WebMail
My BigPond
Australia's new global institute designed to clean up coal has won substantial backing from world leaders in their united attempt to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
US President Barack Obama stood alongside Kevin Rudd as the prime minister launched Australia's Global Carbon Capture and Storage Institute (GCCSI) on the world stage after crunch talks on climate change with leaders from 15 other nations in L'Aquila, Italy.
The project, which the federal government announced in April, has been backed by 22 developed and developing countries for its ability to play a key role in reducing the world's reliance on coal to drive electricity.
Mr Obama told reporters at a joint press conference with Mr Rudd the leaders at the Major Economies Forum (MEF), which was held on the fringes of the G8 summit, had resolved to join forces to drive the development of clean carbon technologies.
'Our goal is to double the research and development investment we need to bring these technologies to market to achieve our long-term energy and emissions goals,' Mr Obama said.
'A number of countries have already agreed to take the lead on developing particular technologies, including solar.
'Australia, for example, is creating a new centre ... (which) I think points to the ability for us to pool our resources in order to see the technological breakthroughs that are going to be necessary in order for us to solve this problem.'
The main role of the Canberra-based GCCSI will be promoting large-scale research programs on how carbon emissions from coal-fired power stations can be captured and buried underground to help make coal more greenhouse-friendly.
As well as boasting 22 governments as foundation members, including the US and Japan, more than 100 major energy companies have signed up to join.
Mr Rudd said the institute would help get large-scale carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects off the ground and act as a 'clearing house' for state-of-the-art CCS knowledge.
'Unless we do these projects we will not have an effect at bringing down those huge numbers of energy production ... coming from coal and their greenhouse gas emission impact,' Mr Rudd, flanked by British Prime Minister Gordon Brown as well as leaders from Canada, South Korea and Mexico, said.
'We must act with speed.
'We in Australia have funded this institute, up to $100 million a year, because we see the great urgency of dealing with this great challenge.'
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who hosted the leaders' talks, described the institute as an 'extremely important organisation which we know will be instrumental in finding a solution' to climate change.
The launch came after MEF leaders from 16 developed and developing countries - the G8 members plus Brazil, Mexico, China, India, South Africa, South Korea, Australia and Indonesia - agreed to prevent global temperatures from rising by two degrees Celsius.
Many scientists believe if global temperatures go up by such an amount the environment would face serious dangers.
The leaders agreed to work towards a goal for substantially reducing emissions by 2050 before the United Nations hosts its climate change talks in Copenhagen on a successor to the Kyoto treaty.
But developing countries failed to accept targets of cutting emissions by 50 per cent before 2050, despite G8 members having agreed a day earlier to work towards making cuts of 80 per cent in the same timeframe.
Mr Obama said he believed the leaders had made 'important strides forward as we move towards Copenhagen', despite criticism from UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon who said the G8 had not done enough and should be setting goals to cut emissions by 2020.
'But ultimately we have a choice. We can either we can shape our future or we can let events shape it for us,' he said.
'I think it's clear from our progress today which path is preferable and which path we have chosen.'
