Bridges Trade BioRes • Volume 5 • Number 13 • 8th July 2005
G-8 STRESSES URGENCY OF CLIMATE CHANGE WITHOUT AGREEING ON CONCRETE ACTION
G-8 STRESSES URGENCY OF CLIMATE CHANGE WITHOUT AGREEING ON CONCRETE ACTION
On Friday 8 July, the Group of 8 (G-8) industrialised countries wrapped up their two-day summit at Gleneagles, adopting a communiqué on Climate Change, Energy and Sustainable Development that recognised climate change as a "serious long-term challenge" that needs to be tackled with urgency and resolve. They did not, however, agree to binding targets and timetables for cuts in greenhouse gas emissions. UK Prime Minister Blair had included climate change and poverty in Africa as top items in the 2005 G8 agenda.
The discussions on climate change were far from smooth. In the lead-up to the G-8 summit at Gleneagles, US President Bush made a statement acknowledging that climate change is a serious concern and that humans are at least partially responsible. However, he reiterated that the US would not agree to binding commitments of the kind mandated by the Kyoto Protocol, as these would hurt the US economy. He said instead that he preferred to focus on technological development, and wanted to get major developing countries on board. This stance closely mirrored Bush’s statements in 2001 when he announced that the US was pulling out of the Kyoto Protocol. The rest of the G-8 countries have signed on to the Kyoto Protocol, which expires in 2012, and discussions of future climate change strategies are set to begin later this year under the framework of the UN climate change convention (UNFCCC).
The final G-8 communiqué acknowledges that increased demand for and consumption of fossil fuels, as well as other human activities, is contributing in large part to the build up of greenhouse gases tied to the warming of the Earth’s surface. It promotes clean energy as a priority, recognises the UNFCCC as the appropriate forum for future multilateral negotiations to address climate change, and stresses the need for G-8 countries to work together and with emerging economies to set the world onto a more sustainable energy path.
The G-8 countries also agree to establish a Dialogue on "Climate Change, Clean Energy and Sustainable Development" to consider issues such as the transformation of current energy systems into secure and sustainable ones, working in close cooperation with institutions such as the International Energy Agency and the World Bank, which will provide funding to developing countries in this area.
Brazil, China, India, Mexico and South Africa, the so-called G-5 — which also participated — had called at the meeting for concrete action on climate change by developed countries, noting that developing countries in particular are being hurt by its effects.
NGOs disappointed with climate agreement
Environmental NGOs generally expressed disappointment with the G-8 climate deal. According to Friends of the Earth, "the agreement lacks a clear acknowledgement of the urgent need for action and fails to state any significant steps G8 leaders will take to tackle climate change." "The communique … has no targets or timetables. There is no concrete action, and that’s what people will be disappointed about," Mark Kenber, policy director of the London-based Climate Group, added. While several NGOs blamed Bush for lack of progress, most acknowledged that the Blair campaign had done much to raise awareness of climate change. They called on the UK to take a continued leadership role in this area during the UK EU presidency, including at the next annual UNFCCC meeting in December, which is set to initiate discussions on action in the post-Kyoto era.
Following the meeting, French President Jacques Chirac said there had been some meeting of minds at Gleneagles, noting that "Even if [the agreement] does not go as far as we would have liked, it has one essential virtue in my eyes — that is, to re-establish a dialogue and cooperation between the Kyoto seven and the United States on a subject of the highest importance."
Other key G-8 issues
The Gleneagles Summit, which took place against the backdrop of the London bombings, also reached other key agreements. The world leaders agreed to boost development aid by USD 50 billion and debt cancellation for nine developing countries as an extension of an earlier deal involving 18 least-developed countries.
To access the Gleneagles Communiqué visit http://www.fco.gov.uk/Files/kfile/PostG8_Gleneagles_Communique.pdf
"G8 Moves Toward Climate Change Deal," EU OBSERVER, 8 July 2005; "G8 To Agree Need For Climate Action But No Targets," REUTERS, 8 July 2005; "Terrorist Attacks in London Fail to Stop G8 Climate Talks," ENS, 7 July 2005; "G8 Summit Delivers Nothing On Climate Change," FOE RELEASE, 7 July 2005.