UNFCC receives emission cut pledges from 75 nations

New Delhi, Apr 5 : Since the closing of the UN Climate Change conference in Copenhagen, 75 countries, including India, have submitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) their national pledges to cut or limit the emissions of greenhouse gases by 2020.

These countries together account for more than 80 per cent of global emissions from energy use.

As many as 41 industrialised countries have formally communicated their economy-wide targets to the UNFCCC, and 35 developing countries have communicated information on the nationally appropriate mitigation actions they were planning to take, provided they receive the appropriate support in terms of finance and technology, said the UNEP.

However, UNFCC Executive Secretary Yvo de Boer said that while the pledges on the table were an important step towards the objective of limiting growth of emissions, they will not in themselves suffice to limit warming to below two degrees Celsius.

''The Climate conference at the end of this year in Mexico, therefore, needs to put in place effective cooperative mechanisms capable of bringing about significant acceleration of national, regional and international action both to limit the growth of emissions and to prepare for the inevitable impacts of climate change,'' he said in a UNEP release.

The UN Climate Change Secretariat has also published this week official reports on the results of last year's UN Climate Change conference in Copenhagen.

The reports detail the outcomes of the UNFCCC Conference of the Parties at its 15th session (COP 15) and of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol on its fifth session (CMP 5).

Each report is in two parts: one on formal proceedings and other on the decisions adopted by the relevant body.

The Copenhagen conference decided to continue negotiations on a range of draft decisions, which would enable immediate action on climate change. ''This work can be completed in Mexico, with the adoption of a strong and balanced package of decisions,'' Mr Boer added.

He said, ''The Copenhagen accord is not least significant because it includes a clear pledge by industrialised nations to provide short-term and long-term finance for developing countries for adaptation and mitigation.'' ''At the same time, it is clear that the accord can be used to help advance the formal negotiations towards a successful outcome in Mexico,'' he added.