try to kill negotiations.    Ian Campbell, Australia's environment minister, said it would be prepared to enter an agreement to combat global warming. He warned that unless it was reached, the world would be "in jeopardy", adding: "The difference between the US and Australia is that we are prepared to engage in a new agreement, so long as it is comprehensive."    Meanwhile, the official European Environment Agency has announced that the EU nations were on track to exceed the pollution cuts they have promised under Kyoto, so long as they implement all their policies and measures.    © Copyright 2004 Independent Digital (UK) Ltd    19th December,2004    Planting The Seed To Stop Global Warming. (Deutsche Welle)    As the UN climate change talks conclude in Buenos Aires, debate has been gathering pace on two main issues: what happens after Kyoto and how to help developing countries best cope with global warming.    Delegates to the conference have largely agreed on funding to help developing countries cope with an onset of natural disasters and extreme weather events brought about by climate change. But this agreement is being held hostage to disagreement over what happens next. The United States and Saudi Arabia are opposed to an EU proposal to hold seminars to talk about the second commitment period.    Now that the Kyoto Protocol has been ratified, countries are required to reduce their CO2 output by an average of 5 percent by 2012, and the question remains what sort of measures are needed past that period. But without the participation of the United States, there is hardly any chance to make great progress.     "The first phase of the protocol ends in 2012; after that it is unthinkable to go ahead without the United States, China and India," Italian Environment Minister Altero Matteoli told reporters in Buenos Aires. Matteoli also caused a stir by calling for the treaty's end in 2012 if those countries do not sign on. The statement moved away from the EU's stance of having a legally binding agreement on greenhouse gas control.    Standards for developing world    When 2012 rolls around, the emerging economies must be included. It's critical that those countries be pulled into the fold of the second round of Kyoto commitments, stressed Kilaparti Ramakrishna, a climate change expert from the Woods Hole Research Center in the US. "If we still leave the developing countries out of it, we are not going to be making any progress even if the industrialized countries increase their commitment by another five percent," he said.    But representatives from the developing countries point to the current circumstances today. "There's a discrepancy of about 300 to 400 percent between what a person in the US or Europe spends on carbon vis-à-vis what somebody in India or Pakistan does," Pakistani Environment Minister Malik Amin Aslam Khan said.    With growth come catastrophes    The treaty recognizes that poorer nations do not pollute as heavily as industrialized ones. But as they advance economically, emission outputs will rise. Nevertheless, it's unlikely that China, India and Brazil will be given mandatory reduction targets. German Environment Minister Jürgen Trittin said these countries will be forced to reduce their emissions through other sector specific measures like renewable energy targets and energy efficiency standards.    If they choose not to pursue cleaner energy sources, the welfare of the people may be hit in other ways, such as weather-related catastrophes. In floods and landslides in developing countries, thousands are killed annually and existences washed away.    "They should stop the pollution for which the weather is changing and their life is at stake," said Anil Kirshna, a minister from West Bengal in India, who argued that lives are on the line.The Buenos Aries conference will not stop the pollution, but the seeds of change may be planted.    Dec 16, 2004    "Buenos Aires: EU wants more mandatory emissions cuts, U.S. Opposed", by Mary Milliken. (Reuters)    The European Union, the heavyweight in the fight against global warming, will push for mandatory cuts in emissions after the Kyoto protocol expires in 2012 despite fervent opposition from the United States.    Kyoto goes into effect two months from Thursday, but negotiators at this week's U.N. climate change talks are firmly focused on a new regime for when it ends in 2012 and what can be done to get the United States, the Kyoto drop-out, involved.    EU Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas told Reuters in an interview that the EU must stick to what it believes in -- legally binding emissions cuts -- despite calls from some corners this week for a less rigid stance. "I think what we should do is try to get on everybody on board with mandatory reductions," said Dimas, a Greek lawyer who has held this post for less than a month.    U.S. delegation head Paula Dobriansky ruled out mandatory caps and reiterated it is too soon to talk about post-2012. "Our policy is that we do not support mandatory targets or timetables," Dobriansky, Undersecretary for Global Affairs at the State Department, said in an interview.    Under Kyoto, industrialized countries together must reduce man-made emissions by five percent by 2012 versus 1990 levels and some have deeper cuts than others. Most consider it a first, small step to stop global warming.    The United States, the biggest polluter in the world with 25 percent of heat-trapping greenhouse gas emissions, chafes at the idea of a mandatory caps, which it says thwart growth. That was the main reason President Bush pulled out of Kyoto in 2001.    While few of the 6,000 people at the convention expected the United States to change its mind on Kyoto, many were surprised at its hardline stance during the last 10 days. "See a few more summers in Texas where the roads are melting, or the drought wipes out the farmers and the ranchers ... then you might start to see some rethinking," said U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich, an Ohio democrat and supporter of Kyoto.    Italy this week suggested that maybe it was time for negotiators to discuss voluntary targets for after 2012 as a way to entice the United States and fast-growing developing giants China and India, now among the top five polluters.    But Dimas is doubtful of this approach, particularly for industrialized nations. "Voluntary reductions have not given results up to now. So we need mandatory reduction targets," he said. Dobriansky said she preferred a "bottom-up" commitment in which countries propose their own goals.    Bush has a 10-year domestic program anchored on research and technology to cut "greenhouse gas intensity" 18 percent by 2012. U.N. data show U.S. emissions are up 13 percent since 1990 and Dobriansky could not say when they would go below 1990 levels.    Washington's stonewalling has many negotiators and activists worried the Buenos Aires conference may end on Friday without any progress in talks. They point to reports that show the world in the midst of some of its hottest weather and biggest natural disaster destruction.    Host country Argentina and the EU are keen on some seminars for informal talks next year to keep climate change talks rolling. But the United States says it won't back them if they look to lead into post-2012 negotiations. "They are trying to hold back even informal discussions," said Jennifer Morgan, director of climate change at leading environmental group WWF.    Even Dimas shows signs of losing patience with the slow pace of Buenos Aires, a conference that started on a high note after Russia's ratification of Kyoto last month which allows the treaty to go into force Feb. 16. "I feel a bit frustrated and disappointed that we have such long discussions," Dimas said. (Additional reporting by Hilary Burke)
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