Move to lower greenhouse expectations

A SECRET document prepared for John Howard’s summit of world leaders reveals they will only be asked to back an “aspirational” global goal to cut dangerous greenhouse gases, rather than hard targets.

The full draft of the declaration for the Asia Pacific Economic Co-operation forum was due to be announced by the 21 leaders at the close of next month’s summit in Sydney.

Its leaking will embarrass the Howard Government and energise environmental protesters during the summit.

The document reveals that Mr Howard, US President George Bush and the other APEC leaders will call for the “aspirational” global goal to cut greenhouse gases to be included in the next round of UN climate negotiations. The APEC leaders will also back agreements to promote energy efficiency and new technology, including nuclear power, to combat global warming.
“This is a ‘Made-in the USA’ declaration, covered in Australian coal dust,” Greenpeace’s Ben Pearson said. “It’s Bush and Howard trying to look good for elections but actually doing nothing.”

The draft declaration follows President Bush’s proposals floated earlier this year and calls for a new world climate agreement that is “a more flexible and diverse framework that promotes practical and co-operative action”.

It says the APEC leaders will agree that, “a long-term aspirational global emissions reduction goal will be a key component of the post-2012 framework” for climate negotiations.

The controversial “aspirational” goal in the APEC declaration will antagonise many climate campaigners who insist that binding targets to cut greenhouse gas emissions, especially by the developed world, must be at the heart of the next round of UN climate negotiations in Bali in December.

President Bush has resisted any agreement on binding targets to cut emissions, a policy backed by Mr Howard.

The Age