<

Ottawa, Conservationists Disagree on Earth Summit Results
Wednesday, September 4, 2002
By Alanna Mitchell
Earth Sciences Reporter

With a report from Reuters



Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov delighted many delegates to the summit earlier yesterday when he affirmed again that his country will ratify the Kyoto Protocol on reducing greenhouse-gas emissions "in the very near future."

As the World Summit on Sustainable Development winds down today in Johannesburg, Environment Minister David Anderson is calling it a success, while some of the world's main environmental groups say it is a tragedy of missed opportunities.

"I'm pleased with the outcome," Mr. Anderson said yesterday in a conference call from Johannesburg. He said the Johannesburg Earth summit is at least as successful as the one held in Rio de Janeiro 10 years ago.

In Rio, environment and development were seen as separate and antagonistic forces, Mr. Anderson said. In Johannesburg, they are now acknowledged to be unavoidably linked.

He added that while the Rio summit was notable for the visionary statements that emerged from it, Johannesburg will be remembered for the "nitty gritty" ideas of how to make the visions come true.
(More: The Globe and Mail News Source)
2002 © Bell Globemedia Interactive, Inc.

Last night, negotiators finished with the nitty gritty, resolving a last-minute row between Western and Muslim countries over women's health and human rights and giving world leaders a completed plan to approve today. Canada and European Union states successfully added a reference to "human rights and fundamental freedoms" alongside an existing phrase saying people should have access to medical services consistent with "cultural and religious values."

Well, so much for that...
Dan