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NZ 'hampering' climate change talks

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NZ 'hampering' climate change talks

3News NZ

The Doha 2012 talks began on Monday (AAP)

The Doha 2012 talks began on Monday (AAP)

By 3 News online staff

New Zealand has been accused of “hampering” the progress of UN climate change talks in Doha.

The New Zealand Youth Delegation (NZYD) is in Doha, Qatar for the conference, which started yesterday, and has received two Fossil of the Day awards – awards given to “nations most actively hampering international progress” by international NGO the Climate Action Network (CAN).

The awards are related to New Zealand’s decision not to continue its commitment to the Kyoto Protocol, and its decision to reveal a voluntary climate change pledge next year rather than at the current talks.

CAN says New Zealand has run "away from a legally binding, multilateral rules based regime".

"You still have a chance to support the only legally binding regime and commit to ambitious targets for the second commitment period," the organisation told New Zealand. "Its island partners in the Pacific should think again before ever trusting New Zealand again."

Earlier this month Climate Change Minister Tim Groser announced that the Government would not sign up for the second commitment period of Kyoto, and would instead opt for the UN’s Convention Framework.

NZYD spokesman Simon Tapp says the team was dismayed to receive the Fossil awards in Doha.

“We called New Zealand out on this embarrassing, short-sighted and irresponsible action three weeks ago, and now the whole world is doing the same.”

He says New Zealand’s reputation is at risk at the talks with the Philippines and some Pacific Island states criticising New Zealand’s lack of participation within Kyoto.

“New Zealand’s lack of any target is an embarrassment,” Mr Tapp says. “We urgently need to take our place as a developed Annex 1 nation and recommit to a fair, ambitious, and binding second Kyoto commitment.”

The conference lasts two weeks.

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Comments

28/11/2012 10:31:06 p.m.

Ainslie Green wrote:

The Fossil Award has been magnanimously given to New Zealand when in fact it should have been given to Mr Groser.he after all is the one who truly earnt it so i hope they post it to him,complete with a yellow ribbon.

28/11/2012 5:19:14 p.m.

Rob Edward wrote:

@Ian, If "people like you" think a small contributors effort to reduce pollution is wasted then I'm afraid you don't understand the problem. The constant off loading of responsibility due to another player not meeting their obligation is wrong.

28/11/2012 2:47:10 p.m.

Ian wrote:

@ Rob, why do people like you even bother leaving comments? He is saying that untill all the worlds major polluters join in all efforts will go to waste because untill they reduce their pollution the issue will never get better

27/11/2012 6:38:21 p.m.

fools wrote:

What reputation is that? for being the first to jump off the cliff in the hope it will encourage others to do the same.

27/11/2012 5:45:03 p.m.

Mike wrote:

A tax system needs to be fair, and Kyoto Protocol was hijacked and is not fair or for the enviroment.

The worst carbon polluters are actually protected at the expense of everyone else under Kyoto - this is plainly wrong.

We need to toss the corrupt Kyoto Protocol out and replace it with a new system. I recommend a net emission rate per sq km which will reward clean/green while tax the filthy polluters. We can set an initial rate and over time reduce it, which will see an improvement over time. Such a system would hit the worst polluters, being the EU who have the highest carbon emisions in the world per sq km, who just happen to be Kyoto supporters as it protects their right to pollute at the expense of the rest of the world.

Set a net rate for the whole world. Now you can probably get China/USA/USSR and everyone else to sign up to protect the enviroment, as for all the bought EU votes in the UN, the worst polluters are still the EU, and if we pick a net emission rate per sq km, all the so-called polluters tend to have much lower emissions per sq km. Sure, some have hot spots in their countries, but as nations they actually have lower average emissions than the filthy and greedy EU.

Take Indonesia, a Kyoto Protocol success story. Yes they signed up, but they burnt off 50 billion tonnes of jungle first. No doubt the Greens were celebrating in the streets over that one!

27/11/2012 3:36:36 p.m.

Rob Edward wrote:

@Dave. There are many things that China and India don't do.. Free speech, human rights and cheddar cheese to name but a few. Shall we not do them as well?

27/11/2012 11:16:53 a.m.

katrina wrote:

We need to save the planet but has Kyoto actually achieved anything? Think of all the fossil fuel being burned just getting the delegates to the meetings all the time.

27/11/2012 10:50:55 a.m.

Neil wrote:

Does our government really represent the wishes of it's people - or the interests of our business and farming community

27/11/2012 10:08:10 a.m.

dave wrote:

this is a joke...we all fly to a country to have a meeting about preventing pollution...mmm anyway until India, China, etc join in, the world is wasting its time.

27/11/2012 9:28:35 a.m.

Greg wrote:

Why will a tax on consumers motivate polluting businesses to not pollute.
Its a nonsence, the whole systems corrupt and just a excuse to take our hard earned money. Kyoto is a pile of dog droppings. Punitivate legislation has failed, stop being sheep. America's free trade aggreement will make it easier for them to pollute elsewear.