Bali: Industrialized and developing countries
are not likely to reach a treaty this year on cutting
greenhouse gas emissions, which have sparked fears of
weather-related disasters, the UN climate chief said Thursday.
Yvo de Boer, who announced last week he would resign July
1, said there was not enough time to recover from the
disappointing summit in December in Copenhagen, where world
leaders failed to agree on a legally binding climate pact.
Bickering between rich and poor countries over emissions
cuts and financial assistance undermined the talks and forced
them to settle on a voluntary plan.
"I think Copenhagen demonstrated that sometimes if you
try and go too quickly, you actually achieve less progress,"
de Boer told The Associated Press in an interview.
More than 190 nations will reconvene in Cancun, Mexico,
later this year for another attempt to reach a binding
agreement to keep the Earth`s average temperature from rising
more than 2 degrees Celsius above levels that existed before
nations began industrializing in the late 18th century.
UN scientists have said any temperature rise above that
figure could lead to catastrophic sea level rises threatening
islands and coastal cities, the killing many species of
animals and plants, and the alteration of agricultural
economies of many countries.
PTI
