On July 9, the US administration announced a government fund of around 3 billion USD to encourage US companies to increase investments in renewable energy. At nearly the same time, members of Greenpeace climbed onto the Black Hills, on which there are giant stone carvings of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln, in the Mount Rushmore National Memorial park in the US State of South Dakota. They hung a giant banner with US President Barack Obama's portrait on it, which read, "America honors leaders, not politicians: Stop global warming."

In the US' political environment, there is inevitably a gap between vehemently passionate campaign promises and decisions made in the face of reality. Examining US policy and propositions on the issue of global climate change, differences exist between its all-out efforts to safeguard its own interests, and the position taken by the rest of the world, particularly in numerous developing countries.

Leaders participating in the G8 summit agreed for the first time that the average global temperature should be limited to be 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrialization levels. However, they made no feasible plans for short-term action, nor provided any specific financial or technological assistance to help developing countries achieve this goal.

Meanwhile, it was noted that the G8 leaders intended to cut global greenhouse gases by at least 80 percent by 2050, but the statement did not indicate which year's levels will pose as a benchmark. During the G8 summit last year, the EU proposed to cut carbon emissions by 50 percent over 1990 levels. The US had hoped to use the levels for 2005, which saw higher carbon emissions. Greenhouse gases emitted by the US in 2005 were 17 percent higher than 1990. This year's statement also includes developing countries, deviating from the principle of "common but differentiated responsibility" widely recognized by the international community.

Obama said, with implicit meaning at the summit that, "there is no contradiction between environmentally sustainable growth and robust economic growth." But he dodged the issue raised by leaders of developing countries, including Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, of scientific evidence proving the earth's rising temperatures are largely caused by industrialization over the past century. Looking at climate change from a historical point of view, developed nations are the major culprits and should contribute more financial and technological resources to improving the environment. However, the content of the G8 statement suggests that rich nations are demanding their poor counterparts take responsibility for global warming.

By People's Daily Online