4 Months after COP15 in Copenhagen and where are we now?

In my closing blog at the end of COP 15 in Copenhagen I mentioned the issue of the future.

During the third week of March (22 to 26) we got our first indication of the post COP 15 negotiation landscape and how the ‘Copenhagen Accord’ fits. Why – because the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) Marine Environmental Protection Committee (MEPC) met. We have also had the meeting of the UN High Level Advisory Group on Climate Change Financing – which, challenging enough for the maritime and aviation industry, is looking at (among others)a ‘levy’ on bunker fuel to raise money for adaptation. We will hear more about the preliminary outcome of their deliberations closer to the UNFCCC meeting in June

There have been many comments in relation to the IMO MEPC meeting already, including the IMO's website and this Carbon Positive article.
As well as a summary of the outcome.

But what insight did IMO MEPOC and last weekend’s UNFCCC Bonn negotiations provide us about future UNFCCC negotiations?

From my perspective the outcome of the IMO MEPC, which deals with all environmental issues, not just greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, provided mixed emotions:
• Pleasure at the clear leadership that was demonstrated by IMO.
• Pleasure at the fact that IMO unequivocally demonstrated that they can deal with the issues of climate change in relation to international maritime GHG emissions.
• Sadness at how hardline at times the positions between the various Member States became.
• Sadness that we have yet to find a formula of words that is less emotively charged but still fair in relation to the concepts embedded in ‘common but differentiated responsibilities’ (CBDR)

Last weekend’s meeting in Bonn set out to: ‘The first sessions of the AWG-KP and AWG-LCA in 2010 will focus on the organization of work of both working groups this year, including the need for additional meeting time, with a view to reaching a successful conclusion of their work at COP 16 /CMP 6 in Cancun.’

The negotiators agreed to an additional two negotiations sessions of at least a week each between the meeting scheduled for June and the meeting in Cancun.

The reports from the Bonn meeting indicate that the ‘poker playing’ is continuing and that if anything the road post-Copenhagen is now even rockier.

Charting the road from here takes me back to a few critical challenges:
• USA domestic developments – where will they go now the health care bill has been signed? – This is a critical contribution to a positive development in Cancun in December
• Financing – another of those stumbling blocks. With the world slowly coming out of the recession we might see some serious movement here?
• To extend Kyoto or not? This is the other big argument that has yet to begin to be bridged
• ‘Copenhagen Accord’ commitments and its link with the UNFCCC – the meeting in Bonn this weekend did not real provide any further clues except to indicate that it may be a negotiating chip or not?

So back to the ‘watch this space’

The Marine sector and COP 15 - what are the issues?

So what are the discussions on marine?
I am frequently asked about what are the issues in relation to ship emissions and why are they on the table. This blog is not the place for a detailed discussion but here are some hints on the background and data.

It is worth remembering that shipping is on the agenda but is fairly low down on the list of topics that will have to be agreed in Copenhagen. Following the debate is important for me as the negotiations on adaptation finance may veer off in one direction and the sector debate in another so shipping may find itself required to pay a tax to the adaptation fund as well as being in a sectoral agreement (so required to also hit specific emission reduction targets).

Clean across the globe

With COP 15 only a few days away, it was interesting to be in the host city shortly before the big event. With climate change posters in the airport, large advertising hoardings in the city centre and locals wondering how their seasonal shopping is going to be affected - there can be no doubt what's coming to Copenhagen before Christmas this year.

We were in Copenhagen holding a press briefing with technology innovator NanoNord A/S and Danish shipowners J.Lauritzen to talk about Lab-on-a-Ship™ (LOAS), an innovation in fuel management and measurement for the shipping industry. We brought two of the leading marine technical journalists, Craig Eason of Lloyd's List and Duncan Payne of Marine Propulsion and Machinery, to hear about the LOAS system - which has been on board two of Lauritzen's bulk carriers for the last year.