Or so says the BBC. Predictably enough though there are no hard targets: as far as I can tell all that is promised is a statement promising to strongly consider at least a halving of global emissions by 2050. But I don’t want to be too snarky until I’ve read what was actually said and agreed, rather than just the press take on it all.
There is a page for the summit and a news page and even a story entitled Breakthrough on climate protection which says
The leading industrialised nations (G8) aim to at least halve global CO2 emissions by 2050. The Heads of State and Government agreed at Heiligendamm to achieve this goal together as part of a UN process. The big emerging economies are also to be incorporated in the process.
But what exactly have they signed up to, and what did Bush actually say? Does anyone know? I can find the summit documents but can’t see anything there.
[Update: Grist covers this but doesn't appear to even notice that they are only reading the press releases. Via another Grist story I get pointed to this as the relevant text, which I'd already read, without spotting what was there. But looking more attentively:
Fighting Climate Change
48. We take note of and are concerned about the recent UN Intergovernmental Panel
on Climate Change (IPCC) reports. The most recent report concluded both, that global
temperatures are rising, that this is caused largely by human activities and, in addition,
that for increases in global average temperature, there are projected to be major
changes in ecosystem structure and function with predominantly negative consequences
for biodiversity and ecosystems, e.g. water and food supply.
49. We are therefore committed to taking strong and early action to tackle climate
change in order to stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations at a level that would prevent
dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system. Taking into account the
scientific knowledge as represented in the recent IPCC reports, global greenhouse gas
emissions must stop rising, followed by substantial global emission reductions. In setting
a global goal for emissions reductions in the process we have agreed today involving
all major emitters, we will consider seriously the decisions made by the European
Union, Canada and Japan which include at least a halving of global emissions by 2050.
We commit to achieving these goals and invite the major emerging economies to join us
in this endeavour.
52. We acknowledge that the UN climate process is the appropriate forum for negotiating
future global action on climate change. We are committed to moving forward in that
forum and call on all parties to actively and constructively participate in the UN Climate
Change Conference in Indonesia in December 2007 with a view to achieving a comprehensive
post 2012-agreement (post Kyoto-agreement) that should include all major
emitters.
And so on. Fine words, except for the lack of commitment. Does para 48 mean that Bush now accepts GW is anthro, I wonder? -W]