“Herding the Cats”: How Serious is America Over Climate Change Issues?

BY: GOVERNANCE AND ACCOUNTABILITY INSTITUTE

(New York, NY - December 1, 2009) What is Obama bringing to the Copenhagen climate change conference? What consensus positions/ agreements will he bring back to the US Senate for discussion, consideration and ratification? President Clinton/VP Gore earlier could not get the U.S. to fully back the Kyoto protocol and President George W. Bush pulled back from it decisively. How serious is America over the climate change issue?

In a posting released this week on the Governance & Accountability Institute's www.Accountability-Central.com platform “ESG & Sustainability Perspectives & Insights,”  AC editors reported that as Global Warming and Climate Change and Greenhouse Gas Emissions will be hot topics for debate at the UN Climate Change Conference December 7-18 in Copenhagen, UN climate change chief Yvo de Boer told interviewers from Environment & Energy Publishing, that four essential issues were on the table:

• <!--[if !supportLists]--> <!--[endif]-->How much are the giant industrial nations, USA, Germany, UK and France willing to reduce their GhG emissions?
• <!--[if !supportLists]--> <!--[endif]-->How willing will major developing nations (China and India) be in reducing their GhG?
• <!--[if !supportLists]--> <!--[endif]-->How will developing countries get assistance to reduce their GhG emissions and finance adaptation to the impacts of climate change?
• <!--[if !supportLists]--> <!--[endif]-->Who pays for all of this?

Notes Henry (Hank) Boerner, Chairman of the Governance & Accountability Institute, which has been monitoring the Copenhagen run-up:

“deBoer is executive secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change – “UNFCCC” – and his job is to herd the cats toward adoption of a successor agreement for the Kyoto Protocol – that is, a new global treaty to address climate change.  The present protocol was adopted in Japan in December 1997 and set binding targets for reducing Greenhouse Gasses (GhGs) – in theory, for the 184 nation-state signatories.  Notable exceptions:  The United States of America and China – “Chinmerica” to some, who note the growing interdependence of these two economies since the Kyoto conference.”

“On this world stage for climate change debate will be the President of the United States of America, Barack Obama.  What will he say and do?  What is he “bringing” to Denmark?  What consensus positions and/or agreements might he bring back to the US Senate for discussion, consideration and ratification?  Of such things will the headlines be crafted for US print media and will be grist for the legion of talking heads on television and radio.” 

“During the Kyoto round, Democrats also controlled the White House - President Bill Clinton and VP Al Gore. The Clinton-Gore team could not get the United States to fully back the Kyoto Protocol. (the US Senate did not take up the issue.) President George W. Bush (#43) and his administration decisively pulled back from the Kyoto Protocol early in his first term (2003).” 

"The Kyoto agreement called for 6% CO2 emissions reduction by 2000 over 1990 levels.  What might the new target levels be? Corporate executives, investors (asset owners and managers), regulators, public policy makers are seeking clarity and consensus on the issues of GhG emissions and climate change."

Click here to view the Perspectives & Insights posting on Accountability-Central.

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