Commonwealth fails to back climate targets

By Barry Moody

KAMPALA (Reuters) - The Commonwealth said on Saturday climate change threatened the existence of small island members faced with rising sea levels but it failed to back binding targets on reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

A statement issued on the second day of a summit of the club of mostly former British colonies said the Commonwealth was gravely concerned about climate change, which was "a direct threat to the very survival of some Commonwealth countries, notably small island states."

It said the cost of inaction would be greater than taking early measures to counteract global warming.

But the declaration by the Commonwealth summit (CHOGM) contained only vague language and lacked binding targets on reducing greenhouse gas emissions, prompting Greenpeace Executive Director John Sauvan to condemn it as inadequate.

"There is a complete lack of urgency, given the need to get climate changing emissions under control ... and the disproportionate impact of climate change on the world's poorest Commonwealth members," he said.

The Commonwealth secretary-general, Don McKinnon, called the agreement "quite a leap forward" although it stopped short of the major statement that many countries had said they wanted.

Before the summit, Britain had called for an "unequivocal message" and had urged developed nations to make binding commitments before an environment conference in Bali next month.

The Kampala declaration stopped short of that, but did say developed countries should take the lead in cutting emissions.