UN Climate Change Conference in Poznan concluded
"The signal sent from Poznan is clear: the financial crisis is an argument for resolute climate protection, not against it. Ignoring the climate risk would be more expensive than the financial crisis – and the consequences would be irreversible", Federal Environment Minister Sigmar Gabriel said at the conclusion of the UN Climate Change Conference in Poznan today.
"Those trading in bad loans will ultimately lose trillions of euros and dollars. And the worst loan we are trading in globally is the climate loan. Therefore, the key task at this Conference of the Parties was to send a strong and clear signal and to place climate protection back at the heart of international policy", the Federal Environment Minister commented.
Poznan marks the shift from an exchange of positions to full negotiations on a comprehensive climate regime, which is to be adopted in Copenhagen next year. Negotiations under the Convention and under the Kyoto Protocol are being conducted in parallel. Even though the most important decisions will not be taken until the Copenhagen meeting, progress on reduction commitments by industrialised countries next year has come within reach due to the change of course in the US.
In order to prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system, substantial contributions will also be required from major emitters and newly industrialising countries. It is evident that developing countries have to be supported in their mitigation and adaptation efforts through financial and technology transfers. Besides classic public funds, revenues from the carbon market in particular will have to be used to provide new and additional resources. Poznan has brought progress in this area: The Adaptation Fund is now fully functional. The Fund provides resources for adaptation to climate change in developing countries - using revenues from the global carbon market. For projects under the Clean Development Mechanism carried out by industrialised countries in developing countries, a share of proceeds amounting to two percent of the certified emission reductions will be paid into the Adaptation Fund.
"We have to agree on mobilising further revenues from the carbon market for climate protection and adaptation to climate change. Germany is already doing this. In the framework of the international climate protection initiative we earmark around 25 percent of our revenues from EU emissions trading for adaptation measures and technology transfer in developing and newly industrialising countries. We want to further expand this support", Sigmar Gabriel stated.
Progress was also achieved in the discussion on the "shared vision". More and more states are supporting the goal of limiting the rise of the average global temperature in this century to significantly less than two degrees Celsius. Developing countries too are increasingly recognising the necessity of adopting a long-term target as a guideline.
The necessary elements for an agreement in Copenhagen were identified in Poznan. Controversial issues and options for compromise will now be analysed and the texts to be negotiated will be presented in the first half of 2009. Poznan has thus given the starting signal for detailed negotiations on a climate protection agreement to be adopted in Copenhagen next year.