G8 ministers call for deal to halve output of greenhouse gases by 2050

ENVIRONMENT ministers from the world's leading industrial countries, the G8, yesterday called for an agreement on cutting greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2050, and said developed nations should lead the fight against global warming.

In a statement issued after talks in Japan, they urged their leaders to set a target to halve global emissions when they hold a summit in July.

They also acknowledged calls for mid-term emissions reduction targets for 2020.

The three-day meetings of G8 ministers – from Britain, Japan, the United States, Germany, France, Italy, Canada and Russia – and observer countries, in Kobe, Japan, also aimed to revive momentum for wider UN-led talks on a new global warming pact.

Ichiro Kamoshita, Japan's environment minister, said: "We expressed the will to come to agreement at (the Toyako summit in July] so we can halve emissions by 2050. Advanced nations should show leadership to reach this goal."

A joint statement stressed the need for global gas emissions to peak within the next ten to 20 years, and called on developing countries with rapidly expanding greenhouse gas emissions to curb the rate of increase.

While signalling the need for mid-term targets, ministers made only an indirect mention of a UN scientific finding that rich countries should make cuts of 25-40 per cent by 2020 to avoid the worst effects of global warming.

Yvo de Boer, the UN's climate chief, and environmentalists, had called for progress toward such a reduction pledge by G8 countries.

The European Union has pledged a 20 per cent reduction in emissions by 2020, and has offered to raise it to 30 per cent if other nations sign on.

However, the US has not committed to a mid-term goal, demanding commitments from top developing nations such as China first. Japan has also failed to set a 2020 target.

The US is the only major industrialised country not to have ratified the Kyoto Protocol global warming pact, which commits 37 nations to cutting emissions by an average of 5 per cent below 1990 levels by 2012. Washington has argued that the pact would damage the American economy and is unfair as it does not obligate developing nations to make similar cuts in emissions.

The Japan talks struggled to overcome divisions between rich countries concerned about growing emissions in the developing world and poorer nations which argue that industrialised countries must take the first steps to address warming.

Mr de Boer said that rich nations needed to set national and global targets to send a message to business.

He added: "If you're a businessman or woman in any country and you're about to build a $500 million power plant, a global goal doesn't tell you what investment choice to make.

"But if you know the country you're in plans to reduce emissions by x per cent by 2020, you're going to want to be part of the solution, not part of the problem."

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CALLS for the public to eat less beef to reduce the amount of methane produced by cows were criticised by Scotland's farming leaders last night.

The United Nations's food and agriculture organisation has estimated that livestock warms the planet more than transport. But research indicates the only way to reduce cows' emissions would be altering their diet and keeping them indoors.

James Withers, chief executive of the National Farmers' Union Scotland, said: "Trying to force this type of change on farmers is ridiculous and would, in effect, kiss goodbye to the Scottish beef sector. Governments need to realise they can't have everything. They want farmers to produce more food and feed the planet, but they want swingeing cuts in methane from our cattle."