A three day meeting with growing economies of China and India participates as pressure mounting for both develop and developing countries to tackle climate change, blame for droughts, rising sea levels and intense calamities.
Environment officials from rich countries and other major gas emitters gathered in western Japan for talks on ways to curb green gas emission, save species from extinction and cut back on trash.
Delegates meeting in the port city of Kobe will be tasked with building momentum for talks on setting long term targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming, an issue to be taken up at a leaders summit in July.
Group of 8 leaders had agreed last year in Germany to consider seriously a goal to halve greenhouse gas emissions by year 2050, a proposal backed by Japan, the European Union and Canada.
But developing countries on the other hand are keen to put economic growth first, have balked at signing up on the goal without the US doing more to cut emissions and insist that rich countries should help poorer ones for clean technology.
Japanese environment minister has told reporters before the meeting kicked off that they need to send the message and they will make it easier for emerging countries to act, with financial mechanisms and technological cooperation and at the same time, the Group of 8, has to make clear of their stance, that they will act firmly on the issue.
The South African Environment minister, however, commented that it was vital for the G-8 to show leadership and expect their partners in the the G-8 to champion the developing countries’ cause by explicitly addressing the means of implementation (technology transfer and financing) that will enable and support mitigation and adaptation in developing countries at the scale required.
