Six countries to cooperate on climate

This is not as good as it should be as carbon dioxide is not tackled, but this new initiative might help us in mitigating climate change in the short to medium term and improves health of million of people.

According to various sources, the United States, China as well as other countries are willing to cut emissions of various short-lived greenhouse gases such as methane, soot (black carbon) and hydroflurocarbons (HFCs)

Of course, the fact that the main greenhouse gas is not included is a major problem, but the fact that the NASA recommendation are being followed is still good news.

Here is an extract from Bloomberg :

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton yesterday unveiled a new international coalition of countries that aims to curb “short-lived” climate pollutants such as black carbon, refrigerants and methane. These chemicals stay in the atmosphere for much less time than carbon dioxide, the main driver of climate change, which can hang in the air for decades or centuries.

Curbing short-lived climate pollutants may reduce global warming expected by 2050 by as much as 0.5 degrees Celsius, according to the United Nations Environment Program. The world has warmed about 0.7 degrees Celsius (1.3 degrees Fahrenheit) since 1900, and temperatures are predicted to rise about 0.2 degrees Celsius a decade.

The new climate group includes the U.S., Canada, Ghana, Mexico, Bangladesh and Sweden and is overseen by the UN Environment Program. The partners have committed $15 million to start, with $12 million committed by the U.S. and $3 million from Canada over 2 years.

The announcement of the coalition wasn’t accompanied by any specific goals of how much each gas should be reduced, how much the countries currently emit, or by what methods the reductions would be reached.

(…) The international climate group will hold its first meeting in Stockholm in April.

Could these countries be joined by all the others ? Could it give precise targets ? I certainly hope so. In any case, this is a new way to fight climate change that should in no way replace the current negotiations on carbon dioxide…