Optimism in New York on climate action
Updated
An air of optimism is emanating from New York on the prospects for a new global agreement on climate change action. But the political momentum of the meeting of more than a hundred world leaders at the U-N must now be translated into progress in the virtually stalled technical talks. And a vital area of concern for the developing world, particularly small island states, is who will pay - and how - for their adaptation to a global problem not of their making.
Presenter: Canberra correspondent Linda Mottram
Speakers: Bob McMullan, Australia's Parliamentary Secretary for International Development Assistance; Kelly Dent, climate change spokesperson for Oxfam Australia; Japan's Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama
MOTTRAM: The cost of adapting to the effects of climate change for small and low lying states will be considerable. There's the impact of increased severe weather events, there's inundation, there are implications for agriculture and there's the need for new low-carbon technologies to mitigate climate change. But just as important, experts say, is the risk that climate change effects will unravel development progress to date. Not only could such ambitions as the Millennium Development Goals be jeopardised, but so could relations between the developed and developing world. There's recognition in the Copenhagen climate change negotiations that all this means money and an effective financing mechanism will be needed to fund climate change adaptation in developing countries.
Australia's Parliamentary secretary for overseas development is Bob McMullan.
McMULLAN: We recognise that there's got to be substantial public financing if we're going to reach areas where private financing and carbon markets won't reach.
MOTTRAM: But there is intense debate about how that financing should be arranged. Several ideas have been advanced. Mexico has suggested a pledge fund, but the flaw is that nations are notorious for not delivering on pledges. Britain has suggested a mix of public and private funding. The Dutch say it should be 100 per cent public funding, while Norway put forward the idea of a broadbased fund from the developed world but with predictable sources of income from such mechanisms as a levy on shipping or aviation and income from selling, rather than giving away, U-N carbon units. In all of this though, aid groups have another key concern -- that existing aid funding may be diverted to climate change adaptation. Kelly Dent is from the aid agency, Oxfam Australia.
DENT: And we're concerned that some of these other development gains, like getting children in school, like HIV Aids medications, a whole range of other development gains that have been made are likely to be wound back if we don't continue to put the necessary money into them at the same time as to support developing countries to adapt to climate change.
MOTTRAM: This week's summit of Small Island States in New York called for adaptation funding to be on top of existing aid. In Australia's case, some adaptation projects are already funded out of existing aid in line with government election commitments. But beyond those existing commitments, what will Australia's position be on where future contributions to adaptation financing should come from? Bob McMullan says Australia is very sympathetic to the views of the small island states, though the issues are a matter for complex international negotiation.
McMULLAN: We know that all the solutions involve some proposition that developed countries have to find extra resources to assist particularly the adaptation of developing countries who are suffering serious consequences of climate change without having in any serious way contributed at all to the problem but they're paying a high price. So that's clearly inequitable and something has to be done about it.
MOTTRAM: There are some existing mechanisms that offer possible models for the type of fund, once the source of funding is determined. Oxfam's Kelly Dent says the idea of a global fund under the auspices of the United Nations, that's fair and transparent and with a role for developing countries must be the starting point.
DENT: Some examples would be the example of the global fund for HIV Aids, Malaria and Tuberculosis, which was set up quite quickly, attracted quite a large amount of money and had some good governance structures. And also there is a small adaptation fund that's currently been set up under the UNFCCC system which has some pretty good global governance structures in place. Now its probably unlikely that particular fund could absorb the type of scale of funding that is needed but certainly something along those lines.
MOTTRAM: In New York, Japan's Democratic Party Prime Minister of just a week, Yukio Hatoyama, spoke of Japan's financial, corporate and social capacity to do its part, and made a particular commitment to advancing the issue of meeting the needs of developing countries.
HATOYAMA: Public financial assistance and technology transfer to developing countries are critically important. However they alone will not meet the financial needs of developing countries. I therefore intend to work with world leaders on creating a mechanism that not only ensures the effective use of public funds but also facilitates the flow of private investments.
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MOTTRAM: The cost of adapting to the effects of climate change for small and low lying states will be considerable. There's the impact of increased severe weather events, there's inundation, there are implications for agriculture and there's the need for new low-carbon technologies to mitigate climate change. But just as important, experts say, is the risk that climate change effects will unravel development progress to date. Not only could such ambitions as the Millennium Development Goals be jeopardised, but so could relations between the developed and developing world. There's recognition in the Copenhagen climate change negotiations that all this means money and an effective financing mechanism will be needed to fund climate change adaptation in developing countries.
Australia's Parliamentary secretary for overseas development is Bob McMullan.
McMULLAN: We recognise that there's got to be substantial public financing if we're going to reach areas where private financing and carbon markets won't reach.
MOTTRAM: But there is intense debate about how that financing should be arranged. Several ideas have been advanced. Mexico has suggested a pledge fund, but the flaw is that nations are notorious for not delivering on pledges. Britain has suggested a mix of public and private funding. The Dutch say it should be 100 per cent public funding, while Norway put forward the idea of a broadbased fund from the developed world but with predictable sources of income from such mechanisms as a levy on shipping or aviation and income from selling, rather than giving away, U-N carbon units. In all of this though, aid groups have another key concern -- that existing aid funding may be diverted to climate change adaptation. Kelly Dent is from the aid agency, Oxfam Australia.
DENT: And we're concerned that some of these other development gains, like getting children in school, like HIV Aids medications, a whole range of other development gains that have been made are likely to be wound back if we don't continue to put the necessary money into them at the same time as to support developing countries to adapt to climate change.
MOTTRAM: This week's summit of Small Island States in New York called for adaptation funding to be on top of existing aid. In Australia's case, some adaptation projects are already funded out of existing aid in line with government election commitments. But beyond those existing commitments, what will Australia's position be on where future contributions to adaptation financing should come from? Bob McMullan says Australia is very sympathetic to the views of the small island states, though the issues are a matter for complex international negotiation.
McMULLAN: We know that all the solutions involve some proposition that developed countries have to find extra resources to assist particularly the adaptation of developing countries who are suffering serious consequences of climate change without having in any serious way contributed at all to the problem but they're paying a high price. So that's clearly inequitable and something has to be done about it.
MOTTRAM: There are some existing mechanisms that offer possible models for the type of fund, once the source of funding is determined. Oxfam's Kelly Dent says the idea of a global fund under the auspices of the United Nations, that's fair and transparent and with a role for developing countries must be the starting point.
DENT: Some examples would be the example of the global fund for HIV Aids, Malaria and Tuberculosis, which was set up quite quickly, attracted quite a large amount of money and had some good governance structures. And also there is a small adaptation fund that's currently been set up under the UNFCCC system which has some pretty good global governance structures in place. Now its probably unlikely that particular fund could absorb the type of scale of funding that is needed but certainly something along those lines.
MOTTRAM: In New York, Japan's Democratic Party Prime Minister of just a week, Yukio Hatoyama, spoke of Japan's financial, corporate and social capacity to do its part, and made a particular commitment to advancing the issue of meeting the needs of developing countries.
HATOYAMA: Public financial assistance and technology transfer to developing countries are critically important. However they alone will not meet the financial needs of developing countries. I therefore intend to work with world leaders on creating a mechanism that not only ensures the effective use of public funds but also facilitates the flow of private investments.
