G8 scientists demand action on climate change
An unprecedented joint statement by the national science academics of the G8 and Brazil, China and India has called for “prompt” action against climate change.
They insist that the threat of global warming is “clear and increasing”, rejecting claims made by some countries, notably the US, that the evidence is inconclusive.
“It is clear that world leaders, including the G8, can no longer use uncertainty about aspects of climate change as an excuse for not taking urgent action to cut greenhouse gas emissions,” said Lord May of Oxford, president of Britain’s Royal Society.
The statement itself holds back from calling for urgent action but presses world leaders to “identify cost-effective steps that can be taken now to contribute to substantial and long-term reduction in net global greenhouse gas emissions”.
It continued: “Recognise that delayed action will increase the risk of adverse environmental effects and will likely incur a greater cost.”
The inclusion of government-supported science academies in China, India and Brazil in the statement seems to send a strong signal that developing nations are serious in reducing their contribution to climate change.
One of the main reasons the US, whose own Academy of Sciences signed the statement, failed to sign up to the Kyoto protocol on cutting emissions was because it only applied to developed nations.
The participation of the Russian Academy of Science is also significant, as its members last year advised president Vladimir Putin not to ratify the Kyoto treaty.
However, Lord May said Washington’s position was “misguided” and said President Bush and other world leaders had the opportunity to change this at the G8 summit in Gleneagles, Scotland, next month.
“Significantly, along with the science academies of the G8 nations, this statement’s signatories include Brazil, China and India who are among the largest emitters of greenhouse gases in the developing world,” he said.
“It is clear that developed countries must lead the way in cutting emissions, but developing countries must also contribute to the global effort to achieve overall cuts in emissions. The scientific evidence forcefully points to a need for a truly international effort.
“Make no mistake we have to act now. And the longer we procrastinate, the more difficult the task of tackling climate change becomes.”
A spokeswoman for Friends of the Earth welcomed the statement but expressed disappointment that it did not include any targets or a timetable for action.
Campaigner Catherine Pearce, said: “G8 countries must accept their historic responsibility in creating the problem, and show genuine leadership through annual reductions in emissions.
“It is crucial that the entire world – including the United States – recognises that there is a window of opportunity to avert potentially catastrophic climate change. Emissions must peak and decline within the next decade. The world must act now before it is too late.”
