Greenhouse Gas Politics in a Nutshell
February 9th, 2006Posted by: Roger Pielke, Jr.
One the one hand . . .
The world has seven years to take vital decisions and implement measures to curb greenhouse gas emissions or it could be too late, British Prime Minister Tony Blair said on Tuesday. Blair said the battle against global warming would only be won if the United States, India and China were part of a framework that included targets and that succeeded the 1992 Kyoto Protocol climate pact. “If we don’t get the right agreement internationally for the period after which the Kyoto protocol will expire — that’s in 2012 — if we don’t do that then I think we are in serious trouble,” he told a parliamentary committee. Asked if the world had seven years to implement measures on climate change before the problem reached “tipping point”, Blair answered: “Yes”.(link)
On the other hand . . .
Restricting cheap flights by putting a tax on air travel to cut pollution was ruled out by Tony Blair yesterday. . . The prime minister said it would take a “fairly hefty whack” for people to cut back on flights, adding that it would be hard to sell such a move. Instead, he said, the best way to tackle climate change was to invest in more environmentally friendly aircraft and in other new technology. Norman Baker, the Liberal Democrats’ environment spokesman, later accused Mr Blair of “talking big on the international stage on climate change”, but throwing in the towel at the first difficulty at home. “Emissions from aviation represent the greatest challenge in tackling climate change. For the Prime Minister to wash his hands in this way is simply unbelievable,” said Mr Baker.” (link)