Home > Press releases > 1997
11th Dec 1997
Friends of the Earth International said this morning that the Kyoto
Protocol agreed at the United Nations COP3 meeting on climate change
will not slow down global warming. After eleven days of negotiations,
governments have come up with a compromise deal that could in the early
part of the next century even lead to emission increases because of
a
series of loopholes that remain in the final text. These loopholes could
include the provision for Russia to sell 'phantom' emissions with more
energy-intensive economies such as the United States.
The emission reductions agreed amount to an overall reduction of about
5.2 per cent for the developed countries at 1990 levels by 2008-2012.
This is far below the 15 per cent reduction at 1990 levels by 2010 proposed
by the European Union as a realistic and achievable target, and even
that reduction is very low indeed compared to the action demanded by
some other interpretations of global warming science. It is expected
that the rising concentrations of greenhouse gases in the Earth's atmosphere
will contribute to further climate change leading to billions of dollars
worth of property damage, loss of human life, sea level rise and extreme
weather conditions that may damage tourism and agriculture. It will
also accelerate the process of species extinction and habitat loss.
The highly compromised political deal done in Kyoto is largely attributable
to the position of the United States which was heavily influenced by
fossil fuel and automobile industry interests. The failure to reach
agreement led to the talks spilling over into an all night session and
ended in disarray as interpretation facilities were withdrawn.
Tony Juniper of Friends of the Earth International said:
“Governments have delivered a deal but at present this is fatally
compromised and riddled with loopholes. Millions of people worldwide
will remain at risk from the social and economic upheaval that will
accompany progressive global warming. There must be an urgent evaluation
of what has been achieved here and early efforts to improve on this
weak agreement. The acceptance of the need for more effective action
by countries like the USA will be vital".
ENDS
Contact details:
Friends of the Earth
26-28 Underwood St.
LONDON
N1 7JQ
Tel: 020 7490 1555
Fax: 020 7490 0881
Web: www.foe.co.uk/feedback.html
Media team
