PRESS RELEASE
Lyon talks to set stage for major climate change conference
Bonn, September 2000 - Government delegates from some 150
countries will convene in Lyon, France from 11-15 September to
finalize preparations for the ministerial-level round of climate
change negotiations to be held in The Hague in the Netherlands
in November.
The Lyon talks take place under the United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change and its Kyoto Protocol - the global
agreement to minimize risks associated with climate change.
Consensus between governments on key issues between now and
November is expected to trigger the necessary ratification to
allow the Kyoto Protocol to enter into force. French Prime
Minister Lionel Jospin will address the conference at its opening
on Monday, 11 September. Dignitaries from other countries will
include Jan Szyszko, President of the Conference of the Parties
to the Convention and former Environment Minister of Poland, and
Jan Pronk, Dutch Environment Minister and President-designate of
The Hague conference.
Michael Zammit Cutajar, Executive Secretary of the Convention,
calls Lyon "a political opportunity to disentangle and thin out
the negotiating issues on the table. Momentum towards consensus
could be generated in Lyon by initial agreements on the North-
South axis of negotiation under the Convention. These could
recognize the vulnerability of developing countries, enhance
their response capacity and provide incentives to shift their
economic growth onto a climate-friendly path. They are the
necessary ingredients in the package that will go before the
Parties to the Convention in November that will ultimately
determine if the Kyoto Protocol is to enter into force as a
credible instrument of environmental protection and sustainable
development."
Other key Convention issues relate to the transfer of technology
and the special concerns of developing countries that are
particularly vulnerable to climate change or to the economic
impacts of emission reduction measures by developed countries.
Also on the agenda are Kyoto Protocol issues such as the
establishment of accounting methods for national emissions and
their reduction, creation of rules that take into account the
carbon stored in forestry "sinks", establishment of a compliance
regime for monitoring implementation as well as the agreement on
procedures for the operation of the Clean Development Mechanism
and the emissions trading systems.
The Lyon talks will encompass the 13th sessions of the UNFCCC
Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technical Advice and the
Subsidiary Body for Implementation. These meetings are preceded
by one week of informal workshops and discussions.
More than 2,000 participants are expected, including government
delegates, representatives of intergovernmental and non-
governmental organizations as well as the business community.
Formal meetings will be complemented by 35 side events organized
by non-governmental and other organizations.
The Kyoto Protocol (1997) will enter into force 90 days after it
has been ratified by at least 55 Parties to the Convention,
including developed countries and those with economies in
transition representing at least 55% of the total of
1990 carbon dioxide emissions from this group. So far, the
Protocol has been signed by 83 governments and the European
Community but only 23 countries, all developing, have ratified.
The United States accounts for 36.1% of carbon dioxide
emissions, the European Union for 24.2%, and Russia for
17.4%.Some practical information
Some Practical Information
The application form for media accreditation to the UNFCCC
meeting in Lyon can be downloaded from http://www.unfccc.int, or
may be obtained from Ms. Nardos Assefa in Bonn, tel. (+49-228)
815 1526, fax (+49-228) 815 1999, e-mail
nassefa@unfccc.int
The dates are:
>From 4 to 9 September 2000: informal meetings (not open to the
press) and workshops.
>From 11 to 15 September: 13th session of the Subsidiary Bodies
(SBSTA & SBI)of the UN Convention on Climate Change.
The venue is:
Palais des Congrès de Lyon
50 quai Charles de Gaulle
69006 Lyon, France
Tel: (+33-4) 72 82 26 26
Fax (+33-4) 72 82 26 27
www.palais-des-congres.com
Arrangements for hotel accommodations can be made through LSO
online:
http://sb13.lso-intl.com/
Documentation for the Lyon meetings and information about UNFCCC
can be accessed on the Internet at the following address:
http://www.unfccc.int
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