UN Climate Talks Conclude in Bonn

On April 8, talks wrapped up at the 11-day round of negotiations under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Bonn, Germany, with the top UN climate official saying wealthy nations need to commit to more aggressive targets for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2020. “More ambition is clearly needed on the part of industrialized countries if we are to get a robust response to climate change,” UNFCCC Executive Secretary Yvo de Boer said. The meeting was the first of at least three rounds this year tasked with resolving differences and creating solutions for a successor to the Kyoto Protocol, set to expire in 2012. At the conference, Saudi Arabia and other members of Oil Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) argued that a restriction on fossil fuels would be disruptive to their economies and are looking to receive assistance to transition to alternative forms of energy. “It's a matter of survival for us, also. So we are among the most vulnerable countries, economically,” said Mohammad Al Sabban, an adviser to Saudi Arabia’s Ministry for Petroleum and Mineral Resources.

Representatives from the Obama Administration participated in the talks for the first time in Bonn. Jonathan Pershing, U.S. deputy special envoy for climate change, said, “We promise in June to come back with a much more detailed set of policies,” but suggested emissions targets and spending figures may take longer, adding, “Those numbers will be determined by Congress.” President Barack Obama has pledged to reduce U.S. emissions to 1990 levels by 2020, while a House draft bill proposes a 20 percent reduction by 2020 based on 2005 levels. Harald Dovland, chair of the Ad-hoc Working Group (AWG), noted that many other industrialized nations are looking to the United States to set its limits before committing to firm targets. “The other industrialized countries. . . are very, very nervous in coming forward with concrete numbers without knowing what the U.S. will come forward with,” he said.

For additional information see:
http://www.reuters.com/article/environmentNews/idUSTRE5354FZ20090406?sp=...
http://uk.reuters.com/article/scienceNewsMolt/idUKTRE5363MV20090407?page...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7991039.stm
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=30433&Cr=climate&Cr1=change
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5j8q_ngQMF23Mz9VQn2-Ro...
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/09/world/09climate.html?ref=world

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