Lack of Details in G8 Agreement on Climate Change Brings Criticism

Lack of Details in G8 Agreement on Climate Change Brings Criticism
Group of Eight leaders in Japan set a goal to cut global carbon emissions by at least half by 2050. Developing countries say rich nations have to take the lead. Transcript of radio broadcast:
11 July 2008
This is IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.

Leaders of the Group of Eight met this week on the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido. The G-Eight countries include Britain, Canada, France and Germany. The others are Italy, Japan, Russia and the United States.

In a statement on the situation in Zimbabwe, the leaders deplored the actions of the government of President Robert Mugabe. They said they will take financial and other measures against those responsible for violence in connection with the recent presidential election.

The leaders also promised to fight the crisis of rising food prices and to support development in Africa.

But the major issue of the three-day meeting was climate change.

The leaders agreed on a goal of at least a fifty percent reduction in worldwide carbon emissions by two thousand fifty. But many environmentalists criticized the lack of any detailed plans for working toward that goal.

Charles Albani is a Nigerian activist with the group Global Call to End Poverty. He told VOA that the lack of details showed a lack of urgency among rich nations about the effects of global warming.

The leaders were joined for a time by the leaders of China, India, Brazil, Mexico and South Africa. The G-Eight leaders had agreed among themselves that fast-growing developing nations must also share in cutting emissions. But the leaders of the five so-called emerging nations said the developed world must take the lead in reducing emissions.

Leaders of Australia, South Korea and Indonesia also joined the meeting of major economies.

China and India are the world's fastest-growing carbon producers. But for years China and India have resisted efforts to force them to reduce emissions for fear it could damage their economic growth.

They say rich countries created the current problems through their burning of fossil fuels and should lead efforts to solve them. China and India say they have more immediate needs to help hundreds of millions of people living in poverty.

Some studies suggest that China may have already passed the United States as the leading producer of heat-trapping greenhouse gases. But Max Lawson, a policy adviser for Oxfam International, says that per person, the United States emits about four times more carbon than China. And Alden Meyer from the Union of Concerned Scientists says developing countries are taking some steps to reduce emissions.

As VOA's Kurt Achin reported from Hokkaido, there is wide agreement on at least one thing. Any deal on reducing carbon emissions is sure to fail unless it also includes emerging economies.

This was President Bush's last G-Eight summit; he leaves office in January. The group's chairman this year was Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda. Next is Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake. For more about the G-Eight summit, go to voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Steve Ember.

----------------------------Google Translate

缺乏细节，在八国集团协议，关于气候变化带来的批评
8国集团领导人在日本设定一个目标，以削减全球碳排放量至少有一半，到2050年。发展中国家说，富裕国家必须起带头作用。全文电台广播：
2008年7月11日
这是在新闻中在美国之音特别英语。

集团领导人会见了八周，这对日本北部岛屿北海道。八国集团的国家包括英国，加拿大，法国和德国。其余意大利，日本，俄罗斯和美国。

在一份声明中对津巴布韦的局势，领导人表示遗憾，政府的行动穆加贝总统。他们表示，他们将采取财政措施和其他措施，对那些负责的暴力行为，涉嫌与最近举行的总统选举。

各国领导人还承诺打击的危机不断增加的粮食价格，并支持非洲的发展。

但主要的问题，为期三天的会议是气候变化的影响。

领导人商定了一个目标，至少有50 ％的减少，全球碳排放量由2000 50 。但许多环保人士的批评没有任何详细的计划，为工作实现这一目标。

查尔斯albani是尼日利亚活动家与该集团的全球通话来结束贫困。他告诉记者说，缺乏细节显示，缺乏紧迫感之间的富有国家的约的影响，全球气候变暖。

领导人参加了今后一个时期，由中国的领导人，印度，巴西，墨西哥和南非。八国集团领导人已同意在它们之间指出，快速成长的开发中国家也必须分担在削减排放量。但领导人对5 ，所以所谓的新兴国家说，发达世界必须起带头作用，在减少废气排放量。

领导人澳大利亚，韩国和印度尼西亚也加入了这次会议主要经济体。

中国和印度是世界上发展最快的碳生产者。但多年来，中国和印度进行了抵制的努力，迫使他们减少排放量为担心它可能损害他们的经济增长。

他们说，富裕国家创造了当前存在的问题通过其燃烧矿物燃料，并应带头努力解决这些问题。中国和印度说，他们有更多的迫切需要，以帮助亿万人民的生活在贫困之中。

一些研究表明，中国可能已经通过了美国为主导的生产者热俘获的温室气体。但最大的劳森，政策顾问，为国际乐施会指出，每人，美国排放的约4倍以上的碳比中国。和奥尔登迈耶从关心的科学家联盟说，发展中国家正在采取一些步骤来减少排放量。

作为美国之音的库尔特阿钦报道，由北海道，有广泛的协议，至少有一件事。任何处理就减少碳排放，是一定要失败，除非它也包括新兴经济体。

这是布什总统去年八国集团首脑会议;他离开办公室在1月。该集团的主席，今年日本首相福田康夫。其次是意大利总理贝卢斯科尼。

这是在新闻中在美国之音特别英语，写的brianna布雷克。为更多地了解八国集团首脑会议上，去voaspecialenglish.com 。我史蒂夫ember 。