Monthly Archives: November 2010

All eyes are on the Cancun, Mexico Climate Conference that is currently taking place for the next two weeks to find a substantive agreement.  Last year was considered a bitter disappointment for Copenhagen where only a three page, non-binding accord produced very dismal results.  Copenhagen’s less than stellar results stemmed from two problems, countries not wanting to commit to specific target ranges to cut greenhouse gas emissions and not meeting the commitment scientists wanted for a good climate agreement.  At Copenhagen, the leaders of several nations decided to collectively agree reduce emissions by 17% by 2020.  It also stipulated that developing nations, who feel the brunt of most climate problems would receive about $30 billion in aid over the next 3 years.  Translation, the U.S. as an individual nation would only reduce GHG emissions by 3% towards 1990 levels, when it should be closer to 17% on its own.

Since that dismal performance, the nations of the world are working to work towards a stronger agreement.  I would not count on an amazing agreement though.  The U.S. and China are biggest polluters and they have not hammered out any type of agreement that they both find satisfactory.  In addition, China gets very nervous whenever the word transparency is uttered to monitor emissions standards.  They think it will encroach on their sovereignty.  The U.S. also has very little leverage going into this meeting due to the fact that the senate has yet to pick up a climate change bill that passed the house last year.  That bill would have incorporated a new cap-and-trade system that many conservatives are very nervous about.

After listing all the negatives, what are some positives that will come out of this tropical getaway to solve the planet’s biggest crisis.  Most likely, it will be a minor agreement with slightly bigger targets than last year.  Developing nations will probably receive a little more compensation for damage caused by the big polluters.  Other pollutants like soot and methane will also be regulated.  Finally, more action could be taken to stop deforestation, a big cause of global warming and environmental degradation.  Nothing substantial will probably come from the summit.  Every country has individual needs, so it will probably work better if individual blocks like the EU, developing nations, and China and the U.S. all signed agreements individually.  Yes, the system would probably be less fair and not as comprehensive, but at least that would get the talks rolling and something is better than nothing.

Photo Credit: The Guardian