By Ramesh Mathew/Staff Reporter

Japan has asked COP18/CMP8 to work out an agreement on countering the adverse effects of climate change globally, latest by 2015, based on an effective framework applicable to all member-nations from 2020 onwards.
Reading out a speech of Environment Minister Nagahama addressed to the participants at the COP18/COP8 yesterday, Japan’s Global Environment Ambassador Masahiko Horie said his country wanted to share a common understanding among the parties on how to proceed on negotiations from next year onwards.
Horie said it is also necessary to close down the Ad hoc Working Groups (AWG) on the Kyoto Protocol and also AWG-on Long Term Co-operative Action with the Second Commitment period set to start in just about three weeks from now.
Horie expressed hope that through constructive efforts being made by ministers participating in COP18/CMP8, the parties will be able to achieve an outcome acceptable to all by the end of the ongoing Doha session tomorrow.
Japan, he said, has set up a target to reducing global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 50% by 2050 even though Japan’s own long-term goal is to reducing emissions by 80%.
Japan will move towards a green energy revolution which would help expand drastically renewable energy and other sources of energy. “The revolution is essentially aimed at bringing about social changes to ensure that every Japanese citizen saves enough energy for his country and people in future.”
While speaking about the initiatives that Japan has taken to save energy, Horie recalled the tax imposed for actions against global warming in October and Feed In Tariff Scheme for Renewable Energy (FIT) in July. Despite being the third largest industrialised country, Japan’s industries have succeeded in reducing emissions as much by 13% as compared to the 1990 levels.
The ambassador also called the attention of the participants to the efforts being made by local governments in Japan in implementing environmental city plans.
While reaffirming Japan’s commitment to help the developing world reducing the emission levels, Horie reminded the listeners that based on the commitment given under the Kyoto protocol his country has succeeded in reducing carbon emissions by an average of 10.9% between 2008 and 2010. Despite the climatic adversities on account of natural calamities arising from 3/11 disaster, Japan succeeded in reducing emissions by 9.2% last year, he said.
Recalling the initiatives made by Japan to help the developing countries, Horie said following the East Asia Low Carbon Growth Partnership Dialogue held in April, his country has stepped up its efforts to sharing knowledge, information and technology within the East Asian
region.
Through the setting up of Asia Pacific Adaptation Network (Apan), Japan hopes to strengthen the collaboration between researchers and policymakers in the Low Carbon Asia Research Network.
Japan, said Horie, has also proposed the Joint Crediting Mechanism/Bilateral Offset Crediting Mechanism (JCM/BOCM) in order to promote reduction of the global emissions through the transfer of some of the advanced low carbon
technologies.
The envoy highlighted that his country provided close to $17.4bn to the developing nations as part of fulfilling a commitment made by developed countries to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) on providing $30bn assistance for three years starting from 2010.