Brussels, 02/11/2010 (Agence Europe) - Not good enough. The day after the European Council finalised the EU's negotiating position for Cancun (see EUROPE 10245), the NGO Friends of the Earth Europe (FoEE) deplores the fact that EU27 heads of state and government have simply reiterated their long-standing pledge to cut emissions by 20% reduction by 2020 compared to 1990.
Twenty percent, the disappointed NGO said, “represents little more than a 'business as usual' scenario and falls far short of the cuts of at least 40% in domestic emissions that are needed to avoid catastrophic climate change”.
A keen supporter of effective emissions reductions in rich countries without the possibility of offsets in third countries, the FoEE warns against the expansion of carbon markets. Using Cancun to encourage this expansion will further undermine the objectives of reduction “opening up loopholes that could potentially counteract the entire effort to reduce emissions in developed countries”, warns David Heller of the FoEE. He fears “a global speculative bubble in carbon trading”. (A.N./transl.jl)