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November 26, 2012

Study: Emissions Targets Won't Halt Planet's Warming 
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The U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change pledged to cap global
temperature rises at 2 degrees Celsius at the 2010 summit in Cancun, but
new figures show greenhouse gas emissions hit a record high last year.
According to the United Nations, the world is now on pace for a global
temperature rise of between 3 and 5 degrees. Unveiling the latest
findings, the chief scientist of the U.N. Environment Programme, Joe
Alcamo, warned that current emissions standards will be insufficient to
stop devastating climate change.

Joe Alcamo: "Over 45 scientists from around the world, came to the
conclusion that by 2020, if we just complied with current pledges that
the countries have made to reduce emissions, global emissions will not
be low enough to be on track to meet the 2-degree climate target. So in
other words, we cannot wait until 2020 to have stringent reductions. We
know what the challenge is. It's a question now of taking action.
Between now and 2020, through the negotiations, we can tighten up the
rules for complying with pledges, that would lead to a reduction in
emissions."

Tune into Democracy Now! starting next Monday as we continue our annual
coverage of the U.N. Climate Change Conference.

 

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