Conservatives urge EU action on Climate Change
Posted, May 21, 2008 @ 00:00
European Parliament endorses Conservatives' battle against climate change
Strasbourg, 21st May 2008 -- Conservatives today welcomed the first stage in the EU's fight against climate change, which was announced in the European Parliament today. The proposals come in the form of a report from the Temporary Committee on Climate Change, which details the scientific facts of climate change and makes recommendations for action from the EU.
John Bowis MEP, Conservative spokesman on the Environment in the European Parliament said:
"The evidence for global warming is with us. Whether it is the risk of flooding in London, the thousands fleeing the rising seas of Bangladesh or Oxfam's forecasts of hunger, disease and migration, the message is clear. The need for more research must not stop a drive for real and effective action by Britain and its European, Commonwealth and transatlantic partners."
The Temporary Committee on Climate Change was set up in the European Parliament in April 2007 to put together different viewpoints from the many different policy areas related to climate change in order to reach an EU consensus in negotiations for a future international climate agreement.
The Committee report notes that the scientific evidence on the origins and causes of climate change is well established and recognised worldwide. It also stresses that the underlying causes of global warming are mostly man-made. In addition, it calls for research on the causes and effects of climate change. Further to the report, the costs of climate change as a result of industry, particularly transport, including quantifying the impact of pollution caused by air transport should be analysed, as well as the impact on economic competitiveness, for example the increase in energy costs.
The European Parliament proposals come just days after the publication of a study from leading scientists from Kiel, Germany and California in the US, warning that marine dead zones- areas in which fish and other sea life suffocate from lack of oxygen- are spreading across the world’s tropical oceans due to climate change.