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wednesday 30 october
COP 8 - Progress of negotiations
Media Update
COP8 has been a very unimpressive meeting,
with next to no progress on any of the core
issues. Most important decisions have been
delayed to future meetings as governments
shirk their responsibilities to address
dangerous climate change.
The draft Delhi Declaration, which is
supposed to encapsulate the mood of the
meeting and establish a way forward, was
prepared by the Indian Environment Minister
Mr Baalu and presented on Monday to
delegates. The declaration failed to mention
either the Kyoto Protocol or the latest
scientific findings from the Third Assessment
Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on
Climate Change (IPCC), a step backwards since
the World Summit in Johannesburg. It also
failed to establish a process that will set
long-term objectives for emissions
reductions.
The final Declaration will be issued by
the end of week, building on the results of
the three ministerial ‘roundtable’
discussions on implementation, sustainable
development and the way forward. The first
roundtable was merely a succession of
speeches. Some developing countries stressed
the importance of multilateral funding, and
reaffirmed their objection to starting any
kind of process to discuss the next
commitment period before they start to see
some real emission reductions in
industrialised countries. However some other
developing countries did not rule out
beginning a process to start thinking about
how to approach discussions on the next
commitment period. The EU has been taking a
fairly progressive position on future
negotiations, while Japan is pushing too hard
for developing countries to take on
targets.
Unresolved issues and funding
Funding and reporting requirements for
developing countries are the only technical
issues that remain unresolved. Both issues
are deadlocked at the moment but it is
expected that some progress will be made this
evening as negotiations continue. Many of the
poorer developing countries see mandatory
reporting requirements on emissions levels
and climate policies as burdensome, given the
lack of available funding. Bigger developing
countries are more concerned with the
implications for future commitments,
believing that more detailed reporting is a
precursor to the setting of emissions
targets. However, the most vulnerable
developing countries, particularly small
island states, want improved reporting and
funding to identify their adaptation needs.
Meanwhile, the EU is delaying resolution of
the funding debate, saying that funding will
not be provided until developing countries
agree to comprehensive and mandatory
reporting.
Conclusion of many of the issues under
consideration at this conference hinges on
successful resolution of the funding
question. Despite acrimonious North-South
polarisation in the finance contact group on
Monday, some issues were politically resolved
yesterday, although progress on the substance
has not been made. Donor countries wanted to
delay the process of providing guidance to
the Global Environment Facility (GEF) for
another year in order to prioritise the
measures that could be funded - developing
countries reluctantly agreed.
Under technology transfer, governments
have delayed consideration of a report on
technology needs until the middle of next
year, but discussions will be open-ended with
no plan for a decision on this matter.
Governments have reached agreement on a
work programme to improve public education
and awareness, which essential to effective
public participation and proper scrutiny of
government action. However, like with
technology transfer, a final conclusion is
impossible until the funding questions are
resolved.
Review of adequacy
The Framework Convention requires that
Governments regularly review the adequacy of
action being taken to address climate change.
However, this item has been knocked off the
negotiations table for the fifth year in a
row.
The integration of science and
policy
The new discussion items that were supposed
to integrate the latest scientific findings
from the IPCC into the policy making process
failed to materialize as governments refused
to face the fact that scientists believe
tough emissions reductions are needed to
avert climate change. In last night’s plenary
session, China sought to strike the words
“possible implications” of the science from
the draft conclusion, which has already
shrunk to only two sentences. Russia, the EU
and Norway confronted China, but the final
decision only refers to the need for mere
consideration of the “information” contained
in the IPCC report, not discussion regarding
its meaning for future negotiations.
As a result, scientific discussions were
largely reduced to a basic assessment of
international research programmes and even
failed to deliver adequate new priorities for
further scientific work. The scientific
discussions have been a focal point for
countries seeking to delay discussion of
future commitments, including many of the
larger developing countries, and for
governments that refuse to take any action,
like the US and Saudi Arabia.
The Clean Development Mechanism
(CDM)
Governments have delayed discussion on what
types of sinks projects will be admitted
under the CDM until a workshop in February
that will feel negotiations in the middle of
next year. No governments were willing to
rule out large-scale monoculture plantations
or other unsustainable projects from their
CDM portfolios.
Contact Details
Alex Phillips Press Officer +91 98102
74093
Kate Hampton Lead Spokesperson +91 98180
96658
A complete list of all Friends of the
Earth representatives at COP 8 is available
on request. We have representatives from
Japan, South Africa, Ghana, United Kingdom,
Finland, Brazil, Australia, Argentina and
Ireland.
For background information on the issues
under discussion, please look at our COP8
media briefing, which is available at:
www.foei.org/media/2002/1021.html
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