SLOVENIAN NGOs ENGAGE ON CLIMATE AND DEVELOPMENT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 LJUBLJANA 000108 SIPDIS DEPT FOR EUR/NCE TYEAGER EUR/ERA FOR MBEH EUR/OES SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECON SENV ENRG BEXP PREL SI SUBJECT: SLOVENIAN NGOs ENGAGE ON CLIMATE AND DEVELOPMENT SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (SBU) On February 27, two local non-governmental organizations (NGOs) organized a roundtable entitled "Climate and Development" to bring attention to the growing concerns in Slovenia regarding climate change. The roundtable attracted senior-level politicians and experts from the field of climate change as panelists, including Environment Minister Janez Podobnik, who made a pitch for stronger intellectual property rights (IPR) protection in developing countries to protect the innovation necessary to address climate change. The panelists all concurred that the global situation is alarming and that advances in clean technology are essential to sustainable development. While all panelists lauded U.S. efforts at the recent UN Bali meeting and U.S. organization of the Major Economies Meeting (MEM),Slovenia's national coordinator for climate change, Andrej Kranjc, commented that the U.S. insistence on accountability from China and India was not a realistic expectation. End Summary. NGO Brings Stakeholders Together -------------- ¶2. (SBU) The round table, explained NGO Focus President Lydia Zivcic, was funded by the [EU] Presidency Fund and European Commission as part of an EU-wide series of projects addressing climate change and sustainable development called "Safeguarding Climate While Developing? Yes, it's Possible." The roundtable, organized by Focus and Sloga, brought together senior officials from the Ministries of Environment, Foreign Affairs, European Affairs; climate specialists; NGOs; and the business community to discuss the impact of climate change globally and domestically. Among the eleven speakers were Minister Podobnik, Slovenia's representative to the MEM Andrej Kranjc, and member of the Nobel Prize-winning Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Professor Luca Kajfez Bogataj. New Energy Technology is theKey -------------- ¶3. (SBU)In his remarks, Minister Podobnik praised the prodctive dialogue that has taken place amongst govenments but also cautioned that serious barriers xist to achieving sustainable development. Podobnk commended the U.S. for its active participation uring the UN Bali meeting on climate change and lso for initiating the January Major Economies Meeting (MEM). Although Podobnik said he believed that clean energy will help the developed world reduce its carbon footprint, he warned that weak intellectual property rights protection (IPR) in some developing countries could slow down beneficial technology transfers to countries who need them the most. He cited China as a country with a very "creative" interpretation of IPR, making fair and effective implementation and installation of clean technologies very difficult. However, Podobnik stated that limiting the climate change effects is crucial to global sustainable development and that the EU plays an important role as the most firmly committed of all the players to achieving positive goals. Clean and Sustainable? -------------- ¶4. (SBU) Several panelists emphasized the interconnected consequences to pursuing clean energy. Marko Hren from the Government's Office for Development expressed his concern that agriculture has embraced biofuels to the detriment of arable land and food crops. He informed the participants that the EU will adjust its target of 10 percent of energy consumption from biofuels to include only those biofuels made according to "sustainable principles." As another mechanism for raising awareness among the general public, Hren mentioned that in the EU there is a proposal for "eco labeling," which will mandate labeling the amount of greenhouse gases produced per gram of product. Hren ended by saying that the EU is working on establishing appropriate standards that will enable financial incentives and tax breaks for reducing carbon emissions. ¶5. (SBU) Ales Verdir, from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, highlighted the necessity for global cooperation to address some of the political consequences to climate change. Verdir explained that, for the first time, the number of environmental migrants (e.g. from droughts, floods) exceeded the number of war migrants. Slovenia Faces Challenges to Clean Energy Goals -------------- -- ¶6. (SBU) On the home front, Slovenia is below the average carbon footprint per capita, but some experts are concerned that Slovenia will have difficulty reaching the new EU targets as outlined in the Climate and Renewable Energy package (CARE). Verdir said that LJUBLJANA 00000108 002 OF 002 although Slovenia's 10 ton per person per year carbon footprint is below the developed nations' average, Slovenia has limited natural and technological resources to reduce its emissions. Dimitrij Grcar, from the Ministry of Economy, expressed concern that Slovenia also lacks a centralized agency or fund dealing with climate change issues. Currently, he noted, each ministry has a working group or a person assigned to climate change-related issues, which makes it difficult for the GOS to respond cohesively and strongly to climate change. Border Barriers to Nuclear Energy -------------- ¶7. (SBU) Vekoslav Korosec, from the Slovene Chamber of Commerce, stated that nuclear energy is a good option for Slovenia, but only in the long term. He said construction of the second part of the nuclear power plant in Krsko will not be possible until 2020 because of the complicated technical procedures. However, other panelists disagreed that nuclear energy is a viable option. They pointed out that the construction of a nuclear plant is only possible with the consent of all neighbors. Korosec explained that Austrians strongly oppose Slovenia's expansion plan for the existing nuclear plant, and plan to hold Slovenia to its pledge from 1991 not to build another nuclear plant. (Comment. Slovenia currently has one nuclear power plant, built in the municipality of Krsko in 1981. When Slovenia was seeking recognition of its sovereignty in 1991, Austria extracted a promise that if Austria recognized Slovenia, Slovenia would not build another nuclear plant. In meetings with emboffs, the GOS has often discussed the need to expand nuclear energy as a clean energy solution but had not mentioned the agreement with Austria as a barrier. Ironically, Austria purchases energy generated from Slovenia's nuclear plant. End comment.) Slovenia Looks to New Technology -------------- ¶8. (SBU) In finding solutions for reaching Slovenia's goal of reducing its greenhouse gas emissions, Korosec expounded on the necessity of new technologies. Without them, he declared, success is impossible. He said Slovenia needs technologies that will enable more efficient use of energy and new sources of energy. According to Korosec, Slovenia already imports 20 percent of its energy and increasing imports would not be considered strategically wise. He warned that, if the situation in Slovenia does not drastically change, power reductions like those experienced in the late 60s and 70s might become a reality again. Comment -------------- ¶9. (SBU) Slovenia is at a crossroads where it needs to fuel economic growth while achieving climate policy goals. Due to limited natural resources and stringent restrictions because of concerns about environmental impacts, Slovenia's hydropower, which produces 30 percent of its energy, has no capacity to grow. Another difficulty for Slovenia is that the GOS is subsidizing energy-guzzling industries because they provide jobs in economically depressed areas of Slovenia. Two large industrial users, the aluminum factory Talum and the nitrogen factory Tovarna Dusika Ruse, consume 20 percent of the nation's energy while contributing significantly less than 20 percent to the gross domestic product (GDP). Hopefully, looking at the commercial impact of climate issues will not only spur Slovenia to seek new energy technologies, but also compel it to move faster to adopt economic reforms that will increase foreign investment in Slovenia and attract high-value business. COLEMAN