Ολοκληρώθη​κε η συνάντηση για την Κλιματική Αλλαγή στο πλαίσιο της Ελληνικής Προεδρίας του Συμβουλίου της ΕΕ. -ΥΠΕΚΑ

ΥΠΕΚΑ, 28/1/14
Ολοκληρώθηκε με επιτυχία η συνάντηση για την Κλιματική Αλλαγή που πραγματοποιήθηκε στο πλαίσιο της Ελληνικής Προεδρίας του Συμβουλίου της ΕΕ που έγινε στην Αθήνα από τις 22 μέχρι τις 24 Ιανουαρίου.

Στην συνάντηση συμμετείχαν περισσότεροι από 90 εκπρόσωποι των κρατών-μελών της Ευρωπαϊκής Ένωσης, ενώ ιδιαίτερα σημαντική υπήρξε και η συμμετοχή εκπροσώπων της Ευρωπαϊκής Επιτροπής. Η συνάντηση ξεκίνησε στις 22 Ιανουαρίου με τη σύσκεψη των επικεφαλής των διαπραγματεύσεων. Η συζήτηση επικεντρώθηκε στο στόχο για βελτιστοποίηση της απόδοσης της ομάδας εργασίας της ΕΕ για την κλιματική αλλαγή μέσω της ενίσχυσης του εννοιολογικού περιεχομένου της τακτικής και στρατηγικής και την επίτευξη προόδου πέρα από τις επίσημες διαπραγματευτικές γραμμές.

Στο χαιρετισμό που απηύθυνε ο Υπουργός Περιβάλλοντος, Ενέργειας και Κλιματικής Αλλαγής, Γιάννης Μανιάτης, αναφέρθηκε στις προτεραιότητες της Ελληνικής Προεδρίας για την αλλαγή του κλίματος που περιλαμβάνουν ανάμεσα στα άλλα, τη συμφωνία σε πρώτη ανάγνωση για το ETS-Aviation, την πρόοδο για τη δέσμη μέτρων στο «Πλαίσιο Κλίμα – Ενέργεια 2030» και την επικύρωση της δεύτερης περιόδου δέσμευσης του Πρωτοκόλλου του Κιότο. Όπως τόνισε ο Υπουργός ΠΕΚΑ, «σε διεθνές επίπεδο, η Ελληνική Προεδρία θα επιδιώξει την ενιαία διαπραγμάτευση της ΕΕ και των κρατών μελών ενόψει της Cop 20 της UNFCCC που θα πραγματοποιηθεί το 2014 με στόχο τη διατήρηση του ηγετικού ρόλου της ΕΕ στις διεθνείς διαπραγματεύσεις για το κλίμα, που θα συναφθεί το 2015 για την υιοθέτηση μιας νέας παγκόσμιας δεσμευτικής συμφωνίας για την περίοδο μετά το 2020».

Στις 23 Ιανουαρίου η συζήτηση ξεκίνησε με τον απολογισμό της επιτευχθείσας προόδου της 19η Συνόδου των Μερών της Σύμβασης Πλαίσιο για την Κλιματική Αλλαγή που πραγματοποιήθηκε στην Βαρσοβία, ενώ επικεντρώθηκε και στις προκλήσεις και ευκαιρίες που θα αναδειχθούν ως αποτέλεσμα της ανωτέρω Συνόδου. Βασική ομιλήτρια της συγκεκριμένης συνεδρίας ήταν η κ. Jennifer Morgan, Διευθύντρια του Προγράμματος «Κλίμα και Ενέργεια» του Ινστιτούτου Παγκόσμιων Πόρων. Επιπρόσθετα, οι συμμετέχοντες ενημερώθηκαν από την Ευρωπαϊκή Επιτροπή σχετικά με τους ευρωπαϊκούς κλιματικούς και ενεργειακούς στόχους για το 2030, οι οποίοι μεταξύ άλλων περιλαμβάνουν την μείωση των εκπομπών αερίων θερμοκηπίου (GHG) κατά 40 % σε σχέση με το 1990, την αύξηση της χρήσης των ανανεώσιμων πηγών ενέργειας, την μεταρρύθμιση του συστήματος εμπορίας δικαιωμάτων κ.λπ.. Οι συμμετέχοντες χωρίστηκαν σε τέσσερις διαφορετικές θεματικές ομάδες, οι οποίες συζήτησαν διεξοδικά τα ζητήματα χρηματοδότησης της κλιματικής αλλαγής, τους στόχους για μετριασμού της κλιματικής αλλαγής και προσαρμογής στις επιπτώσεις της καθώς και τους υπόλοιπους στόχους που έχουν δρομολογηθεί να επιτευχθούν πριν το 2020. Επιπρόσθετα, συζητήθηκε στην ολομέλεια η αναγκαιότητα για συνέργειες με δράσεις της κοινωνίας των πολιτών και άλλων πολιτικών φόρουμ, καθώς και η επίτευξη διμερών συνεργασιών με άλλες χώρες ή ομάδες χωρών.

Τέλος, διοργανώθηκε για τους συμμετέχοντες πρόγραμμα με επισκέψεις σε σημαντικούς αρχαιολογικούς χώρους της Αθήνας γεγονός που τους έδωσε την ευκαιρία να γνωρίσουν από κοντά το Ελληνικό ιδεώδες. Επισημαίνεται ότι τη διοργάνωση της συνάντησης ανέλαβε το Υπουργείο Περιβάλλοντος, Ενέργειας και Κλιματικής Αλλαγής με μηδενικό κόστος για τη χώρα.
ypeka.gr
28/1/14

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• Χαιρετισμό​ς Υπουργού ΠΕΚΑ, Γιάννη Μανιάτη, στο Εργαστήριο για την Κλιματική Αλλαγή των εκπροσώπων των Κρατών- Μελών της ΕΕ στο πλαίσιο της Ελληνικής Προεδρίας στην Αθήνα. -ΥΠΕΚΑ

Ban welcomes deal at UN-led climate change talks as step towards 2015 treaty

 23 November 2013 – The United Nations-led climate talks in Warsaw, Poland, concluded today with an agreement that Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called an important stepping stone towards a universal legal agreement in 2015.

“The Secretary-General welcomes the outcome of the UN Climate Change Conference that concluded today in Warsaw and he congratulates Poland for successfully hosting the Conference,” his spokesperson said in a statement.

The deal hammered out today ends two-weeks of talks between diplomats and environment experts representing more than 195 Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the parent treaty of the 1997 Kyoto Protocol.

For the first time, the talks, which are also known as the Conference of the Parties or COP-19, included participation from the private sector, with a UN-business forum held on its sidelines.

The agreement lays the groundwork for a legally-binding treaty to be adopted in 2015, and enter force by 2020, which would cut climate-altering greenhouse gas emissions.

In today's statement, Mr. Ban welcomed the Parties' decision “to intensify immediate actions to fight climate change” and to come forward with their national contributions to the agreement well before its finalization in 2015.

The talks were made all the more urgent by the devastation in Philippines from Typhoon Haiyan that killed thousands of people and affected 13.25 million overall just as participants were arriving in Poland.

Today's deal comes one year before the 2014 Climate Summit that Mr. Ban said he would convene in New York in September during the General Assembly.

Mr. Ban has asked world leaders, as well as leaders from business, finance, local government and civil society, to bring bold announcements and actions that will lead to significantly reduced greenhouse gas emissions and strengthened adaptation and resilience efforts, his spokesperson said in reference to the 2014 summit.

“Much more needs to be done over the coming two years to achieve the ambitious agreement necessary to keep the global temperature rise below two degrees Celsius,” the spokesperson said in the statement. 
un.org
23/11/13
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Related:

• La conférence climat de Varsovie s'achève sur un accord obtenu à l'arraché

• Climat : un accord de dernière minute sauve la conférence de Varsovie...

  

La conférence climat de Varsovie s'achève sur un accord obtenu à l'arraché

Après une longue nuit blanche, le marathon des négociations sur le climat de Varsovie s'chève sur un accord qui pose les premiers jalons vers Paris 2015.

Par Francetv info avec AFP
Est-ce le début d'une sortie d'impasse ? Un accord a été adopté dans l'après-midi du samedi 23 novembre à Varsovie (Pologne), au terme de négociations marathon sur le climat. Cet accord pose les premiers jalons vers la conférence de Paris en 2015 qui doit déboucher sur un texte en mesure de limiter le réchauffement à 2°C.
Ce texte est venu couronner plus de trente heures de négociations non-stop dans le grand stade de Varsovie, où se tenait cette conférence rassemblant plus de 190 pays et qui devait s'achever officiellement vendredi.

Pourquoi cet accord a failli ne jamais voir le jour ?

L'accord sur Paris 2015 et les moyens d'y parvenir à un accord ambitieux sur le climat a été formulé en urgence, et de manière informelle par les principaux négociateurs dans un coin de la salle, alors qu'un blocage sur cette question menaçait de faire échouer la conférence de Varsovie.
Les négociations ont buté toute la journée du samedi sur la position intransigeante de la Chine et de l'Inde qui se sont opposées à l'Union européenne et les Etats-Unis sur la formulation du texte. Les deux pays n'ont cessé d'insister pour continuer à être considérés comme des "pays en développement", et à ce titre, ne pas devoir en faire autant que les pays industrialisés contre le réchauffement. Le négociateur chinois Su Wei s'était notamment dit "très préoccupé" par le fait que le texte propose que toutes les parties prennent des "engagements" en matière de lutte contre le changement climatique.
Le ton est monté au point que la perspective d'achever la conférence de Varsovie sans accord était évoquée ouvertement, ce qui aurait été un faux-départ très préjudiciable pour l'accord de 2015. Les négociateurs des principaux pays, Chine, Inde, Etats-Unis, entre autres, se sont alors rassemblés dans un coin de la grande salle de conférence et durant plus d'une une heure, ont négocié une formulation acceptable par tous.

Que contient l'accord ?

L'ambition de la conférence de Varsovie était de poser les fondations de l'ambitieux accord attendu en 2015 à Paris sur les réductions de gaz à effet de serre. Pour la première fois, l'accord doit concerner tous les pays, être légalement contraignant et suffisamment ambitieux pour limiter le réchauffement du globe à 2°C par rapport à l'ère pré-industrielle, contre la trajectoire actuelle de 4°C. 
Le texte adopté à Varsovie stipule notamment que les Etats doivent commencer à préparer des "contributions" sur ce qu'ils entendent faire pour lutter contre le changement climatique, qui seront intégrées dans l'accord de 2015. Cette formulation est plus faible que celle du texte précédent, rejeté notamment par les grands émergents comme la Chine et l'Inde, qui prévoyait des "engagements", formule que souhaitait la France. 
Un texte sur l'aide financière aux pays du Sud a également été adopté à Varsovie, sans répondre aux exigences de ces derniers qui voulaient plus de visibilité sur la mobilisation des 100 milliards de dollars promis d'ici 2020 pour les aider à faire face au changement climatique. L'accord ne pose pas de montants intermédiaires sur la table et, seule concession des pays riches, il "presse" les pays développés à "continuer à mobiliser de l'argent public, à des niveaux supérieurs" à ceux de l'aide d'urgence décidée pour 2010-2012, soit 10 milliards de dollars par an.

Quels désaccords persistent ?

Le texte sur la création d'un mécanisme portant sur les "pertes et dommages" que subissent les pays du Sud à cause du rechauffement n'a pas été adopté.
"Il n'y pas de consensus sur ce texte", a déclaré le délégué egyptien au nom du G77 (pays en développement) et la Chine, qui a demandé "plus de temps" pour en discuter, alors que la conférence de Varsovie avait déjà dépassé d'une journée la date officielle de clôture.
 http://www.francetvinfo.fr/monde/environnement/la-conference-climat-de-varsovie-s-acheve-sur-un-accord-obtenu-a-l-arrache_465918.html#xtor=RSS-3-[lestitres]
23/11/13
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• Climat : un accord de dernière minute sauve la conférence de Varsovie...

• Climate summit in overtime due to deadlock. -Delegates from more than 190 nations, meeting in Warsaw, argue on outline of new global pact to tackle climate change.

Climate summit in overtime due to deadlock. -Delegates from more than 190 nations, meeting in Warsaw, argue on outline of new global pact to tackle climate change.

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UN climate talks ran deep into extra time in Warsaw in an attempt to lay some groundwork for a climate pact which must be signed in Paris by December 2015.
The summit in the Polish capital was scheduled to end on Friday, but on Saturday morning negotiators and ministers were still debating, as rich and poor nations weighed their respective contributions to the goal of slowing the warming of the planet.

Gathering delegates from more than 190 nations, the fractious annual negotiations are working towards a deal that will for the first time bind all the world's nations to curbing greenhouse gas emissions.

On current emissions trends, scientists warn the Earth could face warming of 4.0 C or higher over pre-industrial levels - a recipe for catastrophic storms, droughts, floods and sea-level rise that would hit poor countries disproportionally hard.

Many delegates also said they wanted a clearer understanding of when nations will publish their plans for long-term cuts in greenhouse gases in the run-up to a summit in Paris in 2015.
That meeting is meant to agree on a global climate pact to enter into force in 2020.
World leaders last tried, and failed, to agree to a global treaty at a summit in 2009.
"If we don't succeed in Paris, the chances of us meeting the goal of limiting global warming to two degrees will be limited, or none," Pascal Canfin, French development minister, said on Friday.
A text on Saturday said that all nations should submit "intended nationally determined commitments" by the end of the first quarter of 2015, if they could.
That would give time to compare and review pledges before the Paris summit.
The US is among those advocating pledges be made by the end of the first quarter of 2015.
"It's something to build on," said Connie Hedegaard, said European climate commissioner, who wants pledges in 2014.
But many developing nations say the rich are doing too little to lead.
"The political signals [for Paris] are just too weak," said Naderev Sano, a Philippine delegate fasting during the meeting
in sympathy with victims of Typhoon Haiyan which killed 5,200 people.

Hotly disputed exchange
A major sticking point was the insistence of some developing nations like China and India, whose growth is fuelled by fossil fuel combustion, on guarantees of less onerous emissions curbs compared to wealthy nations.
In hotly disputed language, some want the new deal to impose "commitments" on developed countries and seek only "efforts" from emerging economies. The issue led to Europe and a group of developing economies trading barbs on Friday evening.
Hedegaard accused a group of "like-minded" countries of opposing a "push" towards the 2015 deal by insisting on the rich-poor country firewall.

"It is not acceptable to the European Union, but I also think to really many others," she said.
A group calling itself the Like-Minded Developing Countries, which includes China and India as well as Pakistan, Malaysia, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela, took issue with what they called the "brazen attack".
"The EU chief is responsible for damaging seriously the atmosphere of confidence and trust in this process," Claudia Salerno, Venezuel's climate envoy, who claimed to speak on the group's behalf, said.
As emissions continue to grow year after year, developing nations say their developed counterparts must have more responsibility for curbs given their long history of fossil-fuel combustion.
The West, though, insists emerging economies must do their fair share, considering that China is now the world's biggest emitter of CO2, with India in fourth place after the US and Europe. 

Climate aid
Another point of disagreement is finance.
Developing nations insist that wealthy nations must show how they intend to keep a promise to ramp up climate aid to $100bn by 2020, up from $10bn a year from 2010-12.
Still struggling with an economic crisis, however, the developed world is wary of unveiling a detailed long-term funding plan at this stage.
The funding crunch lies at the heart of another issue bedevilling the talks: demands by developing countries for a "loss and damage" mechanism to help them deal with future harm from climate impacts they say are too late to
avoid.
Rich nations fear this would amount to signing a blank cheque for never-ending liability.

"On finance there has been no progress," Claudia Salerno of Venezuela, who represents a group of developing nations including China and Indonesia, said late on Friday.
The talks were also considering a new "Warsaw Mechanism" to help developing nations cope with loss and damage from extreme events such as heat waves, droughts and floods, and creeping threats such as rising sea levels and desertification.
Developing nations insisted on a "mechanism" - to show it was separate from existing structures - even though rich countries say that it will not get new funds beyond the planned $100 b a year from 2020.
In one step forward, governments agreed to a set of rules for safeguarding tropical forests in a deal aimed at unlocking big investments.
The new plan is backed by $280m from the US, Britain and Norway.
Deforestation accounts for perhaps a fifth of greenhouse gas emissions from human sources. Trees release carbon when they rot or burn.
"Governments have shown their firm commitment to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation," Christiana Figueres, UN climate chief, said in a statement.
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/europe/2013/11/climate-summit-overtime-due-deadlock-201311234643975109.html
23/11/13 
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• Negotiators told ‘the world is ready’ for climate change deal, as UN conference opens in Warsaw 

 

UN climate talks reach deal on cutting greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation.

WARSAW, Nov. 22 (Xinhua) -- Governments at the UN Climate Change Conference in Warsaw on Friday agreed a set of decisions on ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation and the degradation of forests.

The agreement on the so-called REDD+ initiative is backed by pledges of 280 million dollars in financing from the U.S., Norway and Britain, according to a statement released by the Conference.

"I am proud of this concrete accomplishment. We are all aware of the central role that forests play as carbon sinks, climate stabilizers and biodiversity havens," President of the conference Marcin Korolec said.


Korolec hailed the deal as "a significant contribution to forest preservation and sustainable use which will benefit the people who live in and around them and humanity and the planet as a whole."

The decisions adopted provide guidance for ensuring environmental integrity and pave the way towards the full implementation of REDD+ activities on the ground, said the statement.

The package also provides a foundation for transparency and integrity of REDD+ action, clarifies ways to finance relevant activities and how to improve coordination of support, it added.

The agreement was announced as the two-week climate talks, which aimed to prepare for a global climate pact due to be agreed in 2015, are entering the final hours. 
http://english.cntv.cn/20131123/100942.shtml
23/11/13
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Climate finance is essential to addressing climate change, Ban tells ministers in Warsaw.

20 November 2013 – The top United Nations official today called on foreign ministers to prioritize the environment in domestic politics and contribute to climate financing as a way of moving towards a new global climate change agreement by 2015.
“This can do more than anything to unlock the huge investment necessary for climate change adaptation and mitigation,” Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told a ministerial-level meeting on the margins of the UN-led climate change talks under way in the Polish capital, Warsaw.
“We must send the right policy signals,” Mr. Ban said, adding that the development of high-impact opportunities would unlock clean energy investments, close the viability gap between green and fossil fuel-based projects and de-risk renewable energy and low-carbon investments.

He called for public finance, private finance, and support to the Green Climate Fund as three areas for common action.
“Smart public financing can encourage local and international private investments,” the UN chief said, urging investors and companies to join forces with the public sector.
Mr. Ban today was scheduled to meet with chief executives and senior representatives attending the inaugural Caring for Climate Business Forum being held in Warsaw alongside the UN Climate Change Conference.
The Forum was launched by UN Global Compact, the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) secretariat, and UN Environment Programme (UNEP).
“The bulk of institutional investors’ assets are in high0carbon investments,” noted Mr. Ban.
“These investors have the power – and I believe the responsibility – to do their part in transforming the global economy and settling us on a safer path.”
Mr. Ban also called for support to the recently established Green Climate Fund, which functions under the guidance of the Conference of the Parties (COP), and supports projects, programmes, policies and other activities in developing countries.
In addition, the Fund also aims to strengthen national ownership and enable countries to develop the capability and institutions needed to use climate finance effectively.
The UN chief described the current state of the new entity as “an empty shell” and called for it to be brought into full operation “as soon as possible” so support could be provided to developing countries’ adaptation and mitigation efforts.
 un.org
20/11/13
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• Negotiators told ‘the world is ready’ for climate change deal, as UN conference opens in Warsaw 

 

In Warsaw, Ban urges climate negotiators to ‘rise to the challenge,’ reach global deal.

9 November 2013 – The world need look no further than the catastrophe in the Philippines to comprehend the profound and dangerous consequences of a warming planet, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warned today, urging negotiators at a United Nations conference in Warsaw to rise to the challenge “with wisdom and urgency” and pave the way to a binding climate deal by 2015.

“Climate change threatens current and future generations,” Mr. Ban said in his address to the high-level segment of the United Nations Conference on Climate Change, taking place in Poland.
Extending his deepest condolences to those affected throughout the Philippines by Typhoon Haiyan, he said that all around the world, people now face and fear the wrath of a warming planet. “The science is clear. Human activities are the dominant cause of climate change. We cannot blame nature.”
Indeed, greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise and the consequences are profound, dangerous and known to all, the Secretary-General said, recalling a visit earlier this year to Iceland where the rate at which the glaciers are melting is among the fastest in the world. “I was told if we do not take urgent action now Iceland may be a land without ice soon.”
Offering another sobering example, Mr. Ban said that earlier this month he visited the Sahel, together with the President of the World Bank, and had witnessed climatic conditions – including extreme drought – undermining the region’s development and security.
“All of us in this room share a momentous responsibility. We must rise to these challenges with wisdom, urgency and resolve to address climate change,” he said, expressing deep concern that the scale of efforts being undertaken by the international community are still insufficient to limit global temperature rise to below 2 degrees Celsius from pre-industrial levels.
But the UN chief said that he is also hopeful because there has been progress on multiple fronts towards a low-carbon future. Governments, business, community groups, women, youth and indigenous leaders are building collective capacity. New programmes for sustainable cities and climate-smart agriculture are delivering benefits of people and the planet, and global demand for renewable energy continues to rise very sharply.
“We now know it is possible to close the emissions gap. We must build on this momentum,” he said, stressing that the United Nations, for its part, is engaging on many fronts including “Greening the Blue” by reducing the Organization’s footprint and working towards climate neutrality.
Noting that delegations in Warsaw have agreed to finalize an ambitious global legal agreement on climate change by 2015, Mr. Ban acknowledged that there is “a steep climb ahead” and called for action in four areas: swift ratification by all countries of the second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol; stepping up on finance, including long-term finance and the Green Climate Fund; agreeing a comprehensive action agenda to meet the climate challenge; and laying firm foundations for the 2015 agreement.
“Success in Paris means bringing substantive progress to Lima. That means [in] Warsaw here we have to build a crucial stepping stone,” he said, looking ahead to the next meetings of States parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC).
The Secretary-General drew attention to the climate summit he intends to convene on Tuesday, 23 September 2014, ahead of the opening, next year, of the annual General Assembly debate. That meeting is meant to complement the UNFCCC process and to be a “solutions summit,” not a negotiating session. “This will be a complimentary session to the ongoing UNFCCC negotiation process,” he said.
Inviting to this summit Heads of State and Government along with leaders from finance, business community, local government and civil society, he urged all to bring “bold and new announcements and action. We need your political leadership at this crucially important time.”
“I urge you to think in terms of your legacy,” said Mr. Ban adding: “Let us work together…to make this world better for all. Let us shape this future, our own future for all succeeding generations and environmentally sustainable planet Earth.”
In his remarks to the Conference, General Assembly president John Ashe urged negotiators to be realistic, telling them they cannot afford to ignore the harsh realities that the climate change challenge brings to the overall task of sustainable development for all. “We have now entered the era of super storms, and the human tragedies and ravages such storms and typhoons bring are part of our daily vernacular.”
“However, we in this room must never ever become inured to this. What is the point of focusing on providing jobs, livelihoods, education, and healthcare, if one storm – or maybe future super storms - wipes it all away in a few hours?” he asked, adding: “ We, all of us in this room, who represent the UN family, must reach an agreement by 2015. Period.”
Telling the Conference that “the clock is ticking,” Mr. Ashe said the time has come for Governments to stand up and say, “yes we will. Yes, we will do something. We will act. Not tomorrow, not next week, but right here. Today.”
He noted that recent catastrophic events have made it all the more obvious that action is needed. They require, he said, resolute measures and a vision well beyond the usual political posturing along with a political willingness to look beyond particular narrow interests and focus instead on the common good for all.
 un.org
19/11/13
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