RI's NGOs call for clear ratification regulations

Stevie Emilia, The Jakarta Post, New Delhi

Indonesian non-governmental organizations attending the United Nations conference on climate change on Tuesday emphasized the need to clearly stipulate ratification regulations in the draft Delhi Declaration prepared by the host country, India.

Earlier, the delegates of the European Union (EU) criticized India for not mentioning the 1997 Kyoto Protocol on global warming in the draft declaration.

"The Delhi Declaration should clearly include regulations about the urgency of Russia and Canada to immediately ratify the Kyoto Protocol so it can have legal power," said Eka Melisa, World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Indonesia program coordinator for climate change and energy on Tuesday.

The ratified countries' cumulative carbon-based emissions fall short of the 55 percent reduction of total emissions at 1990 levels, the level needed for the agreement to come into force. So far 96 countries have already ratified the Kyoto Protocol.

Russia is expected to come on board to help the protocol cross this threshold and come into effect while Canada has given signs that it would ratify the protocol soon to show that it can move ahead without the U.S.

Canadian overview documents mentioned that if the protocol was shattered, "it could take years to negotiate a new international agreement. Science suggests that we do not have time."

Other developed countries that have not ratified the Kyoto Protocol are Australia, New Zealand and the U.S., the world~s biggest air polluter which insists that the pact will hurt its economy.

Poor countries are not required to cut greenhouse gasses until the second compliance period beginning 2012 but are expected to begin making commitments.

Furthermore, Eka said that although the draft had included the need for developing countries to cope with natural disasters, it missed the point about the required funds as stipulated in the protocol.

Under the protocol, the special climate change fund is provided for developing countries to help them prepare programs to deal with the impact of climate change like natural disasters and extreme change in weather.

"The draft should also mention the need to improve developing countries' capacity to adapt through technology transfer," Eka said, adding that adapting and cutting down greenhouse gas emissions are the key points in dealing with climate change.

Poor countries are predicted to be severely hit by climate change but do not have the capacity to deal with resulting problems like floods, drought and rising sea levels.

"If the efforts to bring greenhouse gas emissions down fail, we should get ready to face extraordinary disasters resulting from climate change," warned Moekti H. Soejachmoen, deputy executive director of Pelangi, a NGO working on energy, climate, transportation, air pollution and forestry issues.

The draft, which was distributed to delegates on Monday -- if approved -- would be issued at the end of the conference.

The draft faced strong criticism for failing to include the 1997 Kyoto Protocol. Indian environment minister T.R. Baalu who is also president of the conference said earlier the protocol had not been dropped from the agenda but delegates sought to evolve a consensus on it during talks.