Off topics... The failure of Copenhagen Climate Summit
The Copenhagen Climate summit closed with a failure sensation. The preponderant role played by China and USA, the G2, has been shown again.The final Accord, negotiated in fact between USA, China, India, South Africa and Brazil, only recognizes the necessity to contain the increase of the average temperature of the planet in two degrees, a threshold over which the effects could be irreversible. The maximum point in which the emissions must begin to descend is not specified, "as soon as possible" it is said, when the scientists have marked year 2015 as the no-return limit.
An investment of 30 billion dollars to help the developing countries throughout the next three years is promised, as well as the goal to jointl mobilize 100 billion dollars a year by 2020.
This is an Accord with a samller degree of concretion than the achieved in Kyoto 1997, although the situation is now much more worrisome.
Text of the Accord
Posts
I agree Rafa - very depressing but also an entirely predictable move by China. Would you believe in my country (Australia) despite the stance of our Prime Minister at Copenhagen, the Opposition here are still arguing about whether climate change is even happening! Unbelievable.
ReplyDeleteI follow SE Asia politically as a professional analyst and I believe China will allow this seeming debacle to continue for a while but will out of their own self-interest enforce draconian measures at home to reduce carbon emissions.
You see their own scientists have already advised them what is happening to the glaciers in the Himalayas that form the headwaters of the Yangtse and the Ganges etc. It alarmed the Politburo so much that they buried it - you may imagine what happened to some of the scientists involved! Canadian journalist Gwyn Dwyer managed to find it (he's rather good at doing that) and wrote about the (very) alarming findings. Basically, the Politburo (who run China) believe in global warming and know what they have to do regionally to ensure the nightmare scenario their scientists warned them of doesn't occur. They are a police state, if anyone can do 'whats necessary' - they can.
Copenhagen was a disappointment but I believe even after effectively wrecking a firm international agreement this time, China (the key to all this) will act - but strictly to suit themselves and their own particular worldview. Watch for drastically rising (with the glacial melt) then dropping of the flow rate for the Yangtse and other major river systems (including Ganges and the Mekong) originating in the Himalayas as a trigger for action within the decade.
Bit off the topic I know - but I thought you'd like to know this.
Felice Navidad Rafa.
Doc
http://docsartofwar.blogspot.com/
I strongly agree with you and your wise analysis. China is the key to both the problem and the solution. However, as a police state, they will act only for auto-preservation with a very short-time policy.
ReplyDeleteAlso in Spain, political Opposition is trying to profit from the Climatic Crisis, negating in ocassions proven scientific facts. This is also a short-sighted attitude.
I don't know that world wer are leaving for our children. However I remember the Carl Sagan's words
"The Earth is the only world known so far to harbor life. Like it or not, for the moment the Earth is where we make our stand".
I hope that new year 2010 will get some light to the minds of the world leaders.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year Doc
Rafa