Developed Country GHG Reduction Pledges Fall Short, New Analysis Reveals

Jessica
0 Comments »


Commitments made by developed countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, when added together, fall short of stabilizing global temperatures at a level that averts dangerous climate change.

Comparability of Annex I Emission Reduction Pledges, a new analysis by the World Resources Institute (WRI), examines the pledges made by the European Union, Japan, Russia, New Zealand, Australia, Norway, Belarus, Ukraine and Canada as negotiations on a new global climate agreement near their climax in Copenhagen this December. Also included is the United States’s emission reductions based on the American Clean Energy and Security Act passed by the House of Representatives in June.

WRI’s analysis reveals that commitments by these industrialized country parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) would result in a 10 to 24 percent reduction of global emissions below 1990 levels by 2020. This is less than the 25 to 40 percent range of emission reductions that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) states would be necessary for stabilizing concentrations of carbon dioxide at 450ppm, a level associated with a 52 percent risk of overshooting a two degrees Celsius goal. Both the G8 and the Major Economies Forum - representing the world’s 17 leading economies - recently agreed to a goal of limiting average global temperature rise to two degrees Celsius over pre-industrial levels.

“Our analysis provides a preliminary picture of where the world is headed in the run-up to Copenhagen,” said Jennifer Morgan, director of WRI’s climate and energy program. “While emission reduction commitments by these countries could have an important and potentially substantial impact, they will not be enough to meet recommendations of IPCC’s Fourth Assessment Report. WRI therefore urges industrialized countries to bring forward more ambitious pledges to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.”

The report, which covers pledges by countries responsible for 98% of all developed country emissions, uses three metrics to compare country commitments - per capita reductions, emission intensity reductions, and absolute reductions.

The 10 to 24 percent reduction is based on the inclusion or omission of factors, such as changes in land use, forestry data and low vs. high pledges. Other key findings include:

- The choice of metrics used by countries (such as whether to include offsets, land-use change or forestry emissions) can alter their emission reduction calculations significantly.

- High regulatory standards and robust accounting rules will be critical to ensure that international emission reductions are real and additional.

, , , ,

Companies Profit When They Consult Communities

Jessica
0 Comments »

Natural-resources extractive companies are profiting financially and socially when they consult with affected communities before and during the construction of projects.

“Rio Tinto and De Beers, for example, have negotiated agreements with communities to avoid harm and provide benefits. In so doing, they have gained local support for projects, and communities have seized opportunities for development,” said Jonathan Lash, president of the World Resources Institute (WRI). “But more work needs to be done. Too often, the rhetoric in support of community engagement does not match the practice.”

The report, Breaking Ground: Engaging Communities in Extractive and Infrastructure Projects, takes an in-depth look at international community engagement standards and how they often fall short of providing guidance to companies and communities. The work follows WRI’s 2007 report, Development Without Conflict, and is designed as a user’s guide to help companies and local community liaisons implement successful standards on-the-ground.

“Many national laws and financial institutions’ policies require companies to implement some type of community engagement in extractive and infrastructure projects, but do not necessarily provide guidance on how to do so,” said Kirk Herbertson of WRI, lead author of the report. “When local communities participate in the design and implementation of a project, they are more likely to understand and support the changes brought about by the project.”

In one of the examples from the report, community engagement during the construction of a natural gas project in the Philippines saved a U.S. company millions by allowing the company to complete construction ahead of schedule.

In another example, from Guatemala, a mining company helped rebuild its damaged reputation by inviting local communities to test and monitor water quality, as a way to provide credible assurances that a mine was not polluting their water source.

WRI’s accompanying video documentary on Thailand’s Mae Moh coal power project shows what happens when companies and governments refuse to engage the communities they develop. Hundreds of people filed a lawsuit against the government-controlled Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT), alleging the coal mine and power plant poisoned them with toxic sulfur dioxide emissions and mine dust, and damaged their crops.

On Tuesday of this week, which is officially the World Bank’s Extractive Industries Week, a Thai court ruled that EGAT must compensate each of the victims and restore the environmental damage of the coal mine.

Extractive industry experts said at the World Bank conference that they continue to recognize the importance of engaging communities in mining projects, despite the ongoing economic crisis.

, , , ,