[Mb-civic] BUSH DELEGATION BLOCKS PROGRESS ON GLOBAL WARMING

[ean at sbcglobal.net]

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BUSHGREENWATCH
Tracking the Bush Administration's Environmental Misdeeds
http://www.bushgreenwatch.org
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December 21, 2004

BUSH DELEGATION BLOCKS PROGRESS AT INTERNATIONAL 
CONFERENCE ON GLOBAL WARMING 

While there is no longer any serious debate in the scientific
and business communities about whether global warming is real,
the Bush Administration last week executed perhaps its most
astonishing act of denial at the conclusion of a two-week
international conference in Buenos Aires. 

The UN conference, attended by some 6,200 government officials,
NGO observers and journalists, aimed to begin the implementation
process for the 132 nations that have ratified the Kyoto
Protocol, and to begin planning further ways to mitigate the
spread of greenhouse gases after Kyoto expires in 2012. 

But the United States--the world's largest emitter of greenhouse
gases--all but told the conferees to take a walk. Besides
blocking all efforts to conduct substantive discussions, the
U.S. allied itself with none other than Saudi Arabia in
obstructing efforts to create a system of payments to help poor,
low-lying island nations cope with the cost of mitigating damage
related to global warming, such as rising sea levels, land
erosion and increased storm damage. 

"Science tells us that we cannot say with any certainty what
constitutes a dangerous level of warming, and therefore what
level must be avoided," said Paula Dobriansky, head of the U.S.
delegation. 

"This is a new low for the United States, not just to pull out,
but to block other countries from moving ahead on their own
path," said Jeff Fiedler, a climate change expert with the
Natural Resources Defense Council, in an interview with The New
York Times. "It's almost spiteful to say 'You can't move ahead
without us.' If you're not going to lead, then get out of the
way," added Fiedler, who attended the conference as an observer.
[1] 

Addressing the U.S. support of Saudi Arabia's obstruction of aid
to countries most vulnerable to the effects of global
warming--e.g. Pacific island states such as the Marshall
Islands, Micronesia, Kiribati and Tuvalu, and Caribbean nations
such as Barbados and the Bahamas--Greenpeace observer Steve
Sawyer told the Environmental News Service that "We hope
everyone has taken note of the bullying tactics of the USA at
these negotiations. This...ensures that there will not be the
kind of progress we need on negotiations of future emissions
cuts during the next 12 months." [2] 

The New York Times report concluded by noting that the Bush
delegation even opposed further use of the term "climate
change," arguing instead for the much vaguer "climate
variability." [3] 

###

SOURCES: 
[1] "U.S. Waters Down Global Commitment to Curb Greenhouse
Gases," New York Times, Dec. 19, 2004,
http://ga3.org/ct/_11g7oM1LXqU/.
[2] "Climate Talks Inch Forward Obstructed by U.S.,"
Environmental News Service, Dec. 20, 2004.
[3] New York Times, op. cit. 

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