India may opt for peaking year at climate meet

2050 may be set as time frame for max emission

India may eventually opt for a “peaking year” when the country’s total green house gas emission from industry, agriculture and transport sectors together will reach the highest point, followed by a gradual reduction in releasing carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

Though the government has not yet come out in the open with its negotiation strategy for the ongoing climate talks at Lima, the possible declaration of a time frame around 2050 for maximum emission could be India’s offer on the table to break a negotiation deadlock.

“The peaking year may be fixed around 2050, which means at least two decades more than what China has announced its peaking year would be,” sources told Deccan Herald. As per the recent US-China climate deal, Beijing accepted a peaking year by 2030.

On Tuesday, the Union Cabinet approved India’s negotiating position for the Lima summit that is expected to prepare a draft of a new global emission cut treaty, to be adopted in the next summit in Paris in 2015 and decide the intended nationally determined contributions, which each country will have to declare by March 2015.

The acceptance of peaking year by India, which opposed it for many years, may come with several conditions on money and technology flow from the rich nations, including operationalisation of the Green Climate Fund that remains a non-starter.

In absolute terms, India is the world’s fourth largest polluter after USA, China and European Union, if the EU is considered as one block.

“We are going to Lima with confidence and hope for positive outcome. We will put our achievements on the table and push for operationalisation of the Green Climate Fund as well joint research to save the earth. If collaborative research happens there will not be any intellectual property rights issue,” Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar told Deccan Herald on the eve of his departure for the UN climate summit.

The fund was set up at Copenhagen Climate Summit in 2009 under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

“The Green Climate Fund has not witnessed much traction with only about $10 billion in the pool vis-à-vis a commitment of $100 billion annually. This support is critical to address climate change,” Environment Secretary Ashok Lavasa said here at a seminar about a week ago.

“We are confident all developing and developed countries will accept our views on equity and common but differentiated responsibility (CBDR),” Javadekar said. CBDR is the cornerstone of India’s position on climate change so far.