The governments of the world’s top two greenhouse gases emitters, United States and China, agreed Wednesday to tighten pollution standards on heavy trucks, increase energy efficiency in transport, buildings and industry, and a number of other initiatives to curb greenhouse-gas emissions. More »
Sergio Abranches
After a week of informal conversations in Bangkok, Thailand, negotiators already know what stumbling blocks they will face on the way towards a successful meeting of the parties to the Climate Convention, COP18, in Doha, Qatar, November 26 to December 7. Most of the obstacles come from an old quarrel between the US and Europe, on the one side, and China, India and Brazil, on the other, on the meaning of the principle of common but differentiated obligations under the Climate Convention. More »
Sergio Abranches
Why the Durban Platform is a political breakthrough, but a dismal outcome in the light of climate science? More »
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which provides policy-makers with the current state of climate science, has issued today a statement on the Durban outcome. It shows concern about the decision to “adopt a universal legal agreement on climate change as soon as possible, but not later than 2015, to be adopted and come into force from 2020.” The Durban agreement reinstates the decision to review the Copenhagen/Cancun pledges to reduce emissions in the light of the IPCC next report, to be released in 2013. The IPCC has been asked what impact these agreements will have on global warming. More »
Sergio Abranches, from Durban
The documents still circulating at COP17 show notable political progress, but fall short of adequately meeting the risks already pointed out by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change — IPCC — fourth assessment of climate science. They are still under discussion, and final decision may still be significantly different. It is likely, however, they will keep the general thrust of the documents. More »
Sergio Abranches, from Durban
The European Union seems to be doing better in the Climate Summit than it did at the Financial Summit in Brussels last night. While in Durban, the EU is likely to get its proposal for a roadmap to a post-2020 comprehensive legal agreement on climate change, in Brussels it failed to agree to Treaty changes deemed necessary to prevent a fiscal and financial meltdown. More »
