China Calls on Rich Nations to Slash Greenhouse Gases

By Mathew Carr

Oct. 1 (Bloomberg) -- China, the world's most populous nation, called on wealthier countries to slash production of greenhouse gases by mid-century and leave developing economies free from the burden of cutting air pollution.

By 2050 industrialized nations should reduce annual emissions 80 percent to 95 percent from 1990's level, the Chinese government urged in a statement on the Web site of a United Nations agency that oversees global climate treaties. In a preliminary step to tackle global-warming gases, the proposal seeks cuts of 25 percent to 40 percent by 2020.

China, whose economy expanded 11.9 percent in 2007 and is the fourth-largest, wants slower-growing rich nations such as the U.S., Britain and Japan to set targets because their industries and vehicles have caused most of the historic build- up of gases that warm the planet. Carbon dioxide, the main man- made greenhouse gas, lasts a century or more, scientists say.

``Only with such a mid-term target being clearly determined is it meaningful to talk about any long-term goals for emission reductions,'' China said in its submission to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, based in Bonn.

About 180 nations are locked in a series of eight negotiations to form a climate-protection agreement under supervision by the UN climate agency. They have set a deadline of the end of 2009 to devise a successor to the Kyoto climate- protection treaty, which is set to expire in 2012.

No `Twisting'

China warned rich nations not to ``twist'' the mission to suit their own needs and left the door open for further agreements. Any accord reached at the last negotiations, planned for Copenhagen at the end of next year, ``shall not be a final result,'' China said.

Europe, the U.S. and other industrialized countries should contribute 0.5 percent to 1 percent of their national output to help developing countries cope with global warming and reduce their output of greenhouse gases, China said, repeating a proposal presented at a UN-sponsored climate meeting in Accra, Ghana, in August.

World carbon-dioxide emissions from energy use rose 2.8 percent last year as coal consumption outpaced crude oil and clean-burning natural gas, BP Plc data shows.

To contact the reporter on this story: Mathew Carr in London at m.carr@bloomberg.net