Global Climate Deal Within Reach

By Justine Frostad — 10/19/09
The UN Climate Summit is fast-approaching. But there seems to be problems. Global negotiations over greenhouse gas emissions have stalled but temperatures keep rising. Britain’s Energy Secretary Ed Miliband says securing a global climate deal at the December summit in Copenhagen will be challenging.
“The first thing to say is that we know it’s an uphill battle to get an agreement in December, but I feel after 24 hours of meetings that it’s more doable today than it was yesterday,” Miliband said.
The US Senate is reviewing a bill that proposes a 20% cut in national emissions in 11 years. The EU has committed to cutting 20% of its emissions by the same time. US officials say developing countries such as China account for about 80% of emissions and their commitment is key to a global deal.