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

Some 70 developed and developing countries, responsible for about 80% of the world's greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, had submitted emission mitigation pledges to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) by Monday.

Initially, the Copenhagen Accord had outlined the deadline of January 31, for participating countries to submit their pledges to the UNFCCC, but individual pledges were still being submitted. Over 120 member country pledges were still missing.

The Copenhagen Accord was the political agreement, which came out of the December global climate change conference of the parties (COP) in Copenhagen. It is a three-page document, sculpted in a room where 28 of the 193 participating member countries were present, and which has only been ‘noted', and not adopted, by the UNFCCC.

LACKING AMBITION

The Accord emphasises the strong political will to combat climate change, and accepts the scientific view that global warming should be kept below 2 ºC.

Keeping the average temperature increase below 2 ºC would require global emission reductions of between 40% and 45% below 1990 levels.

At the Copenhagen COP, the ambition of pledges from all the countries tallied up to between 11% and 19% reduction of GHGs below 1990 levels.

"What we are sitting with now [following the Copenhagen Accord pledges] is probably less than the 11% to 19% that was pledged at the conference," said Yawitch.

"If the aim is to keep the average temperature increase below 2 ºC ... the level of ambition, or frugality, needs to change," reiterated Raubenheimer.

Sustainability Institute affiliate Climate Interactive has established a ‘climate scoreboard', which analyses the Copenhagen Accord submissions, and estimates that if the current global proposals or pledges are fully implemented, this would mean a 3,9 ºC increase in global average temperature.

Without implementing the proposal, and continuing on a business as usual path, an average increase of 4,8 ºC was expected.

Also worth noting, is that the Alba bloc of countries was still refusing to engage with the Copenhagen Accord, and have stated that they would not submit pledges.

The Alba countries, or Bolivarian countries, include Venezuela, Cuba, Bolivia, Dominica, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Antigua and Barbuda, and St Vincent and the Grenadines. Led by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Bolivian President Evo Morales at the negotiations in Copenhagen, these countries were challenging capitalism and promoting a fundamental redistribution of wealth as a solution to climate change.