Senator Penny Wong. Credit: penrithsustainabilityunit

By Rich Bowden

A compromise emissions-cutting plan for developing countries has been described as a “race to the bottom” by Greens Senator Bob Brown.

The proposal was delivered by Australia’s Climate Change Minister Penny Wong in New York ahead of a UN agenda-setting summit prior to key climate talks in Copenhagen in December. Senator Wong said the developed world could not insist on developing countries cutting back on their carbon emissions to the extent that they “stay poor,” reported The Australian.

The plan involves releasing developing countries such as China and India from internationally-applied binding targets on carbon emissions, replacing the structure with an individually set schedule submitted by each developing country.

Senator Wong’s proposal is aimed at adding some flexibility to the Copenhagen agenda amid fears that agreement on carbon emissions targets post Kyoto may elude global leaders.

“We simply won’t get the broad participation from major developing economies that the climate needs and that Australia, in terms of our national interest needs,” she was quoted as saying by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).

“So what we’ve put forward is a proposal that seeks to try and capture the different types of actions and commitments that developing countries could take in an effort to broaden the nature of the agreement.”

However the plan has been slammed by the Australian Greens who said it would mean failure in the fight to reduce global warming.

Greens leader Sen. Bob Brown. Credit mugley/flickr

Speaking to The Australian Greens leader Senator Bob Brown described it as a “race to the bottom.”

“It’s simply caving in and it’s a recipe for failure for the world to stop climate change,”’ he told The Australian Online.

“It’s helping developed countries soft pedal on their own targets,” he said. “Australia’s target of 5 per cent, there’s no one lower than that. They’re saying to the developing countries, you tell us how best you’re going to reduce your increase in emissions.”

However Australia’s bridge-building proposal has been warmly received by the U.S. with President Barack Obama’s special climate change envoy, Todd Stern calling it a “constructive proposal.”

Obtaining consensus with developing nations is seen as a key to successful talks in Copenhagen.

Tags: Australia, Climate, copenhagen, emissions, Senator Brown, Senator Wong, UN