wfn.org | LWF Commends Russian Vote on Kyoto Protocol, Urges USA,

["Frank Imhoff" <Frank.Imhoff@elca.org>]

LWF Commends Russian Vote on Kyoto Protocol, Urges USA, Australia to Review
their Position
General Secretary Noko Affirms LWF's Commitment to Preserve the Integrity of
Creation

GENEVA, 2 November 2004 (LWI) * The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) has
commended the recent vote by the Russian Duma in favor of the international
treaty on the reduction of greenhouse gases, and appealed to the governments
of industrialized countries that have not ratified the 1997 Kyoto Protocol to
review their positions. 

In a statement released today, LWF General Secretary, Rev. Dr Ishmael Noko,
expresses hope that the action of Russia's lower house of parliament would be
swiftly affirmed by the legislative body's upper house and by President
Vladimir Putin. The general secretary particularly appeals to the United
States of America and Australia, which are among leading greenhouse gas
producers, to revise their positions and "ratify this modest start in the
global response to climate change." 

The Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate
Change has been ratified by more than 120 countries, but needs Russia's
ratification before it can become a legally binding document. The USA pulled
out of the treaty in 2001.

Noko affirms the LWF's support for the convention on the reduction of
greenhouse gases, citing the July 2003 Assembly commitment to promote the use
of renewable energy resources, and back "international agreements such as the
Kyoto Protocol that seek to preserve the environment and the integrity of
creation."

In his statement, the LWF general secretary calls on British Prime Minister
Tony Blair to use his 2005 presidency of the 'Group of Eight' * the world's
most industrialized nations * to exercise the necessary leadership "not only
to set the Kyoto Protocol on the path to full implementation, but also to
establish the agenda for the much more radical initiatives that will have to
come after Kyoto in order to respond in a meaningful and effective way to the
unfolding crisis of climate change."

Noko points out that the nations most responsible for the rise in greenhouse
gas emissions have the greatest responsibility for addressing this global
problem. "Those who seek to exempt themselves from taking the action that
this crisis demands will secure no exemption from the global environmental
disaster that is looming," he adds. (375 words)

Following is the full text of LWF General Secretary Noko's statement on the
Kyoto Protocol:

Statement by Rev. Dr Ishmael Noko
General Secretary of the Lutheran World Federation 
following the Russian Duma vote on the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations
Framework Convention on Climate Change

On behalf of the member churches of the Lutheran World Federation, I welcome
the October 22 vote by the Russian Duma in favor of the Kyoto Protocol on
reduction of greenhouse gases. I hope that this decision will be swiftly
affirmed by both the upper house of the Russian parliament and by President
Vladimir Putin. Russian ratification of this 1997 protocol to the United
Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change will finally bring it into
legal effect.

The delegates participating in the LWF's Tenth Assembly in Winnipeg, Canada,
in July 2003 expressed strong support for this important international
instrument. Meeting under the theme "For the Healing of the World", the LWF
Assembly made a commitment to work against climate change and the greenhouse
effect, to act to decrease the consumption of fossil fuels, to promote the
use of renewable energy resources, and to support international agreements
such as the Kyoto Protocol that seek to preserve the environment and the
integrity of creation.

Furthermore, the LWF Assembly issued a public statement specifically calling
on the Government of the United States of America to ratify the Kyoto
Protocol and to work towards decreasing greenhouse gas emissions. In 2001,
the present administration of the United States - the largest emitter of
greenhouse gases in both absolute and per capita terms - withdrew from the
Kyoto Protocol, calling it "fundamentally flawed."

The nations most responsible for the rise in greenhouse gas emissions have
the greatest responsibility for addressing this global problem. Those who
seek to exempt themselves from taking the action that this crisis demands
will secure no exemption from the global environmental disaster that is
looming. 

In the meantime, greenhouse gas emissions are continuing to climb. Scientists
have confirmed this month that there has been a dramatic and unexpected
increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide levels, raising fears that the limits
of the ecosystem's capacity to absorb this key greenhouse gas may have been
reached. The latest scientific evidence has also indicated that the impacts
of global warming will be even more serious than previously predicted, and a
recent spate of extreme weather events - with tragic human consequences -
have given a glimpse of what the future may hold.

I therefore call on the Government of the United States of America, and that
of other industrialized countries such as Australia that have not already
done so, to revise their positions and to ratify this modest start in the
global response to climate change.

Even if ratified and implemented by all major greenhouse gas producers, the
Kyoto Protocol only envisages a reduction of approximately 5 percent from the
baseline 1990 level of emissions, and it expires in 2012. Moreover, it does
not require cuts from the major industrializing developing countries, whose
emissions are expected to increase rapidly. Much deeper cuts in emissions,
more widespread controls, and much greater investment in renewable energy
technologies will be required if levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere
are to stabilize at levels that will prevent even more disastrous damage to
God's earth and to the life that it sustains.

I call on Prime Minister Tony Blair, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, to
use the UK's presidency of the 'Group of Eight' during 2005 to exercise the
necessary leadership not only to set the Kyoto Protocol on the path to full
implementation, but also to establish the agenda for the much more radical
initiatives that will have to come after Kyoto in order to respond in a
meaningful and effective way to the unfolding crisis of climate change. This
is a matter of respect for the integrity of creation, and of responsible
stewardship. It may also prove to be a matter of survival.

Geneva
2 November 2004

(The LWF is a global communion of Christian churches in the Lutheran
tradition. Founded in 1947 in Lund, Sweden, the LWF currently has 138 member
churches in 77 countries all over the world, with a membership of nearly 65
million Lutherans. The LWF acts on behalf of its member churches in areas of
common interest such as ecumenical and inter-faith relations, theology,
humanitarian assistance, human rights, communication, and the various aspects
of mission and development work. Its secretariat is located in Geneva,
Switzerland.)

[Lutheran World Information (LWI) is the LWF's information service. Unless
specifically noted, material presented does not represent positions or
opinions of the LWF or of its various units. Where the dateline of an article
contains the notation (LWI), the material may be freely reproduced with
acknowledgment.] 

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