A convincingly positive atmosphere to reassure everyone that the UNFCCC talks will continue, despite the collapse in Copenhagen, was the dominant theme in Bonn. Substantive technical progress was made on both negotiation tracks. Kyoto Protocol parties are mapping emission reduction targets for developed countries (link to KP conclusions from this session). Within the broader UN Framework Convention Long-Term Cooperation (LCA) track, which includes all parties to the Convention on Climate Change, progress was made in areas such as governance of finance.??Parties have largely adopted a stepwise approach toward Cancun, an approach that has also been promoted by the EU and the UNFCCC. Some of the bigger political issues such as legal architecture of future treat(y)ies and the scale of emissions reductions and finance were not touched upon in Bonn.
A major cause for concern among NGOs at this session was over the Land-Use, Land-Use-Change and Forestry (LULUCF) accounting rules for developed countries. The chair of the Kyoto Protocol (KP) negotiation track is, rightly so, trying to quickly conclude the development of accounting rules. However, under the current proposals developed countries would be able to hide up to 5% of their 1990 emissions, a loophole as big as the aggregate Kyoto Protocol reduction target. Because of a few forestry-heavy Member States, the EU is internally split on this issue and therefore cannot push for environmentally sound accounting rules. There is great concern that in order to be able to finalise the negotiations on the KP negotiating track, developing countries will allow rich countries to cheat their way out of accounting for real emissions.
CAN-Europe will continue its work over the summer to convince as many Member States as possible that the rules being negotiated should result in an absolute reduction in net emissions and that carbon reservoirs (forests etc.) in natural ecosystems should be protected.
Near the end of the session, the chair of the LCA -negotiation track released a new “non-paper” - i.e., a draft of the negotiating text that is not formally submitted as part of the process. The latest draft “non-paper” received plenty of criticism from developing countries on the last day of this negotiating session. The chair will continue informal negotiations with the Parties with a view to releasing a new “non-paper” in mid-July. She is expected to then convert it into a formal draft negotiating text before the next session (2-6 August in Bonn).
The June Bonn session will also be remembered as the last one of departing UNFCCC Executive Secretary Yvo de Boer who, after almost four years of difficult and sometimes thankless work, will be replaced next month by Costa Rican Christiana Figueres. CAN wishes Ms Figueres the best in her new post and looks forward to working with her in the months and years to come.
A convincingly positive atmosphere to reassure everyone that the UNFCCC talks will continue, despite the collapse in Copenhagen, was the dominant theme in Bonn. Substantive technical progress was made on both negotiation tracks. Kyoto Protocol parties are mapping emission reduction targets for developed countries (link to KP conclusions from this session). Within the broader UN Framework Convention Long-Term Cooperation (LCA) track, which includes all parties to the Convention on Climate Change, progress was made in areas such as governance of finance.
Parties have largely adopted a stepwise approach toward Cancun, an approach that has also been promoted by the EU and the UNFCCC. Some of the bigger political issues such as legal architecture of future treat(y)ies and the scale of emissions reductions and finance were not touched upon in Bonn.
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Washington D.C. , 16 June 2010
