Australia, Korea back green reform

Ambassador Peter Rowe of Australia addresses climate change at a forum hosted by the Korea Green Foundation in Seoul. Photo by embassy

Australia has recently transformed itself into one of the most active players in the battle against global warming. Now it’s seeking further cooperation with Korea on the issue, according to the Australian ambassador to Korea.
In a lecture to introduce Australia’s climate change policy in Seoul, Peter Rowe said a joint effort will be more effective in coping with the looming global threat.
“We look forward to continued cooperation and sharing of ideas with Korea in international climate change forums,” Rowe said at a forum hosted by the Korea Green Foundation, a leading local environmental group.
Though climate change is a formidable challenge, Rowe said it is not insurmountable. Instead, it requires global responsibility. “Unilateral or domestic action alone to reduce emissions or energy consumption will not be effective without broad international cooperation,” he said.
Rowe said the cooperation between Australia and Korea in particular could be advanced to acquire cleaner energy sources, which he says are a key element in reducing greenhouse gases.
“Korea is in a very good position with its proven advanced technological capabilities and expertise in energy and engineering research and innovation,” he said.
He said the two countries will discuss further cooperation on the issue through the Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate, or APP. The APP, a seven-country consultive body, was created in 2006 to jointly tackle carbon emission issues. It is focused on the development and deployment of clean technologies.
Korea, Australia, the United States, China, India, Japan and Canada comprise the APP, which will meet to discuss fossil energy and power generation this week in Melbourne.
“We shall continue to work with Korea and other APP partner countries to carry out relevant and effective development of new and proven technologies for renewable energy, reducing emissions from fossil fuels and improving energy efficiency,” Rowe said.
Since the inauguration of Prime Minister Kevin Rudd last November, Rowe said Australia has been taking on climate change on various fronts.
In December, the new prime minister ratified the Kyoto Protocol of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, under which Australia will limit its greenhouse gas emissions from 2008 to 2012 to 108 percent of its 1990 emissions level. Its ratification of the Kyoto Protocol took effect on March 11.
The prime minister has also set the nation’s long-term emissions reductions target to 60 percent of 2000 levels by 2050, with a midterm target to be announced later this year.
Rowe said the Australian government is also poised to implement its own version of the carbon emission trading system, named the cap-and-trade system of emissions trading, beginning in 2010.
“The introduction of emissions trading in Australia will constitute the most significant economic and structural reform we have undertaken since our liberalization of trade in the 1980s,” Rowe said.
The cap-and-trade system, Rowe said, will lower Australia’s emissions while keeping the country competitive in otherwise emission-intensive, trade-exposed industries. The program will provide incentives for Australian firms to develop and invest in low-emission technology, Rowe said.

By Moon Gwang-lip Staff Reporter [joe@joongang.co.kr]