Climate Deal in Bali

[Androsphinx]

Telegraph

The United States has joined a global consensus that deep cuts must be made in greenhouse gas emissions after a historic agreement was reached to negotiate a new climate change treaty within the next two years.

America's return to the fold on climate change came after a sleepless night and a day of high drama in which the UN secretary general and the Indonesian president called on delegates in Bali to show leadership.

In extraordinary scenes, developing countries slogged it out with US delegates over the last points of disagreement on the floor of the conference and the US reconsidered its position in front of the eyes of the world – and backed down.

The "road map" agreed in Bali now means a new climate treaty must be negotiated by the end of 2009 to replace the Kyoto treaty that the United States reneged on six years ago.

The treaty, which will come into force in 2012, also sets up a global agreement to stop tropical deforestation, which many environmental groups and developed countries have been campaigning for for at least 20 years.

Hilary Benn, the Environment Secretary, told the Sunday Telegraph: "We've got a historic breakthrough here in Bali. The fact it we've achieved something that people would have said a year ago wasn't possible. It won't happen.
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"Nobody comes out of this humiliated. Everyone comes out of this with their heads held high because we didn't let the world down."

He added: "I think it was the compelling science that enabled us to do it but it was the politics that made it happen. The truth is our changing climate is changing politics."

The deal came after US delegates dropped their demand for stronger action from poorer nations - a stand that had drawn boos from the floor.

"Lead or get out of the way!" one delegate demanded before Paula Dobriansky, the head of the US delegation, reversed her country's position. Her team was publicly rebuked by both South Africa and Papua New Guinea.

"We will go forward and join consensus," she said, triggering rousing applause.

"I think we have come a long way here," she added. "In this, the United States is very committed to this effort and just wants to really ensure we all act together."

Earlier last night the European Union had thrashed out a compromise agreement with developing nations including China in a bid to resolve the last sticking points.

The countries had complained the wording on their emission reductions was too strong and could curb economic growth. They also wanted more help from the West with regard to the transfer of clean technology and financial aid.

"We are hugely disappointed," said Chandrashekhar Dasgupta, a member of the Indian delegation, at the time. "We are desperately keen to have a successful outcome. But it has to be on the basis of transparency, justice and fairness."

At first, the US indicated it did not want to budge - even though the summit had agreed to American demands to scrap specific reduction targets for itself and other industrial nations.

Instead of requiring developed nations to cut emissions by 25 to 40 per cent below 1990 levels by 2020, the road map now says countries recognise that "deep cuts in global emissions" will be required.

The US finally capitulated after Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary general, flew back to the talks this morning to address delegates, urging them to quickly approve a "good and strong" compromise plan. "I'm disappointed about the lack of progress," he said.

Following the deal between the 190 nations at the two-week conference, Mr Ban Ki-moon said: "The Bali Roadmap that has been agreed is a pivotal first step toward an agreement that can address the threat of climate change, the defining challenge of our time."

I'm not really sure that scrapping concrete targets was worth the guarantees to developing countries. At least we got something, I guess.[/url]