At the G8 Summit held in the Italian city of L'aquila in July, developed countries promised to cut greenhouse gas emission by 80 percent on the basis of 1990 levels by 2050. It is widely deemed as a crucial step by the G8 Summit and considered largely as a result of the adjustment of US climate policy since Obama took office early this year.

The developing nations hoped the leaders of developed countries would have brought sincerity in terms of capital and technology transfer to this year's G8 Summit. However, the emerging economies found it hard to accept the notion that the industrialized nations attempted to force them to make specific targets on emission cuts. The key elements of the issue lie in how to put this long-term project into reality, how to make it a compulsory policy in countries around the world; and how to set up an achievable mid-term target.

Developed countries should take up major responsibility in emission cuts and take the lead in reducing the amount of heat-trapping gases. The obscure attitude of the G8 declaration on the benchmark year of greenhouse gas reduction and the loss of mid-term target for 2020 proved that developed nations were not willing to take the first step in carbon dioxide reduction. They urged emerging economies to reduce more, which was unfair.

So far 75 percent of the green house gas emission comes from developed countries. In terms of per capita emission, developing countries account merely 24 percent of the developed countries' level. The population of G8 bloc takes up 13 percent of global population, but half of the heat-trapping gases come from these countries. In the past 20 years, the gap of greenhouse gases emission between the developed countries and developing nations has been widening instead of narrowing.

Industrialized nations should be held responsible for global climate change caused by the emission of carbon dioxide. Moreover, developing countries become victims of global warming. According to United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), developed nations are obliged to take major responsibilities in greenhouse gases reduction.

Apart from that, the implementation of capital support and technology transfer also needs early attention. UNFCCC says industrialized nations have a duty to provide emerging economies with capital and technology support. However, negotiations on international climate change have achieved little progress on this issue over the past years.

Developing countries have called for a public fund system to strengthen the leading role of government. However, developed countries insist on larger dependence on the investment in international carbon market and private sectors. The G8 declaration this year stresses the importance of the research and development of low-carbon technology and fund raising for climate change. A series of issues such as international climate negotiations and capital support will play a substantial role in solving all these issues.

As a matter of fact, many developing countries have made considerable progress in greenhouse gases reduction. For instance, China initiated the National Leading Committee on Climate Change, established a climate change team with Primer Wen as leader and set the target of reducing energy consumption per unit of GDP by 20 percent during the Eleventh Five-Year period (2006 – 2010). From 2006 to 2008, the energy consumption per unit of GDP reduced by 1.79 percent, 4.04 percent and 4.59 percent respectively. India also took a series of measures to improve energy efficiency and climate change strategy. Brazil implemented a national program on climate change on September 2008, which highlighted the role of renewable and clean energy, and a national campaign to recall refrigerators as to reduce greenhouse gases emission.

By People's Daily Online