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Discussions on negotiating texts on pact to combat global warming kick off – UN

Discussions on negotiating texts on pact to combat global warming kick off – UN

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Delegates from 182 nations are gathering in Bonn, Germany, today to initiate discussions on negotiating texts which could form the basis of an ambitious United Nations-backed climate change deal, to slash greenhouse gas emissions, expected to be clinched in December.

The two-week Bonn talks, the second round of UN climate change talks this year, are expected to draw over 4,000 participants, including representatives from Governments, the private sector, environmental organizations and research institutions.

The new pact, to be concluded in Copenhagen, Denmark, is intended to succeed the Kyoto Protocol, whose first commitment period ends in 2012.

“The political moment is right to reach an agreement,” said Yvo de Boer, Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). “There is no doubt in my mind that the Copenhagen climate conference in December is going to lead to a result.”

The current financial crisis has reinforced the need for a global response to global issues, he added.

The negotiating texts serve as a “starting point” for talks among nations, according to Michael Zammit Cutajar, who chairs the working group for long-term cooperation under the UNFCCC.

Also expected to be discussed in Bonn are how to improve emissions trading and coverage of emissions credits, among other topics.

In recent weeks, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has been exhorting nations to “seal the deal” on a new climate change pact, warning that cost of inaction will be far greater than the cost of taking decisive action now.

“We live in an interconnected world,” he told business leaders last month. “An effective agreement in Copenhagen would be a powerful vote of confidence in multilateralism. By the same token, failure would be bad news for everyone.”

“We live in an interconnected world,” he told business leaders last month. “An effective agreement in Copenhagen would be a powerful vote of confidence in multilateralism. By the same token, failure would be bad news for everyone.”

In a related development, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and over one dozen non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have urged climate negotiators to not leave fisheries and aquaculture out of discussions on a new pact.

As a result of climate change, millions of fishers, fish farmers and coastal inhabitants will see their livelihoods take a hit, with global warming decreasing the availability and quality of fish for food and increasing health risks, according to a policy brief issued by the groups.

Some 520 million people worldwide – or 8 per cent of the global population – depend on fisheries and aquaculture as a source of protein, income or family stability.

It also argues that without immediate adaptation and mitigation measures, many fishing and coastal communities, already vulnerable due to poverty and rural underdevelopment, will face an even worse situation.

“Through their decisions and actions, they need to avoid policies that would damage already stressed aquatic resources and human lives and, instead, implement measures that take full advantage of the environmental and food security services that healthy aquatic resources offer,” said Kevern Cochrane of FAO’s Fisheries and Aquaculture Department.