Moscow to Host World Climate Change Conference

From September 9th till October 3rd Moscow will host the World Conference on Climate Change, held on the initiative of Russian President Vladimir Putin, with the support of the UN and G8 leaders.

The news was announced at a press conference by the organising committee's representative, director of the Global Climate and Ecology Institute of the Meteorological Office of the Russian Academy of Sciences, academician Yuri Izrael.

The conference's topicality lies in the recent steady trend in world climate changes, he said. Scientific observations show that over the past 100 years the average air temperature on the Earth has grown by 0.6 degree, and "this has already led to certain consequences" in the life of human community, Izrael pointed out.

Moreover, the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has increased by 31 per cent over 100 years and is still rising. This is a result of human activities, as carbon dioxide concentration rises after burning organic fuel, the scientist explained.

In this connection, it is necessary to hold a broad discussion of the current knowledge of the climate and its changes, he emphasised. The conference will also touch upon practical measures of governments to adjust for the current changes and to reduce man's impact on the climate.

The conference participants can work out corresponding recommendations to their governments. However, the conference will not adopt "any political decisions, protocols or conventions, like the Kyoto one", Izrael underlined. The discussion will be mainly scientific and not political.

About 1,200 people representing governments, scientific communities and business circles of many countries are expected to attend the conference. 52 countries and 7 international organisations have already applied for participation.

The organising committee is headed by Russian Deputy Prime Minister, Agriculture Minister Alexei Gordeyev.