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WORLD NEWS Monday 17 deceMber 2018

Talks adopt 'rulebook' to put Paris climate deal into action

By FRANK JORDANS entists, said the talks cre-
Associated Press ated "a solid foundation
KATOWICE, Poland (AP) for implementation and
— Almost 200 nations, in- strengthening" of the Paris
cluding the world's top agreement and could help
greenhouse gas produc- bring the U.S. back into the
ers, China and the United deal by a future presiden-
States, have adopted a set tial administration.
of rules meant to breathe One major sticking point
life into the 2015 Paris cli- was how to create a func-
mate accord by setting out tioning market in carbon
how countries should report credits. Economists believe
their emissions and efforts that an international trad-
to reduce them. ing system could be an ef-
But negotiators delayed fective way to drive down
other key decisions until greenhouse gas emissions
next year — a move that and raise large amounts
frustrated environmentalists of money for measures to
and countries that wanted curb global warming.
more ambitious goals in But Brazil wanted to keep
light of scientists' warnings the piles of carbon credits
that the world must shift Heads of the delegations react at the end of the final session of the COP24 summit on climate it had amassed under an
sharply away from fossil fu- change in Katowice, Poland, Saturday, Dec. 15, 2018. old system that developed
els in the coming decade. Associated Press countries say wasn't cred-
"The majority of the rule- ible or transparent.
book for the Paris agree- "Through this package, you fires and the powerful hur- vious reference to specific Among those that pushed
ment has been created, have made a thousand lit- ricanes that have hit the reductions in greenhouse back hardest was the Unit-
which is something to be tle steps forward together," United States this year. gas emissions by 2030 and ed States, despite President
thankful for," said Mo- said Michal Kurtyka, a se- The recent report by the merely welcomed the Donald Trump's decision to
hamed Adow, a climate nior Polish official who led IPCC concluded that while "timely completion" of the pull out of the Paris climate
policy expert at Christian the talks. it's possible to cap global IPCC report, not its conclu- accord and his promotion
Aid. "But the fact countries While each country would warming at 1.5 degrees sions. of coal as a source of en-
had to be dragged kicking likely find some parts of the Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahr- Johan Rockstrom, a scien- ergy.
and screaming to the finish agreement it did not like, enheit) by the end of the tist who helps to lead the "Overall, the U.S. role here
line shows that some na- he said, efforts were made century compared to pre- Potsdam Institute for Cli- has been somewhat schizo-
tions have not woken up" to balance the interests of industrial times, doing so mate Impact Research, phrenic — pushing coal
to the dire consequences all parties. would require a dramatic called the agreement "a and dissing science on the
of global warming as out- "We will all have to give in overhaul of the global relief." The Paris deal, he one hand, but also working
lined in a report by the U.N order to gain," he said. "We economy, including a shift said, "is alive and kicking, hard in the room for strong
Panel on Climate Change, will all have to be coura- away from fossil fuels. despite a rise in populism transparency rules," said El-
or IPCC. geous to look into the fu- Alarmed by efforts to in- and nationalism." liot Diringer of the Center
Officials at the talks, which ture and make yet another clude that idea in the final His biggest concern, he for Climate and Energy So-
ended late Saturday in step for the sake of human- text of the meeting, the said, is that the summit lutions, a Washington think
the Polish city of Katowice, ity." oil-exporting nations of the "failed to align ambitions tank.
agreed upon universal The talks took place against U.S., Russia, Saudi Arabia with science, in particu- When it came to closing po-
rules on how nations can a backdrop of growing and Kuwait blocked an lar missing the necessity of tential loopholes that could
cut emissions. Poor coun- concern among scientists endorsement of the IPCC making clear that global allow countries to dodge
tries secured assurances that global warming is pro- report midway through this emissions from fossil fu- their commitments to cut
on financial support to help ceeding faster than gov- month's talks. That prompt- els must be cut by half by emissions, "the U.S. pushed
them reduce emissions, ernments are responding ed uproar from vulnerable 2030" to stay in line with the harder than nearly anyone
adapt to changes such as to it. Last month, a study countries like small island IPCC report. else for transparency rules
rising sea levels and pay for found that global warming nations and environmental Alden Meyer, director of that put all countries under
damage that has already will worsen disasters such as groups. strategy and policy at the the same system, and it's
happened. the deadly California wild- The final text omitted a pre- Union of Concerned Sci- largely succeeded."q