NORWAY ASSOCIATES WITH COPENHAGEN ACCORD, ANNOUNCES 30 - 40%

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 OSLO 000064

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TAGS: SENV KTIA ENRG NO
SUBJECT: NORWAY ASSOCIATES WITH COPENHAGEN ACCORD, ANNOUNCES 30 - 40%
EMISSION TARGET

REF: Oslo 00030


1. (SBU) Summary: The GoN announced its support for the Copenhagen
Accord and presented a 30-40 percent emissions reduction target by
2020, based on 1990 levels. Minister for Environment and
Development Erik Solheim will travel to Washington D.C. February

11. End Summary




2. (U) On January 25, the Ministry of Environment formally
announced the GoN's support of the Copenhagen Accord, confirmed by
a letter to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
Minister of Environment and Development Eric Solheim said that "the
Norwegian Government will do its best to build upon this agreement
to achieve an ambitious result at the climate change conference in
Mexico this year."




3. (U) The GoN announced its emission target Friday, January 29,
requiring a 30-40 percent cut in emissions by 2020, based on 1990
levels. The GoN had previously pledged to the 30 percent target,
but appears willing to shift to 40 percent if part of a
comprehensive and legally binding 2012 agreement involving all
major emitters.




4. (SBU) Media coverage of Norway's association with the Copenhagen
Accord has generally been positive, and the emission target numbers
were expected. Norwegian NGO Nature and Youth criticized the
incentive mechanism in the flexible 30-40 percent target, noting
that leading the way with a commitment to 40 percent would have
been more effective than conditioning the final number on the
participation of other nations. Commentators have also pointed to
the lack of a clear roadmap for how these ambitious targets would
be met in a relatively short time. In a widely sourced statement,
researchers at the Dutch climate group EcoFys said that all
industrial nations, bar Norway and Japan, have not submitted
sufficiently high targets.




5. (SBU) Minister of Environment and Development Erik Solheim and
Acting Chief Negotiator Audun Rosland plan to stop in Washington
D.C. on February 11 en route to Mexico. Rosland told PolOff
February 1 that Solheim would like to meet with U.S. Climate Envoy
Todd Stern and Deputy Climate Envoy Jonathan Pershing while in D.C.





6. (U) Begin text of Norway's submission to UNFCCC:



UNFCCC Secretariat

P.O. Box 260124

D-53153 Bonn

Germany

201000101



The Copenhagen Accord - Norway`s emissions targets



Norway officially announced its willingness to be associated with
the Copenhagen Accord in my letter to the UNFCCC Secretariat dated

25. January 2010.



I hereby submit information on Norway's quantified economy-wide
emissions targets for 2020 for inclusion in Annex I pursuant to
paragraph 4 of the Copenhagen Accord.



The targets are put forward under the understanding that the
Copenhagen Accord is not a legally binding document, but

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constitutes a political platform giving direction for further
negotiations. Norway will do its utmost to achieve a legally
binding agreement for emission reduction commitments beyond 2012
including all major emitters. As part of a global and comprehensive
agreement for the period beyond 2012 where major emitting Parties
agree on emission reductions in line with the 2 degrees Celsius
target, Norway will move to a level of 40 per cent reduction for
2020 based on 1990 levels.



The Norwegian pledge on emissions targets was presented in October
2009 at the meetings of the ad hoc working groups in Bangkok, when
Norway officially announced its preparedness to increase the
initial pledge of 30 per cent to 40 per cent, provided that major
emitting Parties agree on adequate emission reductions in line with
the 2 degrees Celsius target. Further information related to
Norway`s limitation and reduction objectives has been made
available to Parties through the AWG-KP document "Compilation of
information relating to possible quantified emission limitation and
reduction objectives as submitted by Parties", informal note by the
secretariat 8. December 2009.



An important feature of Norwegian climate change policy is the
flexible and cost effective Kyoto Protocol approach. The
continuation of the Kyoto Protocol or its basic elements, in
particular the availability of flexible mechanisms for compliance
with emission reduction commitments, as part of a future framework,
is therefore an underlying premise for Norway`s emissions targets.
Norway underlines the importance of pursuing various approaches,
including opportunities to use markets, as stated in paragraph 7 of
the Copenhagen Accord.



On this background, and pursuant to paragraph 4 of the Copenhagen
Accord, Norway submits the following information in the format
given in Appendix I of the Copenhagen Accord for compilation in an
INF document:



Annex I Parties

Quantified economy-wide emissions targets for 2020

Emissions reduction in 2020: -30 to - 40 % *

Base year: 1990



* As part of a global and comprehensive agreement for the period
beyond 2012 where major emitting Parties agree on emission
reductions in line with the 2 degrees Celsius target, Norway will
move to a level of 40 % reduction for 2020.

I reconfirm Norway`s commitment to a negotiating process that
should lead to an agreement that aims to reduce global emissions in
order to keep the increase in global average temperature below 2
degrees Celsius compared to pre-industrial levels, as recognized by
the Copenhagen Accord and based on the findings of the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.



Yours sincerely,

Erik Solheim



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