Baltic and European news
G8 leaders agree two degrees climate goal
Wednesday 8 July 2009Leaders of the world's eight leading industrialised nations meeting in Italy on Wednesday agreed a goal to limit global temperature rises to two degrees Celsius. This is the first time scientists' recommendations are endorsed at such a high political level.
G8 leaders had previously agreed to halve their greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 (EE 08/07/08 http://www.endseurope.com/15298). But on Wednesday the leaders did not agree mid-term reduction targets and how much money they should spend to finance climate mitigation and adaptation in developing countries.
By failing to commit to the "crucial" mid-term targets and financing emission reductions the leaders "missed a critical opportunity to show they could break the deadlock in the UN climate negotiations", said Greenpeace International political advisor Tobias Muenchmeyer.
The world's biggest greenhouse gas emitters have also dropped a reference to halving global emissions by 2050 from a draft text to be agreed this week, dimming hopes of significant progress towards a new global climate deal.
Representatives from the major emitters are meeting on Thursday alongside a G8 summit in L'Aquila, Italy, from Wednesday to Friday. China and India insisted that reference to the long-term emission reduction goal be dropped from a draft text to be discussed at the meeting, according to Reuters.
China and India want firm guarantees on ambitious emission cuts and financing from the G8, a Greenpeace spokesperson said. Emerging economies then said they wanted rich nations to commit to an 80% reduction target (EE 09/07/08 http://www.endseurope.com/15307).
Many stakeholders have pinned their hopes on the G8 summit to deliver a clear step forward on the road to Copenhagen in December (EE 15/06/09 http://www.endseurope.com/21564). The MEF talks will not be helped by Chinese leader Hu Jintao having to leave early to deal with unrest at home.
Carbon market analyst Point Carbon believes the chances of a deal in Copenhagen are higher than 50%. Its prediction is tied above all to the fate of a US draft climate law in the Senate. The analyst repeated its expectation that the carbon price will reach E40 per tonne in 2016 (EE 03/06/09 http://www.endseurope.com/21466).
Meanwhile, former UK prime minister Tony Blair and The Climate Group have issued a report setting out a path to a low-carbon economy. Seventy per cent of the emission cuts needed by 2020 could be achieved by investing in energy efficiency and reducing deforestation, say the authors.
Follow-up: G8 summit 2009 homepage
http://www.g8italia2009.it/G8/Home/G8-G8_Layout_locale-1199882116809_Home.htm
plus European Commission president's remarks
Point Carbon press release http://www.endseurope.com/docs/90708a.pdf,
The Climate Group press release
executive summary
http://www.theclimategroup.org/assets/resources/Technology_for_a_low_carbon_future_-_summary.pdf
and full repor
http://www.theclimategroup.org/assets/resources/Technology_for_a_low_carbon_future_report.pdf
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