Five Out of Six Key Players At Kyoto Summit Score Thumbs Down on Combatting Climate Change

Monday, December 1st, 1997

Kyoto, Japan--Five of the six key players earned failing marks on their willingness to tackle global warming as world governments gather in Kyoto to hammer out an agreement to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. WWF, the world's largest conservation organization, unveiled its International Climate Change Scorecard, Monday, evaluating Australia, Canada, the European Union, Japan, Russia and the USA, for emission reductions, and their positions on two loopholes which could torpedo an affective agreement.

WWF gave a resounding "thumbs down" to the USA, Canada, and Australia for their lack of action to combat climate change. Australia, Canada, Russia and the United States received failing scores under nearly all of the five WWF Climate Change Scorecard categories.

"The USA is one of the most serious offenders. The United States hasn't budged from the lowest ranking since we began grading nations 11 months ago,"said Lars Georg Jensen, Policy Co-ordinator for WWF's Climate Change Campaign. "But even as final negotiations get under way, it's not too late for the USA to come up with a more responsible position. There's nothing stopping Vice President Al Gore from bringing to Kyoto a cost-effective package for cutting CO2 emissions."

According to the WWF scorecard, the European Union received high marks for its fulfilment of Rio commitments, its proposed greenhouse gas reductions for industrialized countries, and its tough position against trading fictitious emissions--a major loophole in the proposed agreement.

Japan earned good grades for opposing another loophole--the net approach--which refers to using the carbon dioxide absorbed by forests to offset fossil fuel emissions, and for its relatively high energy efficiency nation-wide. However, it earned failing marks along with Australia, Canada and the US for not fulfilling Rio commitments, and for its latest inadequate proposals for cutting emissions in the next century. In Rio, industrialized countries agreed to bring their greenhouse gas emissions back to 1990 levels by the year 2000.

"Scientific studies show climate change is already hurting wildlife, human health and economies around the globe,"said Lars Georg Jensen. "At a glance this scorecard shows just how little most nations have done to slow climate change--and how much further they have to go."

WWF is calling on industrialized nations to combat climate change by cutting carbon dioxide emissions by 20 per cent below 1990 levels by 2005. WWF leads international efforts to protect the diversity of life on Earth. The WWF Climate Change Campaign is working around the world to raise awareness of the threats of climate change to wildlife and natural ecosystems, urge governments to take action to prevent climate change, and build partnerships with business and industry to find solutions to the problem.

RADIO:
Starting Monday, December 1, A RADIO NEWS RELEASE (radio report) and recorded soundbites (quotes) of WWF spokespersons are available 24 hours a day -- in English, French, Spanish, German, Japanese, and Dutch -- to all radio news stations by telephoning (to the US) +1 301 570 1254 and via the Internet at www.panda.org/climate.

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