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Updated:2007-02-04 07:11:36
46 Nations Back New Environmental  Body

By ANGELA CHARLTON and  SETH BORENSTEIN
AP
 

PARIS (Feb. 4) - Forty-five nations  answered France's call for a new 
environmental body to slow inevitable _global  warming_ (javascript:;)   and protect 
the planet,  perhaps with policing powers to punish violators. 

Absent were the  world's heavyweight polluter, the United States, and booming 
nations on the same  path as the U.S. - China and India. 

The charge led by French President  Jacques Chirac came a day after the 
release of an authoritative - and  disturbingly grim - scientific report in Paris 
that said global warming is "very  likely" caused by mankind and that climate 
change will continue for centuries  even if heat-trapping gases are reduced. It 
was the strongest language ever used  by the Intergovernmental Panel on 
Climate Change, whose last report was issued  in 2001. 

The document, a collaboration of hundreds of scientists and  government 
officials, was approved by 113 nations, including the United States.  

Despite the report's dire outlook, most scientists say the worst  disasters - 
huge sea level rises and the most catastrophic storms and droughts -  may be 
avoided if strong action is taken soon. 

In his call to action at  a French-sponsored environment conference on 
Saturday, Chirac said, "It is our  responsibility. The future of humanity demands 
it." 

Without naming the  United States - producer of about one-quarter of the 
world's greenhouse gases -  Chirac expressed frustration that "some large, rich 
countries still must be  convinced." They are "refusing to accept the 
consequences of their acts," he  said. 

So far, it is mostly European nations that agreed to pursue plans  for the 
new organization, and to hold their first meeting in Morocco this  spring. 



Chirac, 74, is seeking to leave his mark  on international affairs before he 
leaves office, likely in May, though his own  environmental record over 12 
years as France's president is spotty.  

Former Vice President Al Gore, whose Oscar-nominated documentary on the  
perils of global warming has garnered worldwide attention, cheered Chirac's  
efforts. 

"We are at a tipping point," Gore told the conference by  videophone. "We 
must act, and act swiftly ... Such action requires international  cooperation." 

The world's scientists and other international leaders  also said now that 
the science is so well-documented, action is clearly the next  step. 

"It is time now to hear from the world's policymakers," Tim Wirth,  president 
of the United Nations Foundation, said Friday. "The so-called and  
long-overstated 'debate' about global warming is now over." 

Granger  Morgan, an energy expert at Carnegie Mellon University in the United 
States  predicted the new climate report "will kick a few more folks to get 
on board."  

And Jason Grumet, head of U.S. bipartisan advocacy group, the National  
Commission on Energy Policy, said: "The debate has clearly shifted from a battle  
over the science to fighting over the scope and design of the solution."  

However, many questions remain about Chirac's proposed new environmental  
body, including whether it would have the power to enforce global climate  
accords. 

Chirac's appeal says only that the group should "evaluate  ecological damage" 
and "support the implementation of environmental decisions."  

Many countries have failed to meet targets for cutting greenhouse gas  
emissions laid out in the 1997 Kyoto Protocol. The United States has never  ratified 
the pact. And on Friday, the Bush administration reiterated its  rejection of 
imposed cuts on greenhouse gases. 

Earlier this week, Chirac  warned in a published interview that the United 
States could face a carbon tax  on its exports if it does not sign global 
climate accords. 

The _European Union_ (javascript:;)  ,  which agreed to the Kyoto Protocol 
curbing emissions, has committed to a 20  percent reduction in carbon pollution 
by 2020, said Yvo de Boer, executive  secretary of the U.N. Framework 
Convention on Climate Change. And if others join  them, they could even try for 60 
percent cuts by 2050, he said. 

The  United Nations also is considering a summit of world leaders to tackle 
global  warming, and de Boer said he would expect the United States to send 
high-ranking  officials to it. 

Despite White House resistance to carbon-cutting  measures with teeth, de 
Boer and Carnegie Mellon professor Morgan said they see  movement in the United 
States anyway. 

"We are certainly building  critical mass among opinion leaders and 
nontechnical folks," Morgan said from  Pittsburgh, citing recent calls to action by 
corporate CEOs, even in the energy  industry. "We are at the point over the next 
three to five years where the U.S.  is going to get quite serious about it." 

And in May, the same  international panel that wrote Friday's report will 
wrap up a new document  spelling out the benefits and costs of slowing global 
warming, setting up a  buffet of choices for policymakers. 

For now, scientists are energized  that the world is finally listening to 
them. 

Kevin Trenberth, an  American co-author of the new climate report, marveled 
at the overflow crowd of  more than 400 reporters on hand for the document's 
release on Friday. It was  more reporters than he'd seen in decades of climate 
conferences. He took out a  small camera, smiled and took a picture of the 
media. 

Seth Borenstein  is an AP Science Writer. 


Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. The  information contained in the AP 
news report may not be published, broadcast,  rewritten or otherwise distributed 
without the prior written authority of The  Associated Press. All active 
hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL. 

2007-02-03  20:37:40


 
 
 




     
 





 


 

 
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