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RI delegates to bridge deadlock on target
Indonesian delegates at the climate change talks in Barcelona, Spain, will strive to break the deadlock between developed and developing nations over emission cuts to reach a new climate treaty in Copenhagen in December
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ndonesian delegates at the climate change talks in Barcelona, Spain, will strive to break the deadlock between developed and developing nations over emission cuts to reach a new climate treaty in Copenhagen in December.
Delegation head Rachmat Witoelar warned that without serious commitment from the US and rich nations to announce their targets, the upcoming climate talks in Copenhagen, Denmark, were likely to fail to produce a treaty to replace the Kyoto Protocol that expires in 2012.
“Time is running out. Indonesia, as initiator of the Bali action plan, will strive to bridge differences to reach a global target on emission cuts,” Rachmat said in a statement made available to The Jakarta Post from Barcelona.
“Indonesia is ready to help in order to reach an agreement.”
Negotiators from 190 countries are gathered in Barcelona until Friday to resolve the stalemate.
The Barcelona talks are the last chance for all countries to agree on measures needed to ease the pace of climate change before the Copenhagen summit.
It is also the fifth meeting on climate change this year to prepare a draft agreement to be adopted at the Copenhagen meeting, but no specific commitment on reducing emissions has been reached.
Rich nations have demanded that developing countries, especially Brazil, China, India and Indonesia, agree to binding emission cuts.
Developing countries have rejected the calls, arguing the industrial world has produced the majority of harmful gases in recent decades and should bear the cost of fixing the problem.
In October’s meeting in Bangkok, rich nations proposed papers trying to annul the Kyoto Protocol as they reject legally binding emission targets.
Rachmat, also head of the National Council on Climate Change (DNPI), said Indonesian delegates would continue to push rich nations to cut their greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent from the 1990 level.
“But we will also invite big developing countries to take voluntary actions to mitigate climate change as has been done by Indonesia,” he said.
Indonesia is the first developing nations to officially declare its commitment to cut emissions amid slow progress made by rich nations.
President Susilo Bambang Yu-dhoyono has promised to voluntarily cut emissions by 26 percent by 2020 using its state budget.
He also pledged that Indonesia, with the aid of rich nations, could slash emissions by up to 41 percent from the energy and forestry sectors.
Scientists say industrial countries should reduce emissions by at least 25 to 40 by 2020, but the targets announced so far are below this.
