 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Beijing (AFP) Nov 19, 2010 China appeared Friday to soften its stance on a sticking point in UN climate change negotiations, the issue of verifying developing countries' emissions reductions. Beijing does not "believe that increasing transparency will be a problem," at global talks opening later this month in Mexico, said Huang Huikang, the Chinese foreign ministry's representative at the talks. "This is a strong signal," Huang told reporters. "In the past few months we have never expressed so publicly that, in principle, we do not see this as an issue." China and the United States, the world's two biggest sources of greenhouse gases, have been at odds over how to rein in such emissions, casting a shadow over the talks in Cancun set from November 29 to December 10. The meeting is the latest round of negotiations in a long effort under the United Nations to forge a global climate change treaty. Huang in his up-beat comments said that "emissions reductions achieved by developing countries with technical and financial support from developed countries can be measurable, reportable and verifiable." The United States has asked China to commit to curbing its carbon emissions and wants developing countries to agree to more transparency and scrutiny of their claims on emissions reductions and other climate efforts. China in turn has accused Washington of using the transparency issue to divert attention from its failure to pass laws to reduce domestic emissions. It was not immediately clear how China's apparent new flexibility would affect the transparency of its own efforts to fight climate change. China has set a 2020 target of reducing carbon emissions per unit of gross domestic product -- or carbon intensity -- by 40-45 percent from 2005 levels. That amounts to a vow of energy efficiency, but emissions will continue to soar. However, China has so far strongly resisted the suggestion that it should allow outside verification of whether it is achieving its climate goals.
Share This Article With Planet Earth
Related Links Climate Science News - Modeling, Mitigation Adaptation
Dire Messages About Global Warming Can BackfireBerkeley CA (SPX) Nov 19, 2010 Dire or emotionally charged warnings about the consequences of global warming can backfire if presented too negatively, making people less amenable to reducing their carbon footprint, according to new research from the University of California, Berkeley. "Our study indicates that the potentially devastating consequences of global warming threaten people's fundamental tendency to see the wo ... read more |
|
|
| The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2010 - SpaceDaily. AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement |
del.icio.us
Digg
Reddit
YahooMyWeb
Google
Facebook
