US must step up climate change negotiations, says Oxfam
29 September 2009
The US must take
measures against climate change after major flooding in the
Philippines, a charity states.
According to Oxfam International, US leadership must
encourage negotiations in Bangkok in order to seal a global treaty
in Copenhagen.
The organisation reports that 330,000 people near capital city
Manila have been displaced by the floods, while disease and hunger
will cause more issues in the coming weeks.
Antonio Hill, Oxfam International senior climate policy adviser,
said: "Either the US lifts its game or the next two weeks in
Bangkok could go down as just a holding pattern before a fatal
nosedive in Copenhagen."
Mr Hill added that, while China, India and Japan have expressed
interest in a global treaty, major nations such as the US and
Australia are impeding progress.
According to the charity, the number of people affected by
climate change could rise 54 per cent to 375 million by 2015.
The organisation also calculated that it would cost around $150
billion (£95 billion) to help people in developing countries adapt
to climate change and reduce their emissions.
Oxfam trains teachers and works with children affected by
conflict in the Philippines.
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