Tiempo Climate Newswatch

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a bill confirming approval of the Kyoto Protocol on Thursday November 4th. The Protocol will come into force 90 days after Russia notifies the United Nations that it has ratified the agreement.

Yuri Safonov, environmental economist at Russia's Higher School of Economics, argues that Russia should "take advantage of its position as the main quota supplier" and set prices for carbon emission rights. Russia could sell up to two billion tonnes of carbon emissions rights by 2008, with the price increasing to "at least 20 dollars a tonne," he estimates. The Russian surplus, against a 1990 baseline, results from the closure of inefficient factories and a range of economic difficulties over the past decade. Europe is about to launch the world's largest carbon trading scheme.

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Representatives of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) met in Tanzania during the week of October 25th to discuss their joint approach to the Tenth Conference of the Parties (COP-10) to the climate treaty. "We have to come up with a common position on issues like the Kyoto Protocol, a subject that is of late at the centre of international controversy," said conference chair Richard Muyungi. The meeting also considered initiatives such as the National Adaptation Programmes of Action.

The group prepared an agreement intended to galvanize the industrialized nations into taking responsibility for their dominant contribution to the climate problem and assisting the poorer nations in converting their industries to greenhouse-friendly practices. "The problem is the international community has the technology, but is not ready to assist the South," said Muyungi in an interview with SciDev.Net. "If they decide to help us with solar technology, people would not cut trees for cooking... It is a question of willingness. Without their assistance, we say we will continue to emit as we need to develop." The resolution will be presented to COP-10 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in December 2004.

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A report on Arctic climate change, released this week, concludes that human influence is now "the dominant factor" in regional trends. "The big melt has begun," said WWF climate director Jennifer Morgan. The Arctic ice cap has shrunk by 15 to 20 per cent over the past three decades and the report's projections suggest the Arctic could become near ice-free in summer by the year 2100. The Arctic Climate Impact Assessment study was commissioned by the Arctic Council and represents the work of close to 300 scientists as well as elders of the region's Native American communities.

Impacts are already occurring as the ice melts, permafrost thaws, buildings are losing their foundations and infrastructure is lost. Irreplaceable habitats for species such as the polar bear and seal are disappearing. There may, though, be some positive effects as oil and gas extraction becomes easier and shipping lanes open. The report will provide a basis for new policy recommendations by Arctic governments at a meeting in Iceland later this month. It has already led to a rift between the United States and European governments.

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