News | Climate Change

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/environment/climatechange/7568084/Climate-change-deal-could-take-another-year.html

The world is unlikely to agree a deal to stop global warming this year, the head of climate change negotiations has admitted, as nations meet for the latest round of talks.

The last meeting in Copenhagen ended in chaos after rich and poor countries failed to agree on the best way to cut greenhouse gas emissions.
Environmentalists now say the last hope for preventing catastrophic climate change is if the United Nations agree a treaty in Mexico at the end of this year.
But Yvo de Boer, head of the UN body in charge of negotiations, the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), doubted a legally binding deal would be reached in 2010. He expected the best outcome from Mexico would be if countries agree the basic architecture "so that a year later, you can decide or not decide to turn that into a treaty". The 2011 meeting is in South Africa.
Negotiators from more than 175 countries will meet in Bonn this weekend for the first meeting since Copenhagen. It is their job to work on the complex text between now and the end of the year so leaders have a deal to sign. Key issues include setting up a system for protecting rainforests and paying billions of pounds to poor countries most vulnerable to climate change. However there are already fears that the talks will immediately dissolve into a "blame game" over who was responsible for the failure in Denmark last year.
The rich countries, including the United States, want a completely new agreement that commits developing countries to making cuts for the first time.
But poor countries refuse to act until the rich world, that is historically responsible for most emissions, has signed up to legally binding targets under an existing treaty, the Kyoto Protocol.
The UK Government is leading the way by pledging to sign the Kyoto Protocol as long as developing countries also agree to cut emissions.
Wendel Trio, of Greenpeace, hoped the meeting in Bonn will begin the process of bringing the two sides together so the world can finally reach a legal agreement.
He pointed out that the current national targets for cutting greenhouse gases put forward as part of a weak 'Copenhagen Accord' will not keep global temperature rise below 2C (3.6F) and therefore risk floods, droughts and sea level rise.
"We are hoping the meeting will not descend into a blame game but look at how the world can go forward and raise the level of ambition," he said.
The meeting may also throw up more information on who will replace Mr de Boer when he leaves the post later this year. Ban Ki Moon, the UN Secretary General, will choose the best person for the post - that could be upgraded to Under Secretary General of the UN in order to give it more status and power.
Top contenders are India's former environment secretary Vijai Sharma, South Africa's former Tourism Minister Marthinus Van Schalkwyk and Costa Rica's Christiana Figueres, who currently is an adviser to a Spanish energy company. Barbados, Indonesia, Ecuador and Pakistan also have nominated candidates.