The heat is on as Lima climate talks reach final round

LIMA: Countdown to reach outcome of Lima climate talks began on Friday with the final draft text, comprising all contentious elements, being on table before negotiators to prepare a roadmap for the global climate-protection deal in Paris next year.
The draft text, released on late Thursday night, carried all the points in one or the other forms which have been pushed by developed and developing countries separately in the past 11 days of the 20th edition of the Conference of Parties (COP 20) here in Peruvian capital.
It includes various options on mitigation, adaptation, finance, technology transfer and capacity building which are to be decided during negotiation which may continue non-stop till Saturday morning (Peru time).
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The negotiations are going to be quite intense during final hours as the draft also includes the rich nations' demand of 'progress review' provision and the clause on peaking year of greenhouse gases. India and most of the developing countries are opposing both the clauses while China had already announced its peaking year in its deal with the US.

If this draft gets consensus, the developing countries will also have to pledge emission cut under nationally determined goals. The rich nations have been pushing for it, arguing that no country should have free pass any more.
Final draft came just hours after despite US Secretary of State John Kerry said, "I know this is difficult for developing nations. We have to remember that today more than half of emissions are coming from developing nations, so it is imperative that they act too."
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This approach is, however, being resisted by India and other developing countries as they think it is nothing but an attempt to dilute the basic principles of the UNFCCC and it Kyoto Protocol where emission cut provision is binding on developed countries.

COP 20 president and Peru's environment minister Manuel Pulgar Vidal makes an announcement during a plenary session of the UN Climate Change Conference COP 20 in Lima, on December 11, 2014. (Reuters photo)
An initial reading of the text revealed that the draft does not address differentiation between developed and developing countries as per the UN convention on climate change - a major bone of contention among Parties. The text gives an impression that the rich nations are mainly interested in mitigation exercises.
The absence of the provision on 'loss and damage' as a separate head will also be contested by poor countries. The provision is meant for compensating those nations who had already become victims of climate change and faced damage. The draft text carries this provision as part of adaptation.
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The final draft text was released late last night after leak of an earlier version that led to waste of crucial hours during the penultimate day of the talks. Sometimes, such drafts are deliberately leaked in advance to test the ground and feel the pulses of the warring factions before hitting the negotiation table.
Interestingly, the leak this time happened through putting up the draft version for few minutes on the official website. Though it was dismissed as an inadvertent error, the buzz around it was enough to alert countries' delegation, civil societies and media. It was not clear whether it happened by design or default, it gave time for countries to do back-room consultations.
The outcome of the COP 20 will decided what all the countries will have to pledge by June 2015. It will eventually become the basis of the final climate deal in Paris late next year.

Minister of state for environment, forest and climate change (independent charge), Prakash Javadekar presenting the book on Climate Change authored by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, to the minister for home affairs, women affairs, tourism, culture and language, family and community services, clean and green project of the Republic of Nauru, Charmaine Scotty, at UNFCCC CoP 20, in Lima, Peru, on December 11, 2014. (PTI photo)
Meanwhile, the Friday night is going to be the toughest night for negotiations as they will have to junk various options before reaching the outcome. Though the parties wanted to finalise everything by Friday evening, the negotiation is expected to spill over to Saturday.
Sending the mood of negotiating countries over the contentious provisions of the draft text, the president of the COP 20, Manuel Pulgar-Vidal from Peru, urged the parties to move forward as he indicated that through-the-night talks would be needed.
"We will not accept to leave Lima with empty hands," he told delegates.

United Nations secretary general Ban Ki-moon delivers a speech during the high-level segment of the UN Climate Change Conference, COP 20, in Lima December 11, 2014. (Reuters photo)
In his last ditch effort to save the talks from being collapsed on 1st day, he said "Help us, help me.... We can deal with this problem and we can send a strong signal. Don't leave me alone, we can work together. It won't be me that thanks you, it will be the world."
Facts at a glance:
* Countries had in COP 19 in Warsaw last year decided to submit their national pledge (called INDCs - Intended Nationally Determined Contributions) to deal with the threat of climate change by June 2015
* The present COP 20 in Lima is expected to take a call on elements of the INDCs (means what should be there in the countries' INDCs)
* These INDCs will become the basis of global climate deal in COP 21 in Paris late next year
* Final draft text (based on talks of last 11 days) comprising all possible elements of the INDCs is on the table
* Negotiations now boil down to the draft text having various options
* The decision on draft text will be released as outcome of the Lima talks on Saturday
* Draft text carries options on five key elements Mitigation, Adaptation, Finance, Technology Transfer and Capacity Building
Options on mitigation:
* Time frame or time period;
* Base year and other reference values;
* Coverage in terms of geographical boundaries; sectors; greenhouse gases; percentage of total/national emissions covered;
* Assumptions and methodologies used for any emission projections, 'business as usual' or intensity target;
* A quantification of expected emission reductions;
* Methodologies and metrics used, including global warming potentials, in accordance with the relevant decisions of the Conference of the Parties;
* Long-term trajectory, including peaking year;
* An indication of additional mitigation action to be achieved through the provision of support;
Options on adaptation:
* Type of adaptation contribution;
* Projected climate impacts and related assumptions;
* Analysis of vulnerable sectors;
* Technology, investment and capacity-building needs;
* Nationally determined adaptation options, adaptive capacity enhancement and their costs;
* Quantification of own investments; own adaptation efforts;
* Programmes and projects per sector, including those identified in the context of a national adaptation programme of action (NAPA) and a national adaptation plan (NAP);
* Definition of adaptation needs;
* International cooperation, including cooperative actions, international and regional investments to be contributed or required and their timeline;
Complementary information on intended nationally determined contributions of Parties
* Support for international and regional initiatives;
* Types of support by rich nations such as grants or bilateral funding;
* Delivery mechanism and channel for the support provided by Annex II Parties;
* Sectors and geographical areas covered by the various types of support provided by rich nations
* Indicative timeline for provision of support;
Options on finance, technology transfer and capacity building:
* Finance, technology and capacity-building support contribution for adaptation, including for identified adaptation options;
* Finance, technology and capacity-building support contribution for mitigation;
* Quantified financial contributions for capacity-building;
* Scale of support contribution;
* Type of support contribution;
* Time frame or time period for support contributions;
* Channel and delivery mechanism for support contribution;
* Future contributions to various funds and other channels available, including estimates of private resources directly mobilized by public funds;
* Identification of finance, technology and capacity-building needs, including investment needs, related to intended nationally determined contributions;
* Annual expected levels of climate finance;
* Policies and measures to provide clarity on where countries are on the pathway to achieving the collective goal defined for the provision of support;
* A quantification of the national investment made on mitigation and adaptation;
* Efforts to mobilize and provide resources for domestic climate action and/or efforts to enhance the national enabling environment.