Scientists urge G8+5 leaders to speed up low-carbon tech

Jun 11, 2009 - Asia Paulse Data Source

Tokyo - Warning that climate change was taking place "faster than previously estimated," a group of scientists from developed and developing countries, including India, have appealed to world leaders to accelerate the development and introduction of low carbon technologies to tackle global warming.

Scientists from the G-8 nations and five other states -- Brazil, India, China, South Africa and Mexico -- who met here ahead of the July 8-10 summit of the G-8 in L'Aquila, Italy, issued a statement, emphasising the urgency of adoption of "green technologies." The statement warns that "climate change is happening even faster than previously estimated" and "the need for urgent action to address climate change is now indisputable." Against this backdrop, the statement called on the governments to "collaborate in the implementation of low carbon and climate resilient infrastructure and technologies ... Through the use of economic and regulatory instruments, to accelerate adoption of clear 'green' technologies." It also emphasised the need for a rapidly increased adoption of renewable energy technologies such as wind, geothermal, solar energy, biofuels and wave power.

"The development of standards and certification for the environmentally sustainable implementation of these technologies is essential," Kyodo news agency quoted the statement as saying.

Ichiro Kanazawa, president of the Science Council of Japan, presented a joint statement from science academies to Prime Minister Taro Aso.

The statement was issued by science academies of the G-8 countries -- Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the United States -- and five develping nations.

This was the fifth such appeal to the G-8 summit by the academies since 2005.

Interestingly, the statement was issued a day after Aso announced that Japan will try to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 15 per cent from 2005 levels as its post-Kyoto Protocol midterm target for 2020.