CLIMATE NEGOTIATIONS BALI DECEMBER ‘07 NGO NEWSLETTER 13 DECEMBER PIVOTAL ISSUE ECO has been published by Non-Governmental Environmental Organisations at major international conferences since the Stockholm Environment Conference in 1972. This issue is published cooperatively by Climate Action Network (CAN) groups attending COP13 and COP/MOP3 in Bali in December 2007. ECO email: [email protected] – ECO website: http://www.climatenetwork.org/eco – Editorial/Production: Nithiyananthan Nesadurai/ Nugroho Nurdikiawan, Arief Darmawan Bali: Road map Technology: Phoenix rising? or road-kill? After the debacle in the technology Outside the luxurious surroundings of the decided to reduce emissions by 40 per cent by transfer negotiations on Tuesday night, Bali climate negotiations, with its leisurely 2020 compared to 1990. He then noted that ECO is relieved that the COP President Ministerial receptions overflowing with food, “a reduction of 20 per cent by 2020 should be is resuscitating the patient. Technology drink and talk of leadership, there is a real acceptable for all of us in the industrialised transfer may yet be coming on track as a world. Things are happening. Carbon dioxide world, and also for our friends and colleagues fundamental element of the negotiations emissions and concentrations are rising faster in the US.” – both for current implementation and than ever. Droughts are worsening. Arctic sea One might hope that the Bush Admin- the post-2012 framework. Parties and ice is disappearing faster than was believed istration, still marching to a different drum, Ministers now have an urgent responsi- possible. New projections reported in recent will change their tactics here in Bali. While bility to work together towards a progres- days indicate that in the first year of the second they smile nicely and say they want a negotia- sive outcome. commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol in tion to lead to an agreement in 2009, they are The need for finance and investment 2013, there may be no sea ice in the Arctic in working to kill the key elements crucial for in developing countries was emphasised in summer. a positive outcome by: blocking agreement the UNFCCC report presented in August. Pause for a minute to digest this please: when decisions are close to being complete; It states that mitigation measures, sufficient Within six years the perennial summer sea ice destroying trust just when it seems things are to return global greenhouse gas emissions of the Arctic could be gone. With it will go going well; working to water down technology to current levels by 2030, require addition- many sea ice dependent species and ecosys- and finance text to the point of being meaning- al investment and financial flows of tems. Such a massive and abrupt change in less, or non-existent; blocking decisions on between US$200-210 billion. Adaptation a key part of the earth system was almost REDD for no reason; and even proposing needs further tens of billions of dollars. In unthinkable 10 years ago when the Kyoto mitigation actions for themselves that are response to these scenarios, Bali outcomes Protocol was negotiated. It is not predicted weaker than those proposed for developing must signal that technology transfer will be in the recently concluded IPCC AR4, which countries. This administration is determined a scaled up and significant part of the post- Saudi Arabia has had such a hard time to have a road crash, leaving behind an empty 2012 agreement. “welcoming.” shell, to be filled by their junk of an unreliable, The ‘non-paper’ emanating from the Back in the world of the Bali Roadmap, purely voluntary initiative. GEF – or from some official(s) – and with its cozy groups of fossil fuel lobbyists Down under, Australian Prime Minister from other non-Parties did not serve to drinking late into the night with friendly Rudd stated his government ratified Kyoto build trust amongst parties (nor on the government delegates at beach front soirees, because: “we believe that climate change outcomes of recent trade talks). With things are moving at a more leisurely pace. represents one of the greatest moral, economic regard to funding, a new technology Absent is a sense of urgency, or a deadline to and environmental challenges in our age.” As “facility” to be run out of the Global save the planet. he said “There is no Plan B. There is no other Environment Facility (GEF) has been Yes, urgency! Or should we say emergen- planet we can escape to. We only have this one. proposed. While its terms of reference cy? And none of us can do it alone. So let’s get it sound good, ECO is concerned that Some Ministers of Environment and right.“ ECO reckons that this requires active it could distract from the big sums of Heads of State seem to understand this support for including a scale of ambition, funding needed for the future. Instead, emergency and are, in some cases, taking under both Convention and Protocol, in the a “facility” may result in bureaucratic significant action. German Minister Gabriel range of 25-40 per cent emissions reduction negotiations over operational matters for today stated he is so confident that this confer- against 2020 starting yesterday. a few years, with no funding distributed ence will be a success, that Germany already continued back page, column 2 continued back page, column 1 ISSUE NO 10 VOLUME CXIII FREE OF CHARGE CLIMATE NEGOTIATIONS BALI DECEMBER ‘07 NGO NEWSLETTER Is the U.S. CONstructive? What about Just a few months ago in New York, Heads sealing the deal. After all, if you appear to of State committed to come to Bali seeking be constructive – while admittedly cross- emissions from a deal. While the US couldn’t manage to ing other countries’ redlines – then isn’t send its President to the meeting, it did that the same as being constructive? And Annex I forests? signal its strong commitment to success if those other countries whose redlines you The forest issue flying under the radar at this in Bali. Recent US activity throws this cross, end up in a place where they can’t COP is emissions from forestry and land use commitment into question. accept the final package…well then isn’t it in Annex-1 countries. The proposed REDD How do you construct a deal? Every- their fault that the negotiations collapse? framework encourages developing countries one gets something they need, everyone Perhaps not! Just suppose that a certain to reduce tropical deforestation and degra- gives up something they want. From the party with a certain “process” waiting in dation. Temperate and boreal forests and beginning it has been clear that the deal in the wings wanted negotiations to end in a peatlands in particular also store massive Bali would require something on all four of deadlock. Now if that party were to blame amounts of “green” carbon. the building blocks: mitigation, adaptation, for undermining the process, it would be This fact was showcased at a couple of technology transfer and finance. Cut one pretty tough to get other countries to come side events here. Last Tuesday, Professor portion of the deal and you put the whole to their party. But if they could safely hide Brendan Mackay of the Australian National deal in jeopardy. behind the skirts of another bloc of parties, University presented results indicating So why would the US take such a after having pushed their buttons to put on carbon stores in natural forests are greatly hard line on technology transfer. They are the brakes… under-estimated by national inventories claiming they will not consider any attempt A strong Bali road map is the lynchpin in Australia and are much greater than in to buy down intellectual property rights for progress on climate change. It is time managed plantations. On Saturday, new maps but certainly there is a way around that to call the US’s bluff on its goals for Bali. were released by a coalition of Canadian and problem. Whether other countries continue to humour American groups showing the distribution Well, sometimes the appearance of the US on its major economies meeting of the 186 billion tonnes of carbon stored in wanting a deal is more important than (MEM) process remains to be seen. Canada’s boreal forests and peatlands. Forestry and other industrial activities continued from back page, column 3 continued from back page, column 2 in these ecosystems degrade these important in that time period. What is preferred is Staying in the Southern hemisphere, ECO carbon stocks and release the carbon to the an instrument that does not scare away notes the words of South Africa’s Minister Van atmosphere. The current rules guiding the the private sector, but attracts it. Schalkwyk: “If we want to conclude by 2009, treatment of land use, land use change and As action must take place in coming we must agree this week on the form and forestry (LULUCF) fail to place an appro- years, well before 2012, the creation of an shape of the roadmap, and this roadmap must priate emphasis on this fact and fail to fully ambitious programme, perhaps under the raise the bar for all. As a developing country, account for human-caused emissions from GEF, which would create more consistency we will take ambitious mitigation action. all land uses. ECO hopes that the review and coherence around the current agenda, South Africa will contribute its fair share and “enhancement” of these rules, planned is recommended. This could ensure towards our common responsibility for the for 2008 under the Article 9 review and the technology transfer is implemented. future. Our actions will be measurable. They Ad Hoc Working Group, will remedy these The Convention process for a post- will be reportable as well as verifiable.