In an effort to slow down global warming, 187 countries have agreed to send government officials to meet on a regular basis over the next two years. Planning to replace the Kyoto protocol, which will come to an end in 2012, these countries are now working together to make changes leading away from fossil fuel dependence. However, as promising as that may sound, there is doubt concerning the effectiveness of the meetings.
During the United Nations talks in Bali, the White House expressed their hesitations by questioning the commitment of other countries, a concern that stretched the meeting for much longer than intended. Scheduled to finish on Friday, the discussions continued well into the next day resulting from the US’ insistence on clearer terms for the developing country’s emissions cuts. A white house official was quoted saying, “Emissions reductions principally by the developed world will be insufficient to confront the global problem effectively,” revealing the US’ doubt in any benefit from the emissions cuts. The US eventually relaxed their opinion in the debates and the conference finally came to an end.
The final text of the Bali talks covered an outline for the next two years on the agreement to cut emissions and new ways to measure the decline of emissions. Financial help was also promised to help developing countries adjust to the changes as well as develop new technologies furthering their efforts.
