KATOWICE (Dagbladet): Over a day in the sun was the 197 countries represented at the climate summit in Katowice in Poland just agreed, after two weeks with hardcore negotiations.
“We have taken a major step towards reaching the ambition in Parisavatalen, an ambition that will make our children and grandchildren can see that their parents and grandparents took the right choice,” said the Polish president for the climate summit, Michal Kurtyka, when he opened the meeting, half ten in the evening.
– This has not been easy, and is in a delicate balance, he said.
Since yesterday afternoon has the summit been in overtime. The essential collection where all parties gather has been postponed a number of times since the clock 04 night to Saturday.
The last hours, some of the exhausted participants at the climate summit slept in the hallways, while others have been upset and tried to get the time to go.
Last night was a long night, and it has lasted all day, Kurtyka.
Elvestuen: – Historical
– Now is Parisavtalen completely. This is a historic decision, ” says an elated Ola Elvestuen, the climate and miljøminister, to Dagbladet in Katowice.
HAPPY: Climate and miljøminister Ola Elvestuen and the Norwegian forhandlingsleder Henrik Eriksen. Photo: The Verge / KLD / NTB Scanpix Show more
We have laid the foundation for a much needed enhanced climate policies in the world. Now start hovedjobben, namely that the countries enhance their efforts and prevent a global warming of over 1.5 degrees, ” he says.
Brazil has blocked
Sources in the negotiations, says to Dagbladet that disagreement about the rules for emission trading has been where it has been in pitch in the entire day.
Brazil shall have refused to comply for the rest, and have pushed for it in many other countries, including Norway, look at that looser rules.
emissions Trading, which, in practice, is to pay other countries to make emission cuts that you can post in your own “carbon footprint”, is a technical and complicated area of climate policy.
Previous systems for quota trading had weaknesses that among other things has led to that the allowances have been spoken several times. It is this, many countries now want to ensure themselves against that happening again.
the Solution on it that in the course of the day has been referred to as a “stand-off” with Brazil, was finally to push the whole discussion about the quota trading up to the next climate summit, to be held in Chile in 2019.
“Regelboka” and larger emission reductions
the climate summit in Poland’s two most important tasks has been to agree on the “Regelboka” for Parisavtalen, and to lay a foundation for the world’s countries increase their ambitions for emission reductions.
Both parts are considered as critical for the world to achieve Parismålene.
An important point for many western countries has been that everyone should follow the same rules for how emission reductions are measured and reported. This will make it easier to have an overview of how efforts to cut emissions goes.
at the same time, many developing countries wanted a separate and looser regulations, which takes account of the fact that they have scarce resources and will have problems to follow the same rules as the rich countries.
Elvestuen happy
Here came the climate summit for a compromise in which there is a common set of rules, but at the same time provides a certain flexibility for poor countries.
According to the Climate Change News, means the agreement that poor countries that fail to follow the standards, must explain why and make a plan to get there.
the Climate and miljøminister Ola Elvestuen, who has had a central role in the negotiations at this point.
Out from the negotiations we led, so this is very good. We have one set of regulations, with the flexibility that is the basis of the Parisavtalen, and have ended a dispute which has been there for 25 years, says Elvestuen to the Newspaper.
Controversy about the klimarapport
A particularly difficult point in the negotiations has been to get countries such as the USA, Kuwait, Russia and Saudi Arabia to add because the 1.5-gradersrapporten from the Un intergovernmental panel on climate change in the further work in the coming years.
the Report states that if global warming is limited to 1.5 degrees instead of two degrees, a wide range of potentially disastrous consequences of climate change be avoided.
If it should be possible, writing panel on climate change, the world emissions of CO2 are reduced by 45 percent by 2030.
the united STATES and the other three countries created strong reactions last weekend, when they refused to “wish report” and “welcome”.
In the last tekstutkastet that were presented during the climate summit, “recognized” the work of the Un intergovernmental panel on climate change and it “invited” to use the content of the report in further discussions.
A sentence that refers to what the panel on climate change says that must be the world’s total emissions of CO2 in 2030 if the 1.5-degree goal will be reached (25-30 gigatonn), however, has been eliminated from the text, which was yesterday.
-Trump-administration blocked
– what It says about the report is far from reflecting how important it is, ” says Jennifer Morgan, international director of Greenpeace, to Dagbladet.
– the Text demonstrates not that you have 195 countries that feel it should be much stronger represented here, and I believe Trump-the administration during this meeting prevented a stronger reference. When it is said, does not mean that do not all realize what that actually says in the report, and they must now act out from it, ” she says.
– you Trust that the rest of the world’s governments will act in line with the findings in the report?
I trust the world’s population. What gives me hope is that I see people who are looking and requires action. Up to this meeting, it seemed like there are more and more frustration among the people who now are ready to do something. I think it is them that make sure that we turn this in the right direction, ” says Morgan.
Need to sharpen climate goals in 2020
The next important step towards achieving Parismålene, is that the world’s countries need to sharpen their climate targets and to report them to the UN in 2020.
– There is no one who is completely satisfied with the regelboka, but it is an important step, ” says Christina Figueres, former klimasjef in the UN in a press release.
the Basis for the rules is still Parisavtalen, which is as strong as ever. The next year is critical, ” she says, and refers to the expectation that all countries should sharpen their aim by 2020.
Norway is among the countries that have already signaled that we are going to do it, but Ola Elvestuen will not yet say anything specific about how much.
Currently governs the world towards a catastrophic warming of three degrees.
– You don’t listen to us. You did never
