Deadlock at Bonn climate talks
June 12th, 2009 by Jim JustThe climate talks in Bonn are wrapping up today (Friday, June 12. French climate ambassador Brice Lalande sums up the last two weeks:
Everybody knows that global emissions have to be halved by 2050 [compared with 1990 levels], which implies that industrialised countries reduce theirs by 80 percent. And everyone knows that emissions by developing countries have to start falling by 2025 at the latest. But nobody’s signing up.
The European Union (EU) is offering a cut of at least 20% below 1990 levels. Japan and the United States are proposing to make reductions of around 8% and 4%, respectively. China, India, and Brazil are refusing to sign up to any binding emissions targets.
It’s important to remember:
