G8 and Climate Change

In the new draft, the very first line is contentious. The opening words Our world is warming have been placed in parentheses, indicating there is no consensus on that portion of the text. Here the draft has been clearly prepared by the British government, and the dispute is believed to arise from U.S. objections.

The first paragraph includes the following also placed in parentheses: The statement issued by the science academies in June 2005 said that there is now strong evidence that significant global warming is occurring and that this warming has already led to changes in the Earth’s climate. We know that the increase is due in part to human activity.

The brackets around the above text indicate that there is no consensus among the G8 countries that any significant climate change is taking place that may be linked to human activity.

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There seems to be no dispute around general statements such as an agreement to act with resolve and urgency now to meet our shared and multiple objectives of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, improving the global environment, enhancing energy security and cutting air pollution in conjunction with our vigorous efforts to reduce poverty.

But then the parentheses indicating a lack of agreement appears around the following: The world’s developed countries have a responsibility to show leadership.

Nor is there agreement on the following in the draft text: While there will always be some uncertainty, inertia in the climate system means we cannot afford to postpone action if we are to manage the risk of major irreversible change.

Extraordinary efforts by the White House to scupper Britain’s attempts to tackle global warming have been revealed in leaked US government documents obtained by The Observer.

… The documents [part of the Bush administration’s submission to the 2005 G8 action plan for the Gleneagles G8 Summit] obtained by The Observer represent an attempt by the Bush administration to undermine completely the science of climate change and show that the US position has hardened during the G8 negotiations. They also reveal that the White House has withdrawn from a crucial United Nations commitment to stabilise greenhouse gas emissions.

The documents show that Washington officials:

• Removed all reference to the fact that climate change is a serious threat to human health and to ecosystems;
• Deleted any suggestion that global warming has already started;
• Expunged any suggestion that human activity was to blame for climate change.

Among the sentences removed was the following: Unless urgent action is taken, there will be a growing risk of adverse effects on economic development, human health and the natural environment, and of irreversible long-term changes to our climate and oceans.

Another section erased by the White House adds: Our world is warming. Climate change is a serious threat that has the potential to affect every part of the globe. And we know that … mankind’s activities are contributing to this warming. This is an issue we must address urgently.

Earlier this month, the senior science academies of the G8 nations, including the US National Academy of Science, issued a statement saying that evidence of climate change was clear enough to compel their leaders to take action…. It is now clear that this advice has been completely ignored by Bush and his advisers.