Climate-change talks

　　氣候變化會談

　　Wilted greenery

　　凋零的青蔥

　　The UNs latest round of climate-change talks open inDurban. Even avoiding deadlock would be anachievement

　　聯合國最新一輪氣候變化會談在德班開幕，這次會談只要不走進死胡同就算不錯了

　　THOUSANDS of anxious environmentalists, hard-eyed negotiators and bemused journalists gatheredin Durban this week for the UNs annual climate-change circus. Saving the planet, the main itemon its agenda two years ago, in Copenhagen, was not uppermost in their minds. Saving thecircus was: the failure in Copenhagen to forge a binding agreement to mitigate the worldscarbon emissions could yet lead to a breakdown of the whole UN process in Durban.

　　本周無數焦慮的環保人士、針鋒相對的談判代表和迷茫的記者在德班聚集，參加聯合國一年一度熱鬧的氣候變化會談。對于他們來說，最重要的不是兩年前在哥本哈根議事日程上的主要議題拯救我們的地球，而是拯救這一次的會談。因為哥本哈根會談沒能打造出有約束力的協議來減少世界二氧化碳排放量，這有可能導致本次聯合國在德班的整個會議進程土崩瓦解。

　　To avoid that, negotiators have until December 9th to reach three goals. Least dauntingly, theymust nail down the details of initiatives agreed on in Cancn last year, chiefly the Green ClimateFund. This aims to help poor countries curb their emissions and adapt to global warming. It issupposed to be stocked with some of the $100 billion that rich countries have promised poorones by 2023.

　　為了避免這種情況，截至到12月9日談判代表必須要達到三個目標。還不那么讓人失望的是，他們必須確定去年坎昆通過的新方案的細節，其中最主要的綠色氣候基金。這項基金的目的在于幫助經濟落后的國家控制二氧化碳排放量以及適應全球變暖。按照富裕國家對貧窮國家的承諾，到2023年，這項基金應該能達到1000億之多。

　　Little actual cash will be proffered in Durban: progress will be limited to working out the detailsof the funds design, including the relative powers of donors and recipients, and to its possiblerole in wooing investment. Even this is contentious, as America wants a bigger role for theprivate sector. But such spats should prove surmountable. Alongside progress on anotherpromised institution, to spread green technology to poor countries, the fund is Durbanslikeliest success.

　　德班會談會提供更少的現金，此次取得的進步僅限于制定出這筆資金計劃用途的細節，包括捐贈國和受贈國的相對實力對比，以及它在吸引投資中可能起到的作用。美國想在私有部門中起到更大的作用，盡管這使這筆款項還存在爭議，但是這樣的小吵小鬧還是可以平息的。加上另外一個前途光明的機構所取得的進步，他們會一起把綠色技術延伸到經濟落后國家。這項資金的建立是德班會談最有可能取得的成功。

　　Much trickier will be reconciling the demands of developing countries for an extension of theUNs Kyoto protocol with the determination of most developed ones to bin it. The worldsonly binding agreement to curb emissions has been a colossal failure. Since it was negotiatedin 1997 global emissions have risen by over a quarter, mostly in developing countries. Thetreaty does not curb their emissions, which are now 58% of the total; China alone isresponsible for 23%. The second-biggest polluter, America, is also free to emit, asit has not ratified the treaty.

　　協調發展中國家的要求，使它們同意大多數發達國家都會拒絕的《京都議定書》的附加條件會變得更加困難。世界上僅有的對控制排放量有約束力的協議經歷了重大的失敗，因為它是在1997年協商出來的，這個時候全球排放量增長已超過四分之一，而且主要集中在發展中國家。這個協議并沒有限制它們的排放量，如今其排放總量占世界總量的58%，中國自己就占23%，緊隨其后的第二大污染源是美國。由于美國并未簽署協議，因此它的二氧化碳排放是免費的。

　　Developed countries that did ratify Kyoto feel cheated. Japan and Russia have rejected a secondround of emission-cutting under its aegis, after their current commitments expire at the end of2023. Canada, which will hugely overshoot its Kyoto target, is reported to be consideringquitting the treaty altogether. Kyoto is the past, said its environment minister, Peter Kent,before setting out for Durban.

　　簽署《京都議定書》的發達國家覺得吃虧了。日本和俄羅斯拒絕到2023年底他們的現行義務到期后在減排的贊助下進行第二輪減排。據報道即將大幅超過京都排放量限定目標的加拿大將考慮徹底放棄這一協定。加拿大環境保護部官員皮特?肯特在去德班之前就說《京都議定書》已經是過去時了。

　　Climate-change talks

　　氣候變化會談

　　Wilted greenery

　　凋零的青蔥

　　The UNs latest round of climate-change talks open inDurban. Even avoiding deadlock would be anachievement

　　聯合國最新一輪氣候變化會談在德班開幕，這次會談只要不走進死胡同就算不錯了

　　THOUSANDS of anxious environmentalists, hard-eyed negotiators and bemused journalists gatheredin Durban this week for the UNs annual climate-change circus. Saving the planet, the main itemon its agenda two years ago, in Copenhagen, was not uppermost in their minds. Saving thecircus was: the failure in Copenhagen to forge a binding agreement to mitigate the worldscarbon emissions could yet lead to a breakdown of the whole UN process in Durban.

　　本周無數焦慮的環保人士、針鋒相對的談判代表和迷茫的記者在德班聚集，參加聯合國一年一度熱鬧的氣候變化會談。對于他們來說，最重要的不是兩年前在哥本哈根議事日程上的主要議題拯救我們的地球，而是拯救這一次的會談。因為哥本哈根會談沒能打造出有約束力的協議來減少世界二氧化碳排放量，這有可能導致本次聯合國在德班的整個會議進程土崩瓦解。

　　To avoid that, negotiators have until December 9th to reach three goals. Least dauntingly, theymust nail down the details of initiatives agreed on in Cancn last year, chiefly the Green ClimateFund. This aims to help poor countries curb their emissions and adapt to global warming. It issupposed to be stocked with some of the $100 billion that rich countries have promised poorones by 2023.

　　為了避免這種情況，截至到12月9日談判代表必須要達到三個目標。還不那么讓人失望的是，他們必須確定去年坎昆通過的新方案的細節，其中最主要的綠色氣候基金。這項基金的目的在于幫助經濟落后的國家控制二氧化碳排放量以及適應全球變暖。按照富裕國家對貧窮國家的承諾，到2023年，這項基金應該能達到1000億之多。

　　Little actual cash will be proffered in Durban: progress will be limited to working out the detailsof the funds design, including the relative powers of donors and recipients, and to its possiblerole in wooing investment. Even this is contentious, as America wants a bigger role for theprivate sector. But such spats should prove surmountable. Alongside progress on anotherpromised institution, to spread green technology to poor countries, the fund is Durbanslikeliest success.

　　德班會談會提供更少的現金，此次取得的進步僅限于制定出這筆資金計劃用途的細節，包括捐贈國和受贈國的相對實力對比，以及它在吸引投資中可能起到的作用。美國想在私有部門中起到更大的作用，盡管這使這筆款項還存在爭議，但是這樣的小吵小鬧還是可以平息的。加上另外一個前途光明的機構所取得的進步，他們會一起把綠色技術延伸到經濟落后國家。這項資金的建立是德班會談最有可能取得的成功。

　　Much trickier will be reconciling the demands of developing countries for an extension of theUNs Kyoto protocol with the determination of most developed ones to bin it. The worldsonly binding agreement to curb emissions has been a colossal failure. Since it was negotiatedin 1997 global emissions have risen by over a quarter, mostly in developing countries. Thetreaty does not curb their emissions, which are now 58% of the total; China alone isresponsible for 23%. The second-biggest polluter, America, is also free to emit, asit has not ratified the treaty.

　　協調發展中國家的要求，使它們同意大多數發達國家都會拒絕的《京都議定書》的附加條件會變得更加困難。世界上僅有的對控制排放量有約束力的協議經歷了重大的失敗，因為它是在1997年協商出來的，這個時候全球排放量增長已超過四分之一，而且主要集中在發展中國家。這個協議并沒有限制它們的排放量，如今其排放總量占世界總量的58%，中國自己就占23%，緊隨其后的第二大污染源是美國。由于美國并未簽署協議，因此它的二氧化碳排放是免費的。

　　Developed countries that did ratify Kyoto feel cheated. Japan and Russia have rejected a secondround of emission-cutting under its aegis, after their current commitments expire at the end of2023. Canada, which will hugely overshoot its Kyoto target, is reported to be consideringquitting the treaty altogether. Kyoto is the past, said its environment minister, Peter Kent,before setting out for Durban.

　　簽署《京都議定書》的發達國家覺得吃虧了。日本和俄羅斯拒絕到2023年底他們的現行義務到期后在減排的贊助下進行第二輪減排。據報道即將大幅超過京都排放量限定目標的加拿大將考慮徹底放棄這一協定。加拿大環境保護部官員皮特?肯特在去德班之前就說《京都議定書》已經是過去時了。