Archived press release

Climate change: urgent action and robust policies must match dire warnings

12 November 2007

Friends of the Earth has called for tough action to combat the threat of climate change as national governments debate the adoption of a synthesis report on climate change at the symposium of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in Valencia, Spain on 12-17 November 2007.

Commenting on the proposed report, Friends of the Earth International climate campaigner, Joseph Zacune said:

"The IPCC has proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that we are facing an emergency situation and that tackling climate change is critical if we are to safeguard the survival of humanity. As usual people in developing countries will be hit the hardest. We must ensure that these dire warnings translate into urgent action and that the policies to tackle them are sufficiently robust. Wealthy nations which have benefited economically by polluting the most must finance developing countries' adaptation and mitigation costs.

"Friends of the Earth calls on all governments to deliver genuine solutions including, large scale investment in energy efficiency in buildings and transport, clean renewable energy such as solar and wind, lifestyle changes and the conservation of our world's forests. False solutions such as agrofuels and nuclear power must be rejected."

Notes

The IPCC synthesis report has taken six years to compile, draws on research over 2,500 scientific experts from over 130 countries and should shock the world into taking urgent action to reduce global emissions.

This synthesis report includes the core findings of the three previous reports published earlier this year. The first part, which focused on science, was published on 2 February 2007 in Paris. The second part, published on 6 April 2007 in Brussels, focused on impacts and showed that the world's poorest people will be hit hardest by the effects of climate change. The third, published in Bangkok, 4 May 2007 focused on technologies to mitigate climate change.

The IPCC meeting in Valencia, Spain on 12-17 2007 November will adopt the synthesised report and national governments will be asked to approve it.

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Published by Friends of the Earth Trust