What now, after Copenhagen?

Remarks on “What now, after Copenhagen?” at Plenary Forum 3

 

Check against delivery.

The Minister’s address was based on the following points (and slides)

 

[Slide 1 introduction]

Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen,

 

• It is an honour to speak at this summit, and to have the opportunity to present Norway’s views on possible ways forward so soon after the Copenhagen meeting. I would like to welcome the proactive role of the host of this conference to these issues. 
• We have just heard the words of Nobel peace prize laureate and chair of the IPCC, Dr. Pachauri – and let me pay tribute to his tireless efforts to alert world leaders to the need for immediate action. 
• The award of the Nobel Peace Prize to the IPCC in 2007 highlighted the close link between climate change and peace and security. Global warming will affect everyone, all over the world. There is absolutely no time to lose if we are serious about limiting the global temperature rise to 2˚C. 
• As a representative of one energy-rich nation addressing an audience in another energy-rich nation, I would like to call on everyone here to recognise that energy will be at the core of our efforts to address climate change. 
• Norway’s position as a major oil and gas producer that is also fortunate enough to be self-sufficient in renewable hydropower makes it even more important for us to play an active part in fighting climate change.

 

[Slide 2: Kongsfjorden, Svalbard, 1920s and today]

 

• But Norway is not only a major exporter of energy. Stretching into the High North my country also offers a front row seat on climate change and its effects. Nowhere on the planet are these effects more visible than in the Arctic. 
• Snow and ice are important components of the Earth’s climate system. Melting will therefore have world-wide consequences.  
• Last year, former US Vice President Al Gore and I charged a group of leading scientists to take stock of this situation. Their report Melting Snow and Ice: A Call for Action was presented in Copenhagen in December last year, and I have some copies here.  
• The findings are dramatic. Ice is melting faster than we previously thought in the Arctic, Antarctic and in the Himalayas, or the “Third Pole”, as it is often called. 
• These changes are already having a serious impact on water supplies, sea level land the global climate system itself.

 

[Slide 3: Flooding in Bangladesh]

 

• But we are not helpless against this threat. 
• The key message is that we must restrict global warming to two degrees Celsius compared with the pre-industrial level. That is why it was so important to include a reference to this in the Copenhagen Accord. 
• To succeed, we must limit emissions – of greenhouse gases like CO2, but also of short-lived drivers of climate change such as methane, soot and ozone.

 

[Slide 4 Copenhagen COP15 logo]

 

• So what should we do now, after Copenhagen? Our hosts here today have asked a number of questions – and I hope I can provide at least some partial answers. 
• Norway, and many other states, worked towards an ambitious and comprehensive agreement at Copenhagen. Unfortunately, we fell short of that goal. 
• However, I believe that the conclusions we reached are a step forward, and that the Accord provides a framework for further negotiations on some core issues. 
• The complexity of the negotiation process taught us that we have to change our mindset. The increasing multipolarity of the world may have made international negotiations more democratic, but they have also become more intricate. 
• The question is: How do we adjust our approach? 
• The UN must remain the framework for international climate negotiations. But supplementary formats are needed to identify common interests, develop workable solutions and reach compromises. Such formats must be transparent. And they must contribute to the UN process. 
• We have to find ways of dealing with situations where a few countries do not agree with a wide consensus. 
• Legitimacy must be found somewhere between the extremes of veto power for all countries and simple majority. Remember this fact: the Kyoto Protocol would never have been adopted if a unanimous decision had been required. In the event, countries that were not in a position to join the consensus did not block the decision.

 

Ladies and gentlemen,

 

• We need a global agreement not only to prevent disaster, but also because we need to focus on new opportunities. Transition to a low-emission economy must be seen as an opportunity to spur innovation and development, create new jobs, build better houses, provide clean energy for the poor, protect the environment and safeguard biodiversity. 
• We must remember that it is possible to reduce emissions significantly while maintaining economic growth

 

[Slide 5: Mexico COP 16 logo]

 

• Important progress has been made, and we will work hard to establish ambitious goals in Mexico. 
• The pledges made so far by most developed countries are not nearly ambitious enough to reach our overriding goal. 
• Different countries must be able to take on different types of commitments, but these must all be measurable, reportable and verifiable.  
• Developed countries must shoulder their responsibility to take the lead and show real political will. This will generate stronger political will among developing countries.
• Developing countries, on their part, will have to keep their emissions 15–30% below the business-as-usual scenario. 
• It is particularly important that emerging economies make substantial emission cuts. Otherwise it will be even more difficult to reach the two-degree goal. 
• Under the Copenhagen Accord, developed countries must submit quantified economy-wide emission reduction targets for 2020 by the end of this month. Norway will certainly do this and thereby endorse the Accord.  
• The Copenhagen Accord also states that developing countries are to submit information on mitigation actions for which they seek international support by the same deadline, and to report on the implementation of these actions. Supported actions will be recorded and subject to measurement and verification. This is indeed an important step forward. 
• Financing for the action needed must be scaled up in order to combat global warming.  
• Norway has provided and will continue to provide its share of the funding needed for mitigation and adaptation.  
• We take the reference in the Copenhagen Accord to the new Copenhagen Green Climate Fund as an acknowledgement of the proposal by Norway and Mexico to establish a new Green Fund, which would be funded partly by budgetary contributions and partly through a more innovative solution – international auctioning of allowances – proposed by Norway. 
• As I have already said, developed countries must take the lead in order to encourage developing countries to reduce their emissions substantially below baseline levels.  
• But the action taken must not impede social and economic development. We must remember that one fifth of the world’s population lacks access to electricity, and the world’s energy production needs to increase by 40% over the next two decades. 
• The Norwegian Government has set tough national goals, which enjoy broad parliamentary support. 
• We will strengthen our Kyoto I commitment (2008-2012) by 10 percentage points. 
• We will reduce global greenhouse gas emissions by the equivalent of 30% of our 1990 emissions by 2020, or by 40 % if major emitting countries agree on emission reductions that are in line with the two-degree goal. 
• And we pledge to become carbon neutral by 2050. If a truly ambitious global climate agreement is reached, we will aim to achieve this by 2030. 
• How do we intend to achieve these goals? I will focus on four key policies:

 

[Slide 6: Norwegian offshore platform]

 

• First, Norway will continue to be a reliable energy producer and to contribute to energy security. Strict environmental regulations already mean that Norway’s offshore petroleum operations are about 60% less carbon intensive than the global average.

 

[Slide 7: Carbon capture and storage]

 

• Second, Norway is investing USD 1 billion in national carbon capture and storage (CCS) initiatives.

 

[Slide 8: Wind power]

 

• Third, Norway is investing heavily in renewable energy. Last year we provided approximately 140 million USD for renewable energy and energy efficiency projects in developing countries. 
• Norway is also supporting the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), which was established last year here in Abu Dhabi.

 

[Slide 9: Forests and deforestation]

 

• And fourth, the Norwegian Prime Minister pledged at Bali in 2007 to commit up to USD 500 million a year to reducing emissions from deforestation in developing countries. Emissions from tropical deforestation constitute about 17% of the global total.

 

[Slide 10: Conclusion – no time to lose]

 

• In announcing our goals and – more importantly – delivering on them, we hope that we are sending a strong political signal that we are shouldering our responsibility.  
• We urge all countries to show responsibility and sign up to the Copenhagen Accord. There is simply no time to lose.