(EDITORIAL from the Korea Herald on Dec. 19)

Our future

Leaders from some 30 countries hammered out a draft climate accord, just hours
before 130 world leaders were to meet in a summit on the last day of the
Copenhagen climate talks.

The draft text is reported to call for keeping the global temperature from going
up more than 2 degrees Celsius compared to pre-industrial times. Contributions
from developed countries toward helping poorer countries deal with climate
change, and how that money would be raised, are also outlined in the draft.
Also included are greenhouse gas cut commitments by developed countries as well
as a proposal for a target for all countries by 2050, reports said.
It is also reported that the last-minute draft calls for drawing up a binding
treaty on climate change within six months.
President Lee Myung-bak on Thursday called on nations to take the initiative to
fight climate change, emphasizing that Korea is committed to voluntarily cutting
emissions by 4 percent by 2020 from the 2005 level, although it is exempt from
mandatory cuts under the current Kyoto Protocol.
Speaking at the climate talks in Copenhagen, Lee said that Korea decided to take
on the challenge because "I believe this 'me-first attitude' is the fastest way
to save our planet."
Korea is the ninth-largest emitter of greenhouse gases and its emissions have
nearly doubled in the past 15 years. It registered the fastest emissions growth
among OECD members from 1990 to 2005.
Seeking a growing international role, Seoul proposed mediating between developed
and developing countries on global climate change discussions.
Lee said Korea would host a Conference of Parties in 2012. Lee also announced
that Korea will establish a Global Green Growth Institute and a global think tank
in the first half of next year. The institute will act as a bridge between
advanced and developing countries, where countries can share experiences and
know-how.
The Lee administration proclaimed "Low Carbon Green Growth" as a new national
vision last year. Since then, numerous plans and policies have been rolled out,
including a plan to invest 2 percent of GDP into the research and development of
new green technologies and infrastructure. A bill on green growth is pending at
the National Assembly.
Although Korea's voluntary commitment to reduce emissions by 4 percent by 2020
from the 2005 level is not as ambitious as it could have been, it is nevertheless
the highest cut recommended by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change for
developing and emerging countries.
The country can claim that it made a head start in fighting global warming, as
Lee said, if it can achieve that goal.
The wide gap between what developed and developing countries offered and wanted
threatens to sink the climate talks. The United States, which promised to cut
emissions by 3 percent below 1990 levels by 2020, wants developing countries to
submit to stringent checks on their emissions cuts in exchange for any financial
assistance.
Developing countries, led primarily by China, which committed to cutting its
carbon intensity - the amount of carbon dioxide emitted for each unit of GDP - by
40 to 45 percent by 2020 compared to 2005, say the U.S. emissions goal is not
deep enough.
China wants average cuts of at least 40 percent from 1990 levels by 2020 by
developed countries.
It also wants promises of more aid and green technology for developing countries
to help them reach their carbon emissions goals.
The EU leaders have been pushing the United States and developing nations to
commit to emissions cuts by agreeing to cut emissions by 20 percent below 1990
levels by 2020 and by 30 percent if other developed nations follow suit.
A major issue at Copenhagen is the funding for poor countries to fight global
warming. On Thursday, Hillary Clinton, U.S. secretary of state, breathed life
into the Copenhagen talks, which appeared moribund, when she announced that the
United States would help support a $100 billion a year fund.
Although the United States did not commit to specific figures or suggest how the
fund would be raised, the announcement demonstrated the seriousness of the United
States' commitment to fighting global warming.
In addition, a fast-track fund to help poor nations in the three years before the
climate deal takes effect in 2013 is in the works.
The EU has pledged around $3.5 billion and Japan committed another $5 billion
toward the $10 billion a year fund. The countries gathered in Copenhagen are
looking to the United States to come up with the rest.
With so many parties with different interests and priorities involved and with so
much ground to cover, the Copenhagen conference perhaps had little chance of
success.
However, the urgent need to take immediate steps against global climate change
necessitated the conference.
It would be unfortunate for all countries, indeed for all mankind, if we fail to
take action now against global warming.
Countries should focus on the long-term, common good of the entire human race as
they engage in last-minute efforts to strike a climate change deal.
Enough time has been wasted in posturing; it is time for world leaders to
exercise leadership in fighting global warming that threatens the future of the
planet and its inhabitants.
(END)