US Praises Developing Nations' Climate Curbs
Date: 30-Aug-07
Country: AUSTRIA
Author: Alister Doyle, Environment Correspondent
Chief climate negotiator Harlan Watson also played down
conflicts with the European Union over the UN's Kyoto
Protocol, saying there were more areas of agreement than
disagreement between the two over global warming policy.
Environmentalists said the US seemed eager at climate
talks in Vienna to smooth the way towards a meeting called by
President George W. Bush among major emitters on Sept. 27-28 in
Washington to work out new greenhouse gas curbs.
"There is an...opinion from the outside that developing
countries are not doing anything, which is a totally false
impression," Watson told a news conference during the Aug. 27-31
meeting of 1,000 officials from 158 nations.
"Developing countries are taking action, their emissions are
growing, but they are taking action which is going to have
significant impact," he said.
President George W. Bush has said that developing nations
such as China and India must do more to fight global warming if
Washington is going to join any new global deal beyond 2012 when
a first phase of the Kyoto Protocol runs out.
Bush decided in 2001 not to join his main industrial allies
in ratifying Kyoto, saying it would cost too much and wrongly
excluded 2012 targets for developing nations led by China and
India.
CONCILIATORY
The EU and other Kyoto backers view the pact as a first
binding step to fight warming, that could bring more heatwaves,
floods, spread disease, disrupt farming and raise sea levels.
"It's unusual that (Watson) is saying that developing
countries are acting," said Gustavo Silva-Chavez of
Environmental Defense.
"He was very conciliatory," said Hans Verolme, climate
expert for the WWF environmental group. He said developing
nations, led by China and India, wanted signs that their efforts
were appreciated before attending the Washington talks, which
are meant to work out new climate goals by the end of 2008.
China, for instance, says it is acting with plans to improve
its industrial energy efficiency by 20 percent in the next five
and step up recycling even as it opens coal-fired power plants
at a rate of two a week.
Bush says his talks among major economies, including other
top emitters led by China, the European Union, Russia, India and
Japan, will aim to work out curbs beyond 2012 by the end of 2008
and then support a global UN deal in 2009.
"There are a lot more areas of agreement between the EU and
the US than disagreement," Watson said.
He noted disagreement with the EU over Kyoto, which binds 35
nations to cut greenhouse gases by 5 percent below 1990 levels
by 2008-12 but said the two were cooperating on areas such as
technology, environmental research and nuclear reactors.