Activists flay 'lacklustre' UN climate talks
Nov 19, 2006 - 7:59:27 PM
, Reviewed by: Priya Saxena
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Delegates agreed on guidelines for an Adaptation Fund that would help developing countries deal with the effects of climate change. Negotiators gave themselves until next year's conference to choose a manager for the fund.
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By DPA,
[RxPG] Nairobi, Nov 19 (DPA) The lack of urgency at the UN Climate Change Conference came under fire by environmentalists, who said only a few achievements were made throughout the two-week meeting here.
Delegates made some headway on helping developing nations deal with the effects of climate change, but the activists charged they only made small steps toward ensuring that post-Kyoto Protocol measures are put in place.
'We have seen small, incremental steps forward in a belaboured process,' said Steve Sawyer, climate policy adviser for Greenpeace International. 'These talks require a dramatic increase in political will.'
Their comments echoed criticism from UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, who earlier this week charged that there was a 'frightening lack of leadership' in climate change action around the world.
Yvo de Boer, executive secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, said the conference achieved its goals of addressing the vulnerability of developing countries and continuing the discussion on the road to a post-Kyoto plan.
The talks did not reflect 'the reality of the urgency in the real world,' Friends of the Earth International said in a statement.
The meeting ended late Friday after delegates resolved one contentious issue and referred another to more study. Delegates set 2008 as the date for a review of the Kyoto Protocol, which could lead to more stringent carbon emissions caps after the treaty expires in 2012.
The Kyoto review has been controversial because if current targets and emissions caps are shown to be too weak, more stringent ones would be allowed in a post-Kyoto plan. Under the new decision, however, Kyoto signatories would not be forced to commit to new targets.
Under the Kyoto Protocol, the Nairobi talks were intended to usher in a framework for review of the 165-signatory agreement before a post-Kyoto plan could be hashed out. Post-Kyoto talks can only begin after the 2008 review, stirring fears that there may be a gap in the commitment period between Kyoto and a new agreement.
'There cannot be a gap in the commitment period. Climate change is coming at us in a wave but the negotiators at the conference don't have the same sense of urgency that I do,' said Hans Velorme, a Dutch spokeperson for the Climate Action Network.
Another issue that stalled decision was a proposal by the Russian delegation to allow developing countries to voluntarily cut their emissions but still be a part of Kyoto. The only conclusion was to refer the matter to a sub-group for more study.
Some 100 ministers and more than 6,000 delegates convened in Nairobi from Nov 6-17 to tackle what was called the 'all-encompassing threat' of climate change.
Delegates at the high-level meetings agreed on several points, including that developing countries, at the forefront of the Nairobi talks, are the least prepared to deal with the effects of climate change.
Rich nations have agreed on a plan that would help developing countries incorporate policies on the effects of climate change into their national planning, and Annan unveiled a similar UN plan.
Delegates agreed on guidelines for an Adaptation Fund that would help developing countries deal with the effects of climate change. Negotiators gave themselves until next year's conference to choose a manager for the fund.
Many high-level delegates were pushing for an expansion of market-based mechanisms to encourage countries to reduce their emissions, but business leaders have called for some indication of post-Kyoto commitments so that they can safely make eco-friendly investments.
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