No Kyoto at Copenhagen
No Kyoto at Copenhagen
The UN climate conference in Copenhagen in December will seek to close with agreement on four political essentials, thereby creating clarity for financially stretched business and world populations.
Given that leading industrialized countries have reduced emissions by default, as a result of the global financial crisis. Are they willing to reduce their emissions of greenhouse gas emissions further?
How much are major developing countries such as China and India willing to do to restrict the growth of their emissions?
Support for developing countries to reduce their emissions and adapt to the impact of climate change will have be financed, how much and by who?
How is that money going to be managed and by who?
Can Copenhagen deliver answers on these questions?
The Kyoto Protocol which sets binding targets for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions was signed and ratified by 184 parties of the UN Climate Convention. A notable exception was the US, the US however is back in the international climate change process and domestically involved heavily in the process.
The big difference from Kyoto may well be the Obama administrations delegation and its communication with the senate. It was felt by the Bush administration that Kyoto was harmful to the US economy.
We now have a whole different scenario, if the Obama delegation can successfully engage China and India and convince them, they may sign the treaty.
The global recession, will certainly have impacted on the negotiations in Copenhagen even though greenhouse gas emissions are expected to slow down as a result of shrinking industrial activities.
Investment decisions in the energy sector, in power plants that are going to be around for the next 30 to 50 years, can’t really afford to keep waiting for governments to say which way they’re going to go, hopefully the recession could have focused the minds of all delegates.
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Getting the developing countries to agree, and to actually do what they agree to is key to the solution. No matter what the rest of the world does, developing countries spewing more into the air will counteract it.
We are currently poised for a re-emergence of nuclear power in the US. Perhaps this needs to be expanded.
Well I hope as you do that the new Obama administration will bring positive change in this area. The focus these days wether in the economy or environment is a global concern. We must all work together.
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