GLOBAL CLIMATE DEBATE

China, India Offer Qualified Support for Copenhagen Accord

China and India are offering qualified approval to the Copenhagen Accord -- an agreement that calls for voluntary limits on greenhouse gas emissions.

The two countries are among the world's largest and fastest growing greenhouse gas emitters.  Both submitted letters to the United Nations today, agreeing to join more than 100 countries that are already "associated" with the nonbinding agreement, which seeks to limit the rise of global temperatures to 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit above pre-industrial levels.

President Obama brokered the deal with the leaders of Brazil, South Africa, India and China at the end of the contentious two-week UN climate summit in Copenhagen.  Delegates from the 192 nations gathered there did not formally ratify the agreement, but agreed to "take note" of it.

With China and India signed on, all the world’s largest emitters -- including the U.S., the European Union and Japan -- have agreed to be listed.

China has set a voluntary goal of reducing its “carbon intensity” -- the ratio of emissions to its gross domestic product -- 40 to 45 percent below 2005 levels by 2020.

India also offered to reduce its carbon intensity by 20 to 25 percent from 2005 levels by 2020, excluding its agricultural sector.

The United States set firm targets, agreeing to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about 17 percent by 2020 compared with 2005, provided Congress enacts climate change and energy legislation.

UN leaders are hoping for a binding climate change treaty at the next global summit in Cancun, Mexico, in December, but many world leaders have said they doubt a deal will be reached this year.

Source: New York Times

Source: Bloomberg