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Climate Concerns Heating Up
Cover Stories Series 2011
UPDATED: December 12, 2011 NO. 50 DECEMBER 15, 2011
Uncommon Ground
China supports the extension of the Kyoto Protocol and the Green Climate Fund
By YU YAN
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A GREEN FUTURE: Green youth ambassadors from Argentina and South Africa plant a tree together with local middle school students in Durban on November 30 (LI QIHUA)

China has said that financing is one of the pressing priorities for Durban. China welcomes the work of the Transitional Committee of the fund, and envisages the approval of its draft report by the COP, said Su.

The Durban conference should immediately take steps to make the Green Climate Fund operational. This should include its capitalization from public funding by developed countries with accountability to and under the guidance of the COP, he said.

"In Durban, the first phase of the design of the Green Climate Fund can be approved as a major step on the road toward better supported climate action," said Figueres in her opening speech.

Figueres emphasized the approval of the Green Climate Fund's governing instrument and contributing to a prompt start-up of the fund as a key task that needs translating into concrete action.

In addition to national contributions, international NGOs are also making good efforts to promote the fund.

For instance, Oxfam and the World Wildlife Fund, two major global NGOs concerned with climate change, asserted that applying a carbon price on shipping can both reduce emissions and raise funds for climate change adaptation and mitigation in developing countries.

They hold that international shipping is a major and rapidly growing source of greenhouse gas emissions. And on November 29, they joined forces with the International Chamber of Shipping, an organization that represents over 80 percent of the world merchant fleet, urging the UN Climate Change Conference in Durban to move forward on carbon pricing policies on shipping.

"We should apply a carbon price to shipping to reduce emissions. Part of the money collected will be used to compensate developing countries for the increase in transport costs. And the remaining revenue can be directed to the Green Climate Fund," said Tim Gore, Oxfam's International Policy Advisor on Climate Change.

According to their proposal, all of the money collected should go to developing countries. But the money will flow to developing countries in two ways. Around 40 percent of the revenues would automatically go back to developing countries to compensate them for their increase in transport costs. The vast majority of the remaining 60 percent will go to the Green Climate Fund.

"In total, $25 billion will be raised per year, of which $10 billion will go to the Green Climate Fund," said Gore.

The scheme will be implemented by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), the UN regulatory authority on shipping.

The IMO will design and implement the scheme. There are different options on the table for the technical design of the scheme. This is left to experts in the IMO to decide, said Gore.

"We want the money to be collected centrally and then pass it to the Green Climate Fund, so as to make sure the Green Climate Fund established at last year's UN Climate Conference in Cancun, Mexico, will have stable revenue," he said.

The World Bank also expressed support for the fund. "We hope that the Green Climate Fund will be created, because it is necessary that the funds flow. In the meantime, organizations like us need to channel the resources that we can get hold of into climate change issues," said Andrew Steer, World Bank Special Envoy for Climate Change.

"The climate investment funds, which are worth $6.5 billion and which we and the regional development banks manage, are very valuable. But we now need to scale up quite a bit. And that's really what the Green Climate Fund is all about," said Steer.

(Reporting from Durban, South Africa)

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