中国气候变化信息网 China Climate Change Info-Net

No great breakthrough is expected in the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Bali early December, but the hope is that to start at least a roadmap to negotiations, Han Seung-Soo, the United Nations Secretary-General's Special Envoy on Climate Change, told Xinhua.

"We don't have much time, " said Dr. Han in an interview with Xinhua on Friday, "As the Kyoto Protocol will terminate by the end of 2012. We have to finish negotiations by the year 2009 to find anew modality to succeed the Kyoto Protocol in combating global climate change in the future, Otherwise the ratification process in individual countries will take too long."

"I don't expect to solve the climate change problem overnight, so no great breakthrough in the upcoming Bali conference, but we should at least start the roadmap, drawn by all the participating members for the negotiations."

Han, who was former Deputy Prime minister of Republic of Korea,is in Bangkok for a conference initiated by Thai and regional media under the theme Asia's Emerging Response to Climate Change.

The UN envoy conceded that there still exist many difficulties, politically, economically and technologically, to reach agreement in negotiations. To name a few, that United States and Australia are not parties to the Kyoto protocol, arguments on the Common and Differential Liability principle set in the Kyoto Protocol to reduce emissions, balancing economic growth to comply with climate change.

Despite all the difficulties, Han said he is optimistic that efforts by individual countries will move on in the right direction.

Han noted that in China, the biggest developing country which faces calls from some developed countries for it to be subject to mandate capping of greenhouse gas emissions in post-Kyoto era, President Hu Jintao and the Chinese government has tried very hard to introduce the idea of Green Growth in order to combat the challenge of climate change, "We can see Chinese government has recognized the importance of the issue. We're looking forward how the Chinese government state their position in Bali."

Even the Untied States, where the government has rejected to join the Kyoto Protocol, is moving forward in some way, as some states has made pledges for reducing emissions.

The UN special envoy called for closer cooperation between developed countries and developing countries and urgent action by individual governments.

"Otherwise, the pessimistic predictions of the most recent IPCC report will come true: If let things unchanged, the average temperature on the earth will rise by one to six degree by the end of the century. Also the glaciers are melting and the sea level will go up. If the sea level rises by one meter, 70 percent of Bangladesh, and six percent of Netherland will be submerged under the water."

"So the problem is not just there for developed or developing countries, but one facing all countries. If we don't unite and cooperate closely now, people in all countries will suffer."

For developing countries like China, facing the need for eradicating poverty and economic development, how to coordinate economic growth with climate change is a major problem the governments need to address.

For a possible solution, Han stressed the importance of the development of the clean development mechanism (CDM). "To develop CDM, the countries should reform the economic architecture by technology innovation."

"We believe that technology innovation can ultimately play the major role in combating climate change. Usually the developed countries have the monopoly of technology innovations, and technology transfer sometimes can be very expensive, especially when it concerns private innovations. That's why the UN called for close cooperations between developed countries and developing countries. For that to lower the prices of technology transfer will be necessary."