Here is FOE’s statement:

“The energy and climate bill that passed the House last summer was one of the biggest pieces of corporate welfare ever to be considered by Congress, with $170 billion in giveaways to polluting industries. Big oil, dirty coal, corporate agribusiness — they all got a piece of the pie. The notion that the bill was onerous on business is laughable. Some of the worst polluters helped write the blueprint the bill was based on.

“Now these greedy corporations are angling for more, and Senator Graham is out to help them. This is special interest politics at its worst, and it is truly appalling. No wonder so many people are turned off by the ways of Washington.

“What’s needed is a bill that is less friendly to corporate polluters, not more. Congress should pass a bill that eliminates offsets and other loopholes, goes further to create clean energy jobs, and is more aggressive about reducing the carbon pollution that threatens our economy.”

Press release from Friends of the Earth.

On the day that the UN Climate talks officially closed, Friends of the Earth International warned against the false conclusion that the UN Climate Conference has adopted the ‘Copenhagen Accord.’

The Copenhagen Accord announced on December 18 by U.S. President Barack Obama was not adopted by delegates to the United Nations climate conference here. Instead, delegates merely ‘noted’ the agreement’s existence, giving it no force whatsoever.

Today rich countries led by the United States are pressuring poorer nations to ditch the UN process and sign onto the Copenhagen Accord. They are threatening poor nations that refuse to sign on with the loss of their share of the $100 billion that rich countries have pledged to compensate for climate impacts the rich countries themselves have caused.

UN officials are struggling to figure out what the Accord even means and how it’s related to the UN process, but what’s is clear is that it was not approved by the 192 countries that are members of the UNFCCC.

By signing onto the Accord, poor countries risk displacing the legitimate negotiation process taking place under the auspices of the UN.

The US is so desperate to claim a Copenhagen success that it is now attempting to destroy the existing climate process and sideline 20 years of real multilateral negotiation.

Nnimmo Bassey, Friends of the Earth International Chair, said:

“First the US came to Copenhagen with nothing new to offer, and now it’s trying to package the weak, flawed, unjust ‘Copenhagen Accord’ as a replacement for the UN process — and armtwist poor countries into signing on.

“President Bush ignored the UN process, now President Obama risks torpedoing it.

“Countries seeking a just and effective solution to climate change should not sign this illegitimate and distracting ‘Copenhagen Accord.’ They should instead ensure a rapid return to the formal UN process to achieve a fair, strong and legally binding agreement as soon as possible within the next year.

“Developing countries have shown real leadership in Copenhagen and must not give up the UNFCCC for the ‘Copenhagen Accord.’ “

See this morning’s Friends of the Earth press release or this Guardian story for more information.

CAN Letter CPH Access 16Dec09

Letter via Hill Heat.

Press release via email.

Members of Friends of the Earth groups from around the world who arrived at the Bella Center this morning to take part as official observers in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change negotiations taking place here were told that their badges were no longer valid.

Friends of the Earth representatives from countries ranging from Nigeria to Japan to Denmark have been taking part in the negotiations over the past two weeks, but when they arrived today all were denied access, despite the fact that they were holding official UN badges as well as secondary admission passes.

Friends of the Earth International Chair Nnimmo Bassey had the following statement:

“We are surprised and shocked that Friends of the Earth member groups from around the world and other non-governmental organizations have been denied access to the negotiations this morning. Our organizations represent millions of people around the world and provide a critical voice on behalf of climate justice inside the UN. We are currently attempting to discuss the situation with the UNFCCC to understand and resolve the situation.”

As of 09:30 am Friends of the Earth representatives were in the main entry lobby near the conference registration desks and available for interviews.

Friends of the Earth:

“It is extremely disconcerting to hear scientists speak about the level of action needed to prevent radical and dangerous climate destabilization, and then to see how far short even one of the most environmentally friendly committees in Congress has fallen.

“While the bill reported out of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee today is in some ways better than the bill that passed the House in June—for example, it protects some important Clean Air Act provisions (others are still eliminated)—it remains a woefully disproportionate response to the tremendous economic, security and public health threats posed by global warming.

“The bill’s backbone is a poorly regulated carbon trading scheme that entrusts the Wall Street bankers who brought us the current economic crisis with the responsibility to solve global warming. The bill showers polluting corporations with billions of dollars, but doesn’t require them to reduce pollution fast enough to avoid devastating climate change impacts. And it contains massive carbon offset loopholes that would allow U.S. polluters to keep polluting by paying for often-non-existent pollution reductions overseas. Other loopholes, such as excluding pollution from bioenergy, also undermine the bill’s intent.

“These flaws are unacceptable, and they are the result of a defective political system in which polluting corporations, Wall Street traders, and their lobbyists continue to exert far too much influence. Too many senators are siding with special interests instead of advocating solutions that are in the public interest. Max Baucus (D-Mont.), who today voted ‘no’ while making the absurdly contradictory claims that he wants to fight climate change but that this bill is too strong, is one such senator.

“Senators John Kerry (D-Mass.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) now appear to be moving forward with an attempt to produce an even weaker bill—one friendlier to the oil, coal and nuclear industries. Senators who wish to be responsible shepherds of their constituents’ tax dollars, as well as stewards of our planet, should reject such giveaways.

“Most Republicans are more closely aligned with Senator James Inhofe (R-Ok.) than Senator Graham. Inhofe is still in denial about basic aspects of climate science. Instead of participating in the legislative process, he threw temper tantrums and boycotted this week’s hearings. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) deserves credit for not yielding to his and other Republicans’ stall tactics.

“The lack of aggressive action by Congress falls far short of the global community’s expectations. People around the world are hoping for U.S. leadership in addressing the climate crisis, but the approach represented by this bill is so weak it could cause international climate negotiations to disintegrate.

“Congress has a tremendous opportunity to strengthen our economy, create millions of green jobs, and stabilize our climate, but that opportunity is being squandered. This must change. In the meantime, the Obama administration must be aggressive and immediately use its legal mandate under the Clean Air Act to crack down on polluters, and forward-thinking state and local officials must also continue advancing their own solutions.”

Full press release from Friends of the Earth, below the fold.

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