Major Industrial Nations Criticized for Setting Weak Emissions Reductions Goals
November 5, 2009 Kyriaki (Sandy) Venetis 
Image courtesy of GreenRoofOffsets.co.uk.
As the world approaches the much anticipated Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen next month, European environmental leaders are expressing disappointment with countries such as the United States, Canada, Ukraine, and Russia.
“If industrialized countries are unwilling to do their bit, we can’t expect others to do theirs. We are calling upon developing countries to follow the European example in reducing emissions by pledging to cut them by 30 percent by 2020,” said Environmental Commissioner Stavros Dimas to the members of the European Parliament in an address earlier this week, discussing anticipated challenges in Copenhagen.
Mr. Dimas highlighted the following three major challenges that he expects will arise during the conference.
- How to lower emissions in industrialized economies.
- How to guarantee that developing countries accept ambitious goals for emissions reductions.
- Where to find the necessary funding to help developing countries meet the targets.