India: No to peaking
year
India
has set up clear limits to the kind of climate commitments
it is ready make in Copenhagen, says Environment Minister
Jairam Ramesh. India says no to a peaking year of emissions
and rejects international scrutiny of domestic measures
to cut greenhouse gases. 12/12/2009 - India is willing to
curb its growth in carbon emissions, but stands firm on
its rejection of a "peaking" year. Nor will India
accept international scrutiny of voluntary domestic measures
to tackle climate change, says Environment Minister Jairam
Ramesh to The Times of India.
Demands
for a peaking year and for international scrutiny of all
mitigation actions in developing countries are hot issues
at the negotiating table in Copenhagen. Mainly because developed
countries want to be sure that the larger developing countries
also do their part to combat global warming.
Ramesh
says India has come to Copenhagen "to play a constructive,
facilitative, leadership role to ensure an effective and
equitable agreement... But at the same time we will not
agree to a concept of a peaking year for India because we
have a huge backlog of development particularly in expanding
rural electricity supply."
India
has announced a voluntary target of reducing carbon intensity
by 20 to 25 percent from 2005 levels by 2020. It is also
planning to implement MRV (Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification)
on emissions, checked by parliament, civil society and media,
Ramesh says.
However,
only action supported by international finance can be subject
to MRV. Unsupported action is exclusively India's business,
says Ramesh.
Having
completed a first day of concentrated talks with his foreign
counterparts in Copenhagen the minister says: "In all
these discussions I have had...the basic objective was to
highlight not only what India has done in recent weeks pro-actively,
voluntarily, but also to underscore the basic positions
India will not compromise on even as it engages in constructive
negotiations."
The
minister adds that although China and India are coordinating
negotiations closely, number one and five in the world in
terms on emissions "are not in the same boat".
Do UNFCCC
