Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
Post-Copenhagen
The failure of COP15 in Copenhagen and its voluntary commitments has cast a long shad-
ow over the successive COP meetings. Including the revelation by Wikileaks that US aid
funding to Bolivia and Ecuador was reduced because of their opposition to the Copenhagen
Accord. At COP16 in Cancun and COP17 in Durban the UNFCCC negotiations were
slowly put back on track with the aim to get legally binding targets. Also significant pro-
gress was made in the REDD+ (Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degrad-
ation including safeguards for local people), which is discussed later in this chapter. It was,
however, at COP18 in Doha in December 2012 that a second commitment period starting
on 1st January 2013 was agreed, to last eight years. This ensured that all Kyoto mechan-
isms and accounting rules remained intact for this period and parties have reviewed their
commitments with a view to increasing them, if possible, at the end of 2014. A guideline of
reduction of between 25 and 40 per cent of the 1990 baseline by 2020 has been recommen-
ded. The second major outcome was the adoption of a timetable for a binding climate
agreement, which is to be agreed at COP21 in Paris in 2015. This will cover both deve-
loped and developing countries, and will come into force by 2020. So the failure of COP15
in Copenhagen and the current lack of new internationally binding emission targets should
in the next few years be set straight again, barring any further political sabotage at the Paris
COP in 2015.
