Cape Town - Developing countries have produced far fewer greenhouse gas emissions than developed countries, but they are making “much greater” contributions to mitigating the impacts of the resulting climate change.
This was noted “with consternation” by representatives of the Basic group of big developing countries (Brazil, India, China and South Africa) after a ministerial meeting on climate change in Cape Town last week.
They said developed countries – so-called Annex I countries of the Kyoto Protocol with firm targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions – should be taking the lead.
The Basic countries are a bloc formed by a November 2009 agreement to act jointly at the much anticipated COP 15 meeting of parties to the UN climate change convention, that took place in Copenhagen in 2009.
Until last week, the US had been considered the major stumbling block to a new global climate deal, but shortly before leaving on his Africa tour, President Barack Obama announced a National Climate Action Plan that some critics said would “make serious progress on reducing pollution and curbing climate change”.
Obama also called for greater engagement in climate change negotiations internationally, raising hopes that the US would now help to lead the way to a new deal, instead of acting as the major spoiler.
The Basic ministers “noted with concern” that there still appeared to be a “huge” ambition gap between what developed countries had pledged in terms of reducing their greenhouse gas emissions and what was required in terms of their historical responsibility for creating global warming, as well as what was required by science to minimise this impact.
“Studies show that if Annex I parties as a whole commit to the ambition level of 40 percent below the 1990 levels, the pre-2020 ambition gap will be fully addressed.
In this context, ministers called for the urgent ratification of the amendments to the Kyoto Protocol P establishing the second commitment period (2013-20).”
A new global climate deal is supposed to be negotiated by 2015 and come into effect in 2020.
Obama’s new climate action plan recommits the US to meet its target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 17 percent below 2005 levels, by 2020. - Cape Argus