Australia Urges Voluntary Emissions Goals, Highlights "Energy Intensity" - Houston Chronicle

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SYDNEY, Australia — Australia's leader urged his Pacific Rim counterparts on Sunday to forge a new agreement on climate change — one that would reject binding targets for greenhouse gas emissions in favor of voluntary goals. Prime Minister John Howard said a new international agreement to succeed the Kyoto Protocol must appeal to all nations — including developing countries such as China and India, who are currently not bound by the U.N.-backed pact's reduction targets.

Australia and the United States are the only two industrialized countries not to ratify Kyoto, arguing that binding emission targets could harm economic growth and leave them at a competitive disadvantage to developing countries not held to the pact's targets. "We need a new flexible framework that includes a long-term global goal and encourages a wide range of national actions by all," Howard said at a news conference.

Howard has made climate change a special topic for discussion among leaders of the 21-member Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, who will hold their annual summit here on Sept. 8-9. "What I would like to see the APEC meeting in Sydney do is develop a consensus on the post-Kyoto international framework that attracts participation by all emitters," he said.

Leaders including President Bush, Chinese President Hu Jintao and Russian President Vladimir Putin, are expected to sign off on a statement on climate change during their summit. But Howard said it was "very unlikely" the leaders would agree on emission targets.

EDIT

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/world/5102444.html

Whew! You had me worried there for a minute! Thought something binding might emerge from the gabfest!

[Hand]

1. Look--an Australian Poodle! nt

[phantom power]

2. We already have "voluntary" emissions goals.

Every nation, corporation and individual is free to emit as little CO2 as they choose. What transparent wankery. I'd call it Orwellian, but Big Brother would be insulted. At least Oceana, Eurasia and Eastasia had goals.