Kerry: Us to pass
“major” climate legislation
A
successful deal in Copenhagen will lead the way for climate
legislation in the US Congress, says Senator John Kerry.
Marianne Bom - 16/12/2009 - The Chair of the US Senate Foreign
Relations Committee, John Kerry, on Wednesday promised that
the US Congress will pass a climate change bill in 2010
if the UN climate conference becomes a success.
"With
a successful deal here in Copenhagen, next year, the US
Congress - House and Senate - will pass legislation,"
Kerry said at a meeting in Copenhagen, quoted by the Guardian.
"I will tell you right now, 100 percent, we are going
to pass major climate and energy legislation that is going
to have an impact on emissions."
John
Kerry mentioned one key requirement that the talks had to
meet in order to get US backing: China and other developing
countries should meet the US demand for accountability on
their emission cuts. This demand has so far been rejected
by some larger developing countries.
"In
the Senate and in America, the concerns that kept us out
of Kyoto back in 1997 are still with us today, and we need
to preempt them here in Copenhagen," Kerry said and
continued:
"I
don't offer these insights to defend inaction. I simply
want to describe for you the reality of what it will take
to get this done. Some of my colleagues in Washington -
like some leaders elsewhere - remain reluctant to grapple
with a climate crisis mostly measured in future dangers,
when they're confronted every day with the present pain
of hardworking people in a tough economic time,” he
was quoted as saying by CQ Politics.
“To
pass a bill, we must be able to assure a senator from Ohio
that steel workers in his state won't lose their jobs to
India and China because those countries are not participating
in a way that is measurable, reportable and verifiable,"
he said. (Photo: Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs/image.net)
Da UNFCCC
