The EU has presented proposals for an international agreement to replace the Kyoto Protocol on climate change, which expires in 2012. The bloc is calling for an increase in global investment to 175 billion euro per year by 2020, more than half of which must be spent in developing countries. The communication is made ahead of UN climate talks which will take place in Copenhagen, Denmark, in December.
The draft document urges rich nations to step up public funding to help developing countries cut their greenhouse gases and prepare for the negative impact of climate change. However, it has been stressed that the paper is likely to be heavily revised before final approval. Two options are proposed to increase public funding, based on the "polluter pays" principle. The first would require developed nations to pay a set price for every tonne of carbon dioxide emitted, whilst the second would set aside a percentage of emissions traded for the fund.
In addition, the EU executive will also urge developed countries to increase emission reduction commitments, opting for a binding agreement which would also include all OECD member countries and all present and future EU Member States. It is recommended that all developing countries, except for the poorest ones, should commit to adopting low-carbon development strategies by the end of 2011. These should cover all key emitting industries, especially the power and transport sectors.
A new "Facilitative Mechanism for Mitigation Support" will be set up to ensure action is matched by financial and technical backup. This will provide a platform for bilateral and multilateral support schemes and it is hoped the Copenhagen agreement will link these schemes together with carbon emission trading schemes across the world to create a global carbon market.
