Copenhagen targets not tough enough, says Al Gore

[cal04]

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/environment/copenhagen/article6943447.ece

Even if a deal is reached at the UN climate change talks in Copenhagen next week it will only be the first step towards the far more radical cuts that are needed in global carbon emissions, Al Gore, the former US Vice-President, told The Times last night.

Mr Gore said that to avoid the worst ravages of climate change world leaders would have to come together again to set more drastic reductions than those now planned.

“Even a final treaty will have to set the stage for other tougher reductions at a later date,” he said. “We have already overshot the safe levels of CO2 in the atmosphere.”

He insisted that the present goal set for Copenhagen of stabilising world emissions of carbon dioxide at or below 450 parts per million — enough to prevent a rise in average global temperatures of no more than 2C — was insufficient and a safer target would be 350 parts per million.

(snip)
Mr Gore said that figure from the US, the world’s second-biggest carbon polluter, was “weaker than it should be” although he expressed sympathy for the challenges that Mr Obama faces in driving tough carbon regulation through a resistant House of Representatives. He said: “I’m glad that he is putting reduction targets on the table. I wish that they were stronger but I recognise the difficulties he faces in the Senate.”



Gore cancels climate lecture in Copenhagen
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/12/03/international/i142017S68.DTL

[joshcryer]

1. "I recognise the difficulties he faces in the Senate."

Yeah, political reality means we fucking guarantee ourselves 2C. Good job, politicians.