CARBON DIOXIDE Gate- crashed at Copenhagen “climate change summit”
December 18, 2009
Copenhagen: As expected the world leaders struggled to reach the climate deal despite some dramatic changes in the end. No doubt these leaders have left a big, fat carbon foot in the process of reaching the deal. The whole summit has emitted around 47000 tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere during its 12 day conference. Needless to say 90% is from flights. The rest comes from waste and electricity related to transport to and from the conference centre and lodging in and around the Danish city. Most of the leaders were flying either on commercial airlines or government-owned jets. Most are doing nothing to boost their green credentials and some saw no reason to treat their trip to the UN climate talks any differently. Those who traveled on commercial flights include Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejajjiva, Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann and Finnish President Tarja Halonen. US President Barack Obama traveled on Air Force One, French President Nicolas Sarkozy in his special Airbus and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on a presidential jet nicknamed ‘Aero Lula.’ A handful of Europeans made a point of taking the train, like the environment ministers of the Netherlands and Switzerland. Few environmentalists at the conference made an issue of the carbon footprints from more than 100 world leaders. And as they were worried, governments struggled to make progress on reaching a global climate pact. Norway’s Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg – who often gives green advice to Norwegians – was criticized at home, however, for deciding to take a private jet from Oslo to Copenhagen rather than one of the 17 shuttles that daily make the hour-long run between the two Scandinavian capitals.
Over all the Copenhagen climate talks has generated more carbon emissions than any previous climate conference, equivalent to the annual output of over half a million Ethiopians. Delegates, journalists, activists and observers from almost 200 countries had gathered at the December 7-18 summit and their travel and work has emitted around 47000 tons of carbon dioxide, most of it from their flights. This would fill nearly 10,000 Olympic swimming pools, and is the same amount produced each year by 2,300 Americans or 660,000 Ethiopians. What ever may the decisions of this summit but one thing is true: The conference has left an enormous carbon footprint, or you can say carbon dioxide gate crashed this summit when these global leaders were negotiating for carbon cut.
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