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| Europe | |||
| Figures reveal Europe falling far short of climate targets | |||
| 2006-10-28 | |||
| The sky is almost falling! The sky is almost falling! Seven countries set to break emission limits, says environment commissioner The European Union, self-styled global champion in the battle against climate change, is falling woefully short of its targets for cutting greenhouse gas emissions and will need to take radical measures to achieve them, new projections have shown. The European commission said that, based on current measures and policies, the emissions of the EU's original 15 members will be just 0.6% below 1990 levels by 2010. The EU-15 countries are committed under the Kyoto protocol to an 8% cut on 1990 levels by 2012. The new figures predict that emissions in 2010 will actually be 0.3% higher than they were in 2004. The commission's projections come ahead of Monday's report by Sir Nicholas Stern, former chief economist at the World Bank, which will warn that climate change could push the global economy into the worst recession in recent history. Sir David King, the government's chief scientific adviser, said this week that the Stern report showed that "if no action is taken we will be faced with the kind of downturn that has not been seen since the great depression and two world wars".
Mr Dimas said that, on unchanged policies, seven countries - Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Ireland, Italy, Portugal and Spain - would exceed their individual emission limits, which are binding under EU law. Even with extra measures, Spain is projected to exceed its 1990 emissions by 51.3% in 2010, compared with an allowed increase under Kyoto of 15%. Spain's annual economic growth is nearly 4%, one of the highest rates in western Europe, but it has suffered from extreme weather prompting greater use of fossil fuels. Ireland is projected to reach 30% above 1990 levels by 2010, against an allowance of 13%, and Portugal 42.7% higher, with an allowance of 27%. Esther Bollendorff, climate campaigner at Friends of the Earth Europe, said: "This is pretty dramatic as the projected 0.6% is not even a tenth of the target. This sends a very weak signal about the EU ahead of the Nairobi conference."
Last week the commission published an energy efficiency plan designed to achieve 20% savings by 2020, including a €100bn (£67bn) cut in fuel bills. It said yesterday that additional measures already agreed at EU and national levels would take the EU15's reduction to 4.6% - if fully implemented on time. But only by buying rights to emit greenhouse gases from countries in the ex-communist bloc will the EU get even close to hitting the 8% cut. I'll trade you 5,000 carbon footprints tomorrow for a hamburger today. I'll fast-track the deportations.
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| Posted by:.com |
| #9 Ta Dah Ta Dah Ta Dahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh (*horns cease, neatly moved in formation to port arms*) Hear Ye!!!!!!!! Hear Ye!!!!!! Hear Ye!!!!!!!! Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you His Eminance The One and Only the Most Indespensible The Environment Commissioner of the European Union!!!!!! (now where in the devil is the Minister for Climate Change? Must be stuck in traffic again, damn...he was supposed to be the intro act.) |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2006-10-28 16:07 |
| #8 When you get your new one, insist on the heavy duty upgraded industrial strength one. And buy a spare ... mine seems to have to go to the shop for repair a lot lately. |
| Posted by: lotp 2006-10-28 13:50 |
| #7 Ptah, and Mr Dimas... is threatening to slash the planned industry emission caps submitted by 18 countries... Seems that the kind of downturn that has not been seen since the great depression and two world wars would br entirely self made. Brilliant fellas, simply brilliant! Fer godsakes, I am just an average joe with average schooling in matters of economic and I am seeking new supply of boggles as I already ran out of my allotment. |
| Posted by: twobyfour 2006-10-28 13:47 |
| #6 Let's see if I get the italics right THIS time The commission's projections come ahead of Monday's report by Sir Nicholas Stern, former chief economist at the World Bank, which will warn that climate change could push the global economy into the worst recession in recent history. Sir David King, the government's chief scientific adviser, said this week that the Stern report showed that "if no action is taken we will be faced with the kind of downturn that has not been seen since the great depression and two world wars". The findings published yesterday, based on national projections compiled by the staff of Stavros Dimas, the EU environment commissioner, are designed to spur European leaders into pressing for tougher targets in the second, post-2012 round of Kyoto at a UN conference on climate change in Nairobi early next month. The 25 governments have set targets of up to 30% cuts by 2020 and 80% by 2050, but not made them binding. Two things. Firstly, it IS all about power: the commission released the projections and has tailored the findings to FORCE someone else to do something they want. Secondly, it is interesting that, in the face of abject failure, they decide the best option is to pretend to go on the attack and propose more agressive targets. Perhaps they strive to hide their failure by adopting a level of enthusiam that would fool others into overlooking the obvious? |
| Posted by: Ptah 2006-10-28 13:29 |
| #5 The findings published yesterday, based on national projections compiled by the staff of Stavros Dimas, the EU environment commissioner, are designed to spur European leaders into pressing for tougher targets in the second, post-2012 round of Kyoto at a UN conference on climate change in Nairobi early next month. Designing findings and facts. Isn't that what Kyoto and climate change is all about? |
| Posted by: badanov 2006-10-28 09:17 |
| #4 Shut down the Power Plants!!!! We're going to exceed our limit!!!! This is all George Bush's fault!!! If we integrated our muslim immigrants better this never would have happened!!! |
| Posted by: bigjim-ky 2006-10-28 08:32 |
| #3 Believe it or not, the local news here in Oz is blaming record early summer snow on 'Climate Change'. This idiocy is unrelenting. |
| Posted by: phil_b 2006-10-28 06:30 |
| #2 Give 'em time, they'll figure it out. |
| Posted by: gorb 2006-10-28 04:10 |
| #1 Kyoto isn't working, but then it doesn't matter because it's pointless anyway. |
| Posted by: phil_b 2006-10-28 03:21 |