Technology, not emission caps, cure to global warming: US official
Date: Monday, May 14, 2007 @ 23:56:54 UTC
Topic: Legal
Privately-funded technology will do more to curb dangerous global
warming than the mandated capping of carbon emissions favored by the
European Union, a senior US official said Monday.
"It is the president's
view: technology is the solution," said US Secretary of Energy Samuel
Bodman while attending a meeting of the International Energy Agency in
Paris, referring to George W. Bush.
Bodman rejected the approach already adopted by European nations of
sharply curbing the emissions of greenhouse gases that drive global
warming, setting up a potential clash at next month's Group of Eight
summit hosted by Germany in the town of Heiligendamm on June 6-8.
German Chancellor Angela
Merkel, backed by Tony Blair of Britain, are pushing for a strong
commitment at the summit from the world's most industrialized nations
on curbing greenhouse gases.
The United States has reportedly objected to provisions in a draft
summit statement pledging to ensure that average global temperatures do
not rise by more than 2 C (3.2 F), and to cut carbon dioxide pollution
by 50 percent before 2050, with 1990 the baseline in both cases.
Bodman said the most promising technology for mitigating global
warming was carbon sequestration, the storing of industrial carbon
emissions in chambers deep under ground, followed by the expansion of
nuclear and then solar power.
The other G-8 members are Russia, Canada, Japan, Italy and France,
where newly elected President Nicolas Sarkozy singled out global
warming in his acceptance speech last week as a top international
priority.
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Full story: http://www.physorg.com/news98371563.html
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