EU Claims Progress on Climate 'Roadmap' at Durban

 　　As the first week of negotiations¹ at the U.N. climate change conference  in South Africa comes to a close, the European Union says support is growing for a new legally-binding agreement to cut emissions³.  But the United States and other countries remain strongly opposed to the idea.

　　EU negotiators are urging other parties at the COP17 climate talks in Durban to agree to a “roadmap” that would lead to a climate treaty that would legally bind² governments to cut emissions blamed for climate change.

　　The Polish head of the EU delegation⁴, Tomasz Chruszczow, said there is growing support for such a measure.

　　“Many parties see that the goal of keeping the global warming within the limits, within two degrees, requires urgent action," said Chruszczow." And extreme weather events on the ground and that warning contained in the recent spate⁵ of reports from international institutions and organizations made it very hard to escape this kind of conclusion.”

　　The EU proposal would follow the current legal framework established under the Kyoto Protocol⁶, which is set to expire next year. The EU wants  the parties at COP17 to agree to establish a new treaty by 2015 that would go into effect by 2020.

　　Recent reports support the EU's argument that further cuts in greenhouse gas emissions, like carbon dioxide, are necessary to keep global temperatures from increasing to dangerous levels.

　　The International Energy Agency has warned that the world has about five years left to significantly cut carbon emissions in order to prevent irreversible climate change.

　　The European Union is trying to convince developing countries to sign on to such an agreement.

　　EU negotiator Artur Runge-Metzger noted⁷ the EU's success with the current program, saying the EU's emissions have dropped below 1990 levels while overall, the continent's economy has continued to grow.

　　“Because a lot of fear that is in this process is about 'I can either fight climate change or I can grow my economy,' but we can show, and that's a big example here, that we can do both at the same time," he said.

　　The United States did not adopt the Kyoto Protocol, and U.S. climate negotiators have said they will not support a legal mandate⁸ to cut emissions without knowing the details of such an agreement.

　　Commenting on the EU's proposed roadmap, U.S. deputy climate change envoy⁹ Jonathan Pershing said it would have to bind all parties equally.

　　“We're not looking for a mechanism¹⁰ in which we would have an obligation to reduce emissions of a legal form and the major emerging economies would have a voluntary program," said Pershing. "That's kind of the Kyoto structure.  We are not a party to Kyoto, in no small measure, because of that constraint¹¹.”

　　The United States has argued that the voluntary emissions reductions that governments agreed to at the last climate conference in Cancun, Mexico are unlikely to change over the coming years.

　　The U.S. has been trying to start discussions, instead, on what can be done after 2020.

1 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

2 bind   

vt.捆，包扎；装订；约束；使凝固；vi.变硬

参考例句：

• I will let the waiter bind up the parcel for you.我让服务生帮你把包裹包起来。
• He wants a shirt that does not bind him.他要一件不使他觉得过紧的衬衫。

3 emissions   

排放物( emission的名词复数 )； 散发物（尤指气体）

参考例句：

• Most scientists accept that climate change is linked to carbon emissions. 大多数科学家都相信气候变化与排放的含碳气体有关。
• Dangerous emissions radiate from plutonium. 危险的辐射物从钚放散出来。

4 delegation   

n.代表团；派遣

参考例句：

• The statement of our delegation was singularly appropriate to the occasion.我们代表团的声明非常适合时宜。
• We shall inform you of the date of the delegation's arrival.我们将把代表团到达的日期通知你。

5 spate   

n.泛滥，洪水，突然的一阵

参考例句：

• Police are investigating a spate of burglaries in the area.警察正在调查这一地区发生的大量盗窃案。
• Refugees crossed the border in full spate.难民大量地越过了边境。

6 protocol   

n.议定书，草约，会谈记录，外交礼节

参考例句：

• We must observe the correct protocol.我们必须遵守应有的礼仪。
• The statesmen signed a protocol.那些政治家签了议定书。

7 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

8 mandate   

n.托管地；命令，指示

参考例句：

• The President had a clear mandate to end the war.总统得到明确的授权结束那场战争。
• The General Election gave him no such mandate.大选并未授予他这种权力。

9 envoy   

n.使节，使者，代表，公使

参考例句：

• Their envoy showed no sign of responding to our proposals.他们的代表对我方的提议毫无回应的迹象。
• The government has not yet appointed an envoy to the area.政府尚未向这一地区派过外交官。

10 mechanism   

n.机械装置；机构，结构

参考例句：

• The bones and muscles are parts of the mechanism of the body.骨骼和肌肉是人体的组成部件。
• The mechanism of the machine is very complicated.这台机器的结构是非常复杂的。

11 constraint   

n.(on)约束，限制；限制(或约束)性的事物

参考例句：

• The boy felt constraint in her presence.那男孩在她面前感到局促不安。
• The lack of capital is major constraint on activities in the informal sector.资本短缺也是影响非正规部门生产经营的一个重要制约因素。