Calculated diversion

Embarrassed US delegates refused to accept the larger share of a 'Carbon Cake' offered to them by NGOs yesterday. Most of them either walked away without responding, pretended to be too busy, or not US delegates at all! A tiny part of a huge round cake with a map of the world on it was given to the head of the G77, signifying the crumbs that the developing world is receiving at the climate negotiations, rather than its rightful share of the Earth's atmosphere. The rest was delivered to the US delegation office. "It

Carving the carbon cake

Embarrassed US delegates refused to accept the larger share of a 'Carbon Cake' offered to them by NGOs yesterday. Most of them either walked away without responding, pretended to be too busy, or not US delegates at all!

Green business

Modified by climate

Melting to extinction

All gas

Do not burden poorer nations, says Vajpayee

October 30, New Delhi: Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, at the opening of the mninisterial section of Cop 8, said on Wednesday, October 30, that developing countries should not be set the same greenhouse gas emission targets as developed countries.

PROVISIONAL AGENDA FOR COP 8

PROVISIONAL AGENDA FOR COP 8 1. Opening of the session and Election of the President of the Conference at its eighth session;

Article 13: Role and powers of the Conference of Parties/Meeting of Parties

The COP, which is the supreme body of the FCCC, will also serve as the Meeting of Parties (MOP) of the Kyoto Protocol. Nations which have become parties to the FCCC but not yet parties to KP can participate as observers in the MOP. Apart from undertaking decisions mandated to it by the KP, the MOP will regularly review the implementation of the KP and take decisions to promote its effective implementation.

The politics of "meaningful participation": how meaningful is meaningful?

A. Will the US ratify the protocol? India and China hold the key

POLITICS IN THE POST-KYOTO WORLD

CSE Briefing Paper 2 The Kyoto protocol — to cut carbon emissions in industrialised countries in order to avert global warming — is increasingly being understood not as an environmental agreement but a trading agreement. Speakers at a recently organised symposium by the World Trade Organisation noted that Protocol could well be the most significant trading agreement of the century. Under the protocol, industrialised countries are expected to cut their overall carbon emissions by at least 5 per cent below 1990 levels in the commitment period, 2008 to 2012.

THE ATMOSPHERIC RIGHTS OF ALL PEOPLE ON EARTH

Why is it necessary to move towards the 'ultimate objective' of the Framework Convention on Climate Change? CSE Statement by Anil Agarwal and Sunita Narain

Briefing Kyoto6

12.10 Acquisition period: Certified emissions reductions (CERs) can be obtained from 2000 upto the beginning of the first commitment period, that is, 2008, and these CERs can be used to achieve compliance in the first commitment period from 2008 to 2012. This provision has been criticised by several experts as a loophole which is called Superheated Air. Only emissions reduced within the commitment period should be taken into account. It reduces the impact of the KP in addressing the build-up of greenhouse gases and thus addressing the problem of climate change.

Article 11: Implementation of the Protocol including provisions for advancing the implementation of existing commitments of developing countries

In order to implement this Article, all nations must take into account Article 4, paragraphs 4, 5, 7, 8 & 9 of the FCCC. Article 4.4 says that all developed countries should assist developing countries that are particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change in meeting costs of adaptation to those adverse effects.

Article 7: National Communications and the information to be contained in it

Article 12 of the FCCC states all parties should provide a national communications to the FCCC secretariat. Article 7 of the KP says that Annex 1 parties must add the following information in their national communications: The necessary supplementary information needed for ensuring compliance with the emissions reduction objectives set out in Article 3. This information will be incorporated in the annual inventory of anthropogenic emissions. This information will be provided annually beginning with the first year after the KP has entered into force.

Briefing Kyoto3

Article 4: Provisions which allow industrialised countries to form a bubble