With newfound gravity, President Bush last week announced that the world’s industrial nations needed to join the U.S. in setting goals to cut greenhouse gas emissions.
The “plan” the president announced was notable for what it didn’t include: No target dates, emission caps or enforcement mechanisms.
While Bush’s tiptoe entry into the world fight against the global warming is a welcome policy change, it should not be allowed to usurp the work of those who have taken the issue seriously for years.
Europeans, who have been negotiating a blueprint for greenhouse gas reductions, were understandably suspicious of the timing of Bush’s virtual about-face on the issue, as were environmentalists.
The Group of Eight industrialized nations is meeting this week with the hopes of attaining commitments to binding emissions limits. German Chancellor Angela Merkel wants the world’s wealthiest nations to cut greenhouse emissions by 50 percent by 2050. Emerging nations, including China, India, South Africa and Brazil also have been invited to the summit, and their cooperation will be crucial to forging a successful solution.
Bush’s call to action during a speech at the United States Agency for International Development was seen by some as a diversionary tactic meant to undercut the G8 meeting by introducing a new process. The Bush plan, which calls for discussions of “aspirational goals” through the end of 2008, essentially would run the clock on the remaining 18 months of the president’s administration without him having to make any commitment.
“It is clear that we need a more ambitious position on the part of the United States,” European Union president Jose Manuel Barroso said last week.
The plan didn’t get favorable reviews from congressional Democrats, either. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said voluntary emissions targets were not enough to reverse global warming.
Given that the U.S. is the single largest emitter of greenhouse gases, any softening of the president’s objections to limits on greenhouse gas emissions is a good sign. It’s clear the U.S. needs to be part of any global solution. But the president shouldn’t be allowed to hijack the process with an amorphous plan that is a poor substitute for the hard work of others who have long realized the danger of global climate change.
