ITS members produce about half the world鈥檚 greenhouse gas emissions. So the inaugural meeting in Sydney last week of the Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate, made up of the US, Australia, China, Japan, India and South Korea, was avidly watched by environmentalists.
The resulting pact, they reckon, is disappointing to say the least. Even if businesses adopt all the recommendations on cleaner technologies, the pact will still see a doubling of carbon emissions by 2050. 鈥淎nd they have the gall to call that climate protection,鈥� says Catherine Fitzpatrick, energy campaigner with Greenpeace Australia Pacific.
鈥淓ven if businesses sign up, the pact will still see a doubling of carbon emissions by 2050鈥�
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The US says the pact is complementary to the Kyoto protocol, which neither the US nor Australia have signed up to, though the other four nations have. But while Kyoto binds its members to tough targets for reducing carbon emissions, the meeting in Sydney agreed none.
Australia pledged US$75 million over five years for cleaner-energy technology, while the US proposed $52 million for 2007. Yet under Kyoto, up to $12 billion is expected to go to fund low-carbon-emissions projects by 2012.
