Copenhagen summit has biggest-ever carbon footprint
Sunanda Creagh
The Copenhagen climate talks will generate more carbon emissions than
any previous climate conference, equivalent to the annual output of more
than half- -a-million Ethiopians, figures commissioned by hosts Denmark
show.
Rajendra K. Pachauri, chairman of the “Intergovernmental Panel
on Climate Change” speaks to youth organizations at the UN
Climate Summit in Copenhagen on Monday, Dec. 14, 2009 |
Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed is surrounded by reporters
after addressing Klima Forum 09, the people’s climate summit, in
Copenhagen Monday Dec. 14, 2009. AP images/Getty |
Delegates, journalists, activists and observers from almost 200
countries have gathered at the Dec 7-18 summit and their travel and work
will create 46,200 tonnes of carbon dioxide, most of it from their
flights.
This would fill nearly 10,000 Olympic swimming pools, and is the same
amount produced each year by 2,300 Americans or 660,000 Ethiopians, the
vast difference is due to the huge gap in consumption patterns in the
two countries, according to US Government statistics about per-person
emissions in 2006.
Despite efforts by the Danish Government to reduce the conference's
carbon footprint, around 5,700 tonnes of carbon dioxide will be created
by the summit and a further 40,500 tonnes created by attendees' flights
to Copenhagen. The figure for the flights was calculated by the United
Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), while the
domestic carbon footprint from the summit was calculated by accountants
Deloitte, said Deloitte consultant Stine Balslev.
"This is much bigger than the last talks because there are many more
people here", she said, adding that 18,000 people were expected to pass
through the conference centre every day.
Activists dressed as polar bears stage a protest at the UN
Climate Summit in Copenhagen, Monday, Dec. 14, 2009, on behalf
of humans who are being hit hard by climate change. |
"These are preliminary figures but we expect that when we do the
final calculations after the conference is over, the carbon footprint
will be about the same".
Deloitte included in their calculations emissions caused by
accommodation, local transport, electricity and heating of the
conference centre, paper, security, transport of goods and services as
well as energy used by computers, kitchens, photocopiers and printers
inside the conference centre. Accommodation accounted for 23 percent of
the summit's greenhouse gas emissions in Copenhagen, while transport
caused 7 percent. Activities inside the conference centre accounted for
70 percent, she said. "We have been forced to put up some temporary
buildings in order to provide the delegation rooms because the number of
participants is so much larger than expected", said Balslev.
"For instance the US delegation has ordered an area that's five times
as big as last year".
The temporary buildings housing delegation offices are not well
insulated and are warmed by oil heaters, so this area is the most
energy-wasteful, she said.
The researchers assumed that 60 percent of conference participants
would catch public transport to and from the conference but Balslev said
that was probably optimistic.
Balslev said most of the energy used by the conference was from coal
fired power stations that power the electricity grid, but some was from
wind power.
Reuters |