The New Year is upon us and I am sure you are wondering about the fate of the next global climate treaty. So, what we can expect to happen in UN climate talks in 2010?
Well, it has been pretty quiet on the UN front until yesterday when The UN climate chief, Yvo de Boer held a press conference. He said that because the Copenhagen climate talks did not deliver a full climate agreement, it makes the task of finalizing a global treaty more urgent and he said that the window of opportunity for reaching an agreement is closing.
In his opinion there were three main outcomes from Copenhagen climate talks. He explained that the talks raised the issue of climate change to the highest level of Government, they produced the Copenhagen accord, and the negotiations brought the actions closer to a decision.
So what can we expect to happen over the coming months?
Currently, the main discussions are about the Copenhagen accord and if it is a suitable framework for the ongoing negotiations that will be held between now and December when the next Conference of Parties will be held in Mexico.
The Copenhagen Accord was crafted after a major collapse in the negotiations that arose from an unwillingness of developed countries to commit to the continuation of the Kyoto Protocol and a legally binding agreement with 40% reductions in greenhouse gas emissions targets for developed countries.
Currently 9 countries have formally ‘associated’ themselves with the accord, including Australia, Canada, France, Ghana, the Maldives, Papua New Guinea, Serbia, Singapore and Turkey. Cuba has formally rejected it.
Developed Countries, including Australia, can submit greenhouse gas reduction targets for inclusion in an appendix of the accord to assist in achieving the aim, which is to keep global rise in temperatures to 2 degrees Celsius.
Developing nations are also being asked to spell out the actions they intend to take to limit their own emissions, this includes actions to Reduce Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD).
Countries were suppose to indicate their support for the Copenhagen accord by the 31st of January, but Yvo de Boer has said that the deadline is not the last opportunity for countries to sign up to be part of the accord.
Over the next two weeks we will find out which countries are supportive of the accord being the major tool to drive negotiations for a global climate change treaty.
But one question is unlikely to be answered for some time.
Will there be a legally binding climate treaty that will secure a safe climate and avoid dangerous climate change?
There certainly are no guarantees because the accord, which could be used as a basis for the next treaty is not a legally binding agreement.
I’ll keep you all posted.
Gemma Tillack
