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World officials focus on global warming
December 1, 1997
Kyoto, Japan
Web posted at: 6:12 a.m. EST (1112 GMT)KYOTO, Japan (CNN) -- Delegates from 160 countries and several international organizations opened the United Nations conference on global warming Monday, with the United States, European Union and Japan addressing the problem with various proposals that may not yield tangible results for another century.
At issue are "greenhouse gases," pollutants thought to damage the Earth's atmosphere and contribute to global warming. What emissions need to be cut, how deeply, and by whom are all open questions.
Many delegates have expressed disappointment that the United States, as the world's largest economic power and the leading producer of greenhouse gases, has not done more to cut emissions. The United States, with less than 5 percent of the world's population, puts out 25 percent of the world's carbon dioxide emissions.
The U.S. plan would stabilize emissions at 1990 levels between 2008 and 2012. The U.S. delegation is pressing for developing nations like China and India to make deeper cuts, which those countries oppose for fear of slowing economic growth.
EU delegates to the conference The European Union's plan is by far the most ambitious, calling for a 15 percent cut below 1990 levels by 2010. But those cuts would be measured across the E.U. region as a whole, rather than nation by nation. U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Melinda Kimble expressed "strong concerns about the proposed European Union 'bubble'" in remarks Monday.
The most conservative proposal has come from Japan, which has the world's second largest economy and the fourth largest levels of greenhouse gases. The Japanese plan, based on a complex formula of population and Gross National Product with an escape clause for population growth, would bring an overall cut of 3.2 percent.
The Kyoto conference is a follow-up to the 1992 Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), presented at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. The UNFCC set out broad goals, and the Kyoto conference is the third annual attempt to flesh out the specifics.
The delegates hope to be close to an agreement by the beginning of next week, when higher-level officials -- possibly including U.S. Vice President Al Gore -- arrive in Kyoto to continue the talks.
Any agreements reached in Kyoto will have to go back to people and governments of each country for ratification, and will not take effect until enough countries sign on -- which is not expected to happen for at least a year.
"The outcome of this conference will be a product that has to be sold -- sold to investors, producers and consumers," says conference chairman Michael Zammit Cutajar. "This product has to be well designed, if it is going to be successful."
So many agendas, so little time
While much of the talk is expected to revolve around the three competing sets of emissions' targets, some delegates came to the conference Monday with agendas of their own.
The French delegation is expected to argue in favor of greater use of nuclear power. France gets 80 percent of its electricity from nuclear plants and another 15 percent from dams in sharp contrast to most industrialized nations, which rely heavily on fossil fuels.
"France can go to Kyoto with its head held high as 95 percent of its electricity is produced without carbon dioxide," says Edmond Alphandery, head of France's state-run power company.
Australia, meanwhile, is fighting any cuts in its emissions, saying such measures would destroy its economy. Australia is a unique case, its government argues, dependent on coal exports and heavy industries such as aluminum smelting.
"We are not prepared to see Australian jobs sacrificed and efficient Australian industries, particularly those in the resources sector, robbed of their hard-earned competitive advantage," said Prime Minister John Howard.
In fact, while the Australian government promises to institute conservation measures to slow the growth, it still expects national greenhouse gas emissions to increase by 18 percent by 2010.
Producers of fossil fuels are represented, with OPEC Secretary-General Rilwanu Lukman in attendance. The stakes are high, Lukman says: "OPEC member countries could collectively suffer losses in revenue flows on the order of $20 billion each year as a result of the proposed mitigation measures being implemented," he said.
OPEC, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, is made up of 11 nations that together account for 40 percent of the world's oil production. By 2010, the target date for greenhouse gas cuts, 10 of the 12 countries most dependent on fossil fuel revenue will be OPEC members, Lukman said.
For any agreement to come out of Kyoto, some compromise will have to please most of the countries represented, and balance environmental and economic concerns. While the delegates hope the third time's a charm, talks have reportedly already begun on how to word a fallback position if the meeting does not produce a binding protocol by the time it ends December 10.
Tokyo Bureau Chief John Lewis and Reuters contributed to this report.
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