In the see saw of that the international climate negotiations is the balance has now shifted towards the developing countries. The developed and developing countries argued vigorously over the one last year and both the parties have moved back and forth several times on their negotiation positions.

The United States under the leadership of President Barack Obama pursued a highly aggressive diplomatic effort which resulted in China agreeing to various mitigation measures including improvement in energy intensity. Taking cue from China various other developing countries too announced ambitious mitigation and clean energy initiatives.

The United States successfully planted seeds of division in the developing countries’ camp by singling out China for concentrated talks but what happened transpired throughout the developing world after that was completely unexpected. India, in addition to other developing countries announced several short and long term initiatives as an answer to the increasing international pressure to act on the rising carbon emissions.

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In the recent few days the Indian government has struggled to clearly state its official stand on the issue of reducing carbon emissions. While the traditional stance has been to oppose any mandatory emission targets, their has been a drastic change in this policy with indications of a domestic emissions reduction law and other proactive mitigation measures. The situation worsened after the environment minister, in an informal letter to the Prime Minister, said that India needs to move away from its traditional stance accept a far more responsible role at the international arena.

Mr. Jairam Ramesh, while expressing his personal views, advised Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh that India needs to be more proactive in reducing its carbon emissions. He said that India needs to work beyond the issue of differential responsibility, which incidentally has been central to India’s opposition to mandatory emission cuts. The minister wrote that India should play the role of a deal maker and not a deal breaker. He added that by accepting greater responsibility India would gain strategic leverage at the international forums possibly paving way for India’s successful bid for an place in the UN Security Council.

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About ten weeks from now leaders from nearly 200 countries will meet in Copenhagen to discuss the next climate treaty. During the last two to three years governments around the world moved to and fro over contentious issues like funding, technology transfer, intellectual property rights and emission reduction targets. As the world started to look for a replacement of the Kyoto Protocol, the start was slow with no sign of urgency even as the UNFCCC recommended a 25 to 40 percent reduction in global carbon emissions by 2020.

But the change at Washington brought a colossal change in the pace of global climate negotiations. The United States had played a vital role in formalization of the Kyoto Protocol but never ratified the same which created a gapping hole in global efforts to reduce carbon emissions. With the failure of Kyoto Protocol acknowledged by almost all it is clear that the we cannot afford to repeat the mistake committed in the past. United States’ commitment to act boldly and swiftly has become the make or break issue for the next climate treaty.

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After months of staunch resistance to mandatory emission reduction targets the Indian government has hinted that it is willing to consider a national legislation on voluntary emission reduction targets.

India’s environment minister Mr. Jairam Ramesh acknowledged for the first time that his country needs to take up bold responsibilities in order to mitigate the adverse impacts of climate change. The proposed legislation could include emission reduction targets for the year 2030 for the most polluting and carbon intensive industrial sectors.

India has been against mandatory emission reduction targets putting forward two main arguments - one, its per capita emissions are among the lowest in the world and two, taking bold measures to reduce its carbon emissions would adversely impact its endeavor to eradicate poverty. The proposed bill would address both these issues and could serve as a path breaking legislation striking a balance between the economic and social costs and the mitigation measures.

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Lack of foreign investments owing to the global financial crisis and its own negotiating stance at climate talks could throw back India’s schedule to implement plans of setting up large scale solar energy projects.

India is looking to invest billions of dollars in setting to large scale solar and wind energy projects. These projects are essential for meeting the growing power demands and also for countering any demands from the developed countries to reduce carbon emissions.

India currently generates only 3 percent or 12,000 MW of its electricity from renewable sources, mostly comprising of wind energy while solar energy contributes only 2 MW. The government recently announced ambitious plan to boost electricity generation from solar energy to 20,000 MW by 2030.

Tapping solar energy is essential for India as it’s power plants are in short supplies of coal. Thus for various reasons ranging from energy security and international pressures to reduce its carbon emissions to environmental problems related to conventional energy sources, India has announced these massive plans to expand its solar energy infrastructure.

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Are the developing countries struggling to stay together on a unified stand to oppose mandatory emission reduction targets? Recent developments indicate that they are.

Developed and developing countries have been at loggerheads for quite sometime on the issue of reducing carbon emissions. The developing countries urge the developed countries to heed to the recommendations of the International Panel on Climate Change and cut their carbon emissions by at least 25 percent by 2020. The developed countries on the other hand want the developing countries to make small but significant contributions in reducing the global production of carbon emissions.

Developed countries have failed to commit to bold emission reduction targets and have been struggling to pass legislations to initiate even modest steps towards reducing their carbon footprints. Developed countries presented weak emission targets as part of preliminary round of talks before the Copenhagen round of talks. Neither the developed countries nor the developing countries to want to put extra economic burden on their people as use of clean but expensive technologies will mean new taxes and bigger energy bills.

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During Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s visit to China an agreement to boost cooperation in the fields of energy efficiency and renewable energy was signed. The climate change agreement will also ensure that two of the world’s largest polluters continue engage in dialogue and finally reach an agreement on reducing carbon emissions.

Secretary Clinton emphasized on the importance of the deal by pointing out that any positive decisions and policy agreements made during the subsequent talks between the two countries could significantly influence the pace of international climate deal negotiations.

The deal holds great significance since the developing countries are looking at the United States to take some bold measures in order to reduce its carbon emissions and promise climate aid to poor and developing countries at the December scheduled Copenhagen Talks. Developed countries, including the United States, maintains that China being the largest greenhouse gas emitter should agree to some emissions reductions too.

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With the Copenhagen Climate talks just a few months away India has fallen back to its argument of its per capita carbon emissions being very low compared to those of the developed countries as it continues to resist mandatory emissions cut and push developed countries to own up to their historical responsibilities.

So why does India keeps coming back with this ‘low per capita emissions’ argument whenever there are demands that it takes steps to reduce its carbon emissions. One reason, quite obviously, is that they are really very low for a huge and booming economy like India. India’s per capita emissions are little less than 2 tonnes whereas those of the United States are more than 20 tonnes. The reason for that is the difference in the sizes of their respective economies and, as one of the Chinese official noted, the luxurious lifestyle that the United States (and developed countries in general) follow.

Still India is the fourth largest producer of greenhouse gases. The Indian government’s claims that any mandatory emission cuts would hamper its efforts to alleviate poverty got backing from a World Bank report. The World Bank report said that India is right in not excepting mandatory emission cuts. The Indian government maintains that it has every right to pursue an aggressive economic development path which would improve the standard of living of its people. Essentially they want to achieve economic equivalence with the developed countries using their abundant & cheap coal reserves without any obligations to slow down the economic growth in any way.

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During Secretary Clinton’s visit, India once again made it clear that it will not agree to mandatory emission reduction targets since in doing so it could potentially jeopardize its endeavor to eliminate poverty. However, the Indian government reiterated its previous stance that it will pursue expansion of renewable energy infrastructure.

India’s minister for environment and forests, Mr. Jairam Ramesh, disappointed Secretary Clinton by saying that climate change and poverty alleviation are linked to each other and that his government was not willing to pass on the burden economic burden of the mitigation measures on to its poor and middle class which form more than 50 percent of the population.

India may have agreed to limit the rise in global temperatures to 2°C but like the developed nations it too failed to come up with plans on how to achieve that goal. The Indian government maintains that given its low per capita emissions it would be unfair if it is asked to adopt carbon emission reduction goals; developed countries, some which have per capita emissions almost 20 times that of India’s, should take far greater responsibility in cutting carbon emissions. Calling for an equitable deal on cutting carbon emissions, India frequently reminds the developed nations of their historical responsibility.

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During a recent meeting of the Environment minsters of EU member countries side stepped the issue of declaring carbon dioxide a pollutant. While the minsters agreed on a proposal to reduce industrial pollution various environment groups criticized the ministers’ inaction on what seemed an essential and significant decision in Europe’s fight against climate change.

According to the deal reached, heavy industries like power plants and oil refineries will have to comply to new and stricter sulfur and nitrogen emissions as well as the release of dust particles, asbestos and heavy metals into the environment. Obviously, carbon dioxide has been left out which is why the environmentalists have been fuming. European leaders should have sent a strong message by classifying carbon dioxide as a pollutant keeping in mind the Copenhagen Climate Talks scheduled later this year.

Classify carbon dioxide as a pollutant would have added teeth to the EU goal of 20 percent reduction in carbon emissions by 2020 by adding the health aspect it. European Environment Bureau, a coalition of local environmental groups voiced its concerns saying,

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Getting no support from other developed nations like United States and Australia the European Union has so far failed to commit funds for developing and poor countries to help them mitigate effects of the changing climate. EU is under tremendous pressure to pledge funds as consistent monetary support to the developing countries is essential to make the next climate treaty a success.

During the Bali Climate Change Conference, held December 2007, it was agreed that the developed nations will create an Adaptation Fund to aid the developing countries acquire the new and clean energy technologies thus reducing their carbon emissions. This December, when the landmark Copenhagen Climate Change Conference is scheduled to take place, will mark two years of inaction on part of the developed countries.

While the European Union has always recognized its responsibility to help developing countries, the promises made have not been translated into concrete actions. Response from other developed nations has been dismal too. United States and Australia have no system in place to raise funds for the Adaptation Fund. The proposed emissions trading scheme in the United States would see industries getting emission rights for free, raising serious questions about the effectiveness of the scheme. Australia has delayed implementing its emissions trading scheme citing financial pressures owing to the economic recession.

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It seems unlikely that an agreement on the terms of the next climate treaty could be reached at the December-scheduled Copenhagen talks. The United States, not a member of the Kyoto Protocol and one of the major players in the international negotiations tussle over the climate treaty, has not yet reached a consensus over how to reduce carbon emissions and a bill successfully passing through the Senate in 2009 seems quite difficult.

The major issues that US lawmakers need to look into are, first, how to make the transition from carbon-intensive fossil fuels to clean renewable energy sources and, second, how to finance this transition without burdening the people with any significant monetary load.

The proposed carbon trading scheme has attracted criticism from the environmentalists since it allows the government to distribute emission permits to the industries free of cost. A bill proposing a nationwide carbon tax was also introduced in the US Congress but experts fear that, if implemented, the bill would put a financial burden of more than $1000 per year on the US households.

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During one of the many meetings preceding the Copenhagen round of talks scheduled to take place in December, the developed countries have tentatively agreed on a plan to collectively raise $100 billion per year in order to provide financial support to the poor and developing nations as they try to make the transition from fossil fuels to clean energy sources.

Funding for the international adaptation fund has been one of the contentious issues during the negotiations for the next climate treaty and the global recession has made it even worse with many countries showing reluctance in providing monetary support to developing and poor countries citing problems like unemployment and dropping GDP back home.

The problem is not only ‘who would pay how much’ but also ‘who gets how much’. As far as the first issue is concerned, the European Union had pledged monetary help for the developing and poor nations but failed to reach a final decision since there were no signs of support from the United States. While the EU has its Emission Trading System, the United States is yet to start its carbon trading scheme.

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India’s climate change envoy Shyam Saran has said that his country would like the United States to set ‘high-end’ emission reduction goals. Leading the Indian delegation into a gathering of largest polluting nations in Washington, Saran said that United States should aim to emissions targets between 25 to 40 percent.

In comparison, President Obama has called for a 14 percent reduction in carbon emissions by 2020 while the European Union has set a 20 percent reduction target. China and India, world’s largest and third largest polluters respectively, have set no reduction targets and are not expected to agree to even lower targets at the Copenhagen meeting to discuss the next climate treaty.

Calls for the United States to recognize its historical responsibility and take bold actions to reduce its carbon emissions have risen significantly in recent times. Countries around the world have realized that President Obama intends to go the extra mile as far as environmental and climate change reforms are concerned and they various governments are pressing the Obama administration to transform his promises into real actions.

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The Copenhagen round of talks aimed at building a consensus about the features of the next climate treaty is scheduled to take place this December however, there seem to be no signs of consensus over how the world should proceed to reduce its carbon emissions. Which tool would be most effective? Clean Development Mechanism, a global carbon tax or maybe a global carbon labelling law?

Clean Development Mechanism has been tried, tested and, well, has been branded somewhat ineffective by not only the people outside the system but the people who are actually a part of it, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Bureaucratic delays, procedural wrongdoings in approval of projects and failure to make any difference at the grass-root level are some of the well known problems with this scheme.

The European Union has proposed that the CDM be replaced by a global carbon tax. United States saw a national carbon tax bill introduced in the Congress. The bill calls for levying an ‘carbon equivalency fee’ on imported products, in addition to the nationwide carbon tax in order to neutralize the losses incurred by domestic manufacturers. China has opposed this move saying that the developed countries are in part responsible for the emissions as they are the end users. 

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With fears of being pressurized to agree to mandatory emissions cuts under the new climate treaty, China has up the ante and is looking to hit back at the developed countries by holding them accountable for a size-able portion of its carbon emissions. According to a recent study, 15 to 25 percent of China’s carbon emissions originate from manufacturing of goods exported to developed countries.

The Director of China’s Climate Change department, Gao Li,  has said that since the western countries are these final users of the carbon intensive products they should share the responsibility for the same with the Chinese government. Mr. Li also said that sharing equal responsibility was essential to reach any fair agreement over reducing the carbon emissions.

These statements came almost a week after a carbon tax bill was introduced in the US Congress which called for levying an ‘carbon equivalency fee’ on imported products, in addition to the nationwide carbon tax in order to neutralize the losses incurred by domestic manufacturers. The bill, if passed, would also allow the US government to withhold revenue generated from the equivalence fee till the time the producer nation agrees to a domestic carbon tax of its own. 

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Environment Protection Agency has announced that the US government would maintain a registry of all carbon emissions produced from some 13,000 high polluting industries. Companies emitting more than 25,000 metric tonnes of carbon emissions yearly will be required to report to this registry.

The plan to have a climate registry has been doing the rounds since 2007 and although a Climate Registry exists covering various American, Canadian and Mexican states, this would be much broader and mandatory in nature. Terming the decision as ‘critical step towards protection of health and environment’, the EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson said that emissions data is essential in order to tackle the problem of climate change. The registry would require the companies to report their methane emissions also, another major greenhouse gas. 

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The European Union wants President Obama to act on his promise of introducing a new climate change policy and work out the modalities of a cap-and-trade policy before the Copenhagen Talks in December. Doing so, EU ministers say, would send a clear signal to the world and especially the developing countries about the change in America’s environment policy.

The European Union already has clear renewable energy and carbon emissions reduction policy in place but that has yet to make any difference in the stance of the developing countries like India and China. The Asian neighbors continue to resist any demands to reduce their carbon emissions claiming that their contribution to the overall global carbon emissions is very less as compared to that of the developed nations especially the United States which has not ratified the Kyoto Protocol.

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While lauding President Obama for making climate change a central issue in his administration’s policy the Indian government demanded that more needs to be done on the part of developed nations, especially in regard to setting robust emission reduction goals and funding clean energy projects in developing countries.

Setting the agenda straight for the Copenhagen talks, India’s envoy on Climate Change said that no workable solution could be reached if the developed countries did not agree to stricter emission reduction goals. He reiterated his country’s stand that it was not ready to commit to any emission reduction goals. He said that technology transfer and funding of clean energy projects are the biggest issues which could decide the future of the next climate treaty.

The views presented by India’s envoy are very unfortunate and seem highly unfair. As far as funding is concerned, India and China are the biggest beneficiaries of the Clean Development Mechanism through which developed countries finance clean energy projects in developing countries to offset their own carbon emissions. In terms of greenhouse gas emissions, China is the largest polluter while India is the third largest. This bestows a great share of ‘collective but differential’ responsibility on the Asian giants to cut carbon emissions.  

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