Tuesday, 15 December 2009
The Economist on Copenhagen
A forthcoming climate-change summit will not produce a binding deal on emissions
EXPECTATIONS for the Copenhagen climate conference, held next month in Denmark, have been steadily dwindling. On Sunday November 15th, as Barack Obama toured Asia, he and the Danish prime minister, Lars Lokke Rasmussen, quietly agreed what many had anticipated—that no binding agreement would be reached at the conference. There is now no hope of new legal targets for emissions-reductions to replace those set out in the Kyoto Protocol and which will lapse in 2012. Instead the pair suggested that the best to be expected is a political deal on cutting emissions.
Some of the blame for this must be directed at Capitol Hill. Not only will Mr Obama now not sign a cap-and-trade bill before Copenhagen; the Senate is not even expected to pass one. The House of Representatives passed in June its version of cap-and-trade but the Senate, preoccupied by a debate over the reform of health care, has left climate talks to inch along slowly behind. John Kerry, one of the Senate’s cap-and-trade champions, now says he hopes for a vote on the bill only in the spring.
But American congressmen are not alone in shouldering responsibility. Each tortuous round of negotiations ahead of Copenhagen has lengthened the list of issues up for debate. The negotiating text is now a snarl of material that few parties can agree upon. And big developing countries have been almost as immovable as America, at least publicly. China’s president said in September that his country would in time cut the amount of carbon dioxide it emits per unit of GDP by a “notable amount”. But Sun Guoshun, a Chinese diplomat in Washington, says that a figure is unlikely to emerge before Copenhagen. India (a much smaller polluter) has steadfastly resisted binding targets for poor countries. Many in Washington believe that America, just as it did at Kyoto, will not accept a deal that requires nothing concrete on emissions from the developing world.
Yet this does not mean that America will never get around to cutting emissions. During Mr Obama’s trip to China climate change was at the top of the agenda. Some had hoped that Mr Obama and Hu Jintao, China’s president, might announce a means of breaking the negotiating deadlock. Instead they unveiled some practical measures on energy.
These include the creation of a Sino-American clean-energy research centre, with initial funding of $150m, and an electric-vehicles initiative. A plan was also aired to increase energy efficiency, especially in buildings. By some estimates, China will add housing and office space equivalent to America’s entire stock over the next 20 years.
The two countries also promised to work together on “cleaner” coal (both countries sit on huge reserves of the stuff). Carbon-capture-and-storage technology for coal-fired power plants does not yet work at the scale and cost required. But James Rogers, the head of Duke Energy, a big American utility, says optimistically that perhaps only China has the resources to develop a workable system of carbon-capture, and America could reap the benefits. Last, the two agreed to co-operate on finding and using natural gas from shale. Gas power emits just half the carbon-dioxide of coal.
Focusing on measures like efficiency and cleaner power rather than targets may be the only way to get a bill through the Senate and thus make a binding international deal possible. But the interplay between international negotiations and the Senate’s deliberations is delicate. The Senate wants proof that developing countries will not get off the hook while China and India will avoid commitments as long as it seems that the Senate is unwilling to move. Copenhagen is now unlikely to be celebrated as the city where the world took big steps towards tackling climate change. A binding deal will have to wait until 2010, perhaps at a mid-year meeting in Bonn or in December in Mexico City.
EXPECTATIONS for the Copenhagen climate conference, held next month in Denmark, have been steadily dwindling. On Sunday November 15th, as Barack Obama toured Asia, he and the Danish prime minister, Lars Lokke Rasmussen, quietly agreed what many had anticipated—that no binding agreement would be reached at the conference. There is now no hope of new legal targets for emissions-reductions to replace those set out in the Kyoto Protocol and which will lapse in 2012. Instead the pair suggested that the best to be expected is a political deal on cutting emissions.
Some of the blame for this must be directed at Capitol Hill. Not only will Mr Obama now not sign a cap-and-trade bill before Copenhagen; the Senate is not even expected to pass one. The House of Representatives passed in June its version of cap-and-trade but the Senate, preoccupied by a debate over the reform of health care, has left climate talks to inch along slowly behind. John Kerry, one of the Senate’s cap-and-trade champions, now says he hopes for a vote on the bill only in the spring.
But American congressmen are not alone in shouldering responsibility. Each tortuous round of negotiations ahead of Copenhagen has lengthened the list of issues up for debate. The negotiating text is now a snarl of material that few parties can agree upon. And big developing countries have been almost as immovable as America, at least publicly. China’s president said in September that his country would in time cut the amount of carbon dioxide it emits per unit of GDP by a “notable amount”. But Sun Guoshun, a Chinese diplomat in Washington, says that a figure is unlikely to emerge before Copenhagen. India (a much smaller polluter) has steadfastly resisted binding targets for poor countries. Many in Washington believe that America, just as it did at Kyoto, will not accept a deal that requires nothing concrete on emissions from the developing world.
Yet this does not mean that America will never get around to cutting emissions. During Mr Obama’s trip to China climate change was at the top of the agenda. Some had hoped that Mr Obama and Hu Jintao, China’s president, might announce a means of breaking the negotiating deadlock. Instead they unveiled some practical measures on energy.
These include the creation of a Sino-American clean-energy research centre, with initial funding of $150m, and an electric-vehicles initiative. A plan was also aired to increase energy efficiency, especially in buildings. By some estimates, China will add housing and office space equivalent to America’s entire stock over the next 20 years.
The two countries also promised to work together on “cleaner” coal (both countries sit on huge reserves of the stuff). Carbon-capture-and-storage technology for coal-fired power plants does not yet work at the scale and cost required. But James Rogers, the head of Duke Energy, a big American utility, says optimistically that perhaps only China has the resources to develop a workable system of carbon-capture, and America could reap the benefits. Last, the two agreed to co-operate on finding and using natural gas from shale. Gas power emits just half the carbon-dioxide of coal.
Focusing on measures like efficiency and cleaner power rather than targets may be the only way to get a bill through the Senate and thus make a binding international deal possible. But the interplay between international negotiations and the Senate’s deliberations is delicate. The Senate wants proof that developing countries will not get off the hook while China and India will avoid commitments as long as it seems that the Senate is unwilling to move. Copenhagen is now unlikely to be celebrated as the city where the world took big steps towards tackling climate change. A binding deal will have to wait until 2010, perhaps at a mid-year meeting in Bonn or in December in Mexico City.
Anotated Article on China
The article summarizes China's essential views on Emission cut backs and basically the Copenhagen Conference's main goal. The article begins with the listing of Chinese interventions and participation in the different international "green causes" and projects and later following up with a Chinese statement, which asks for consistency in the documents that will come out of Copenhagen, if any, with the old "green causes" documents and declarations.
After the portrayal of Chinese responsibility, the article makes note on the Chinese official's position on the help of developed nations towards developing nations, like China. In the quote, the Chinese official focuses on how developed nations should help developing nations even after not doing a massive effort to cut back on emissions, given that they need high production of these after high levels of consumption and production, all in order to reach the developed economy state.
Following the Chinese position, the article makes a remark on how developing nations must be left to take the right environmental measures within their own time schedule, therefore whenever they feel it's much more convenient.
Finally, the article makes a note on the meeting China had with Brazil, India, South Africa and Sudan. All of these developing nations met up to agree on the outcomes of the Copenhagen Conference, mentioning the financial help from the developed economies that they deserve, all going to back to the Chinese stand on receiving massive benefits through doing as little as possible in regards to climate change policies.
China on Copenhagen
China hopes Copenhagen conference achieve 'fair and feasible' results
China said Tuesday it hoped the upcoming Copenhagen Conference on climate change would achieve "fair and feasible" results.
China has advocated the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change(UNFCCC), Kyoto Protocol, and the Bali Road Map, and held the principles of common but differentiated responsibilities, said Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang at a regular press conference.
"All documents or outcomes from the conference should be consistent with the provisions in these agreements, and would pave the way for the cooperation of the international community in the years to come," Qin said.
He also reaffirmed the developed countries and the international community should pay enough attention to the concern of the developing countries.
"The developed nations should honor its commitment to accomplishing or establishing the medium-term emission reduction target on the one hand, and provide the developing nations with financing, technology transfer, and capability building support on the other hand," he said.
Meanwhile, he said the developing nations should take appropriate actions that adapt to and will slow down climate change, in the light of their own national situation and under the sustainable development framework.
Representatives from China, Brazil, India and South Africa along with Sudan, the current chairman nation of G-77, met in Beijing on Nov. 27 to 28 to prepare for the Copenhagen Conference.
They agreed the outcome of the conference should include long-term cooperative actions on climate change, mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions, adaptation to the impacts of climate change, as well as provision of financial and technological support.
"The agreements reflect the concern and advocation of the developing nations, and deserves great attention from the developed nations," Qin said.
The 15th Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) will be held from Dec. 7 to 18 in Copenhagen of Denmark. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao will attend the conference.
China said Tuesday it hoped the upcoming Copenhagen Conference on climate change would achieve "fair and feasible" results.
China has advocated the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change(UNFCCC), Kyoto Protocol, and the Bali Road Map, and held the principles of common but differentiated responsibilities, said Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang at a regular press conference.
"All documents or outcomes from the conference should be consistent with the provisions in these agreements, and would pave the way for the cooperation of the international community in the years to come," Qin said.
He also reaffirmed the developed countries and the international community should pay enough attention to the concern of the developing countries.
"The developed nations should honor its commitment to accomplishing or establishing the medium-term emission reduction target on the one hand, and provide the developing nations with financing, technology transfer, and capability building support on the other hand," he said.
Meanwhile, he said the developing nations should take appropriate actions that adapt to and will slow down climate change, in the light of their own national situation and under the sustainable development framework.
Representatives from China, Brazil, India and South Africa along with Sudan, the current chairman nation of G-77, met in Beijing on Nov. 27 to 28 to prepare for the Copenhagen Conference.
They agreed the outcome of the conference should include long-term cooperative actions on climate change, mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions, adaptation to the impacts of climate change, as well as provision of financial and technological support.
"The agreements reflect the concern and advocation of the developing nations, and deserves great attention from the developed nations," Qin said.
The 15th Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) will be held from Dec. 7 to 18 in Copenhagen of Denmark. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao will attend the conference.
Monday, 14 December 2009
Unites States and Copenhagen
Precis:
Lisa P. Jackson held a speech on the 9th of December 2009 at the Copenhagen conference in Denmark. She addressed the current economical and global issue of the whole earth and how the United States have already began solving the issue. According to her, through the economical crisis, the world has realized how one nations failure can lead to future failures in other countries. The economic crisis was a proof of this failure and has shown, that the whole world should work together to find a solution. She sees the source of the issue in the trade, population growth and social behavior which eventually caused the break down of the environment. Now to solve the problem the American government have invested billions in mitigation and adaption strategies. Businesses of the United States have started to invest billions to cut greenhouse gas emissions. The United States is willing to help and reduce their emissions to safe the future generations and enable them to have a prosperous life in this environment.
United States Copenhagen
precis:
Through these three paragraphs it becomes clear that the global issue is a concern which has to be solved now. According to President Obama the future depends on today's generations, as their action will decide over the future of future generations. Also Hillary Clinton sees a great need for immediate actions to be taken against the growing climate change. She addresses how the United States is willing to fight this problem internally and also in foreign nations. Last but not least, it is described how the United States engages in solving this current issue. By listing the actions the United States had already taken they show how America contributes to the solving of this current issue.
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