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China Looks for an Ethical Consumer Cop-out

Caitlin Chock | Tuesday 1st December 2009

There are continued negotiations and targets being set among the various nations of the World in efforts to help curb carbon gas emissions and in turn help preserve the environment. There are always the subsequent going back and forth between councils and parties and in my opinion the whole political process is generally so drawn out and distressingly slow that by the time anything actually materializes the original problem or topic is either already resolved or has reached a state that is so bad whatever got hashed out isn't enough and needs to be reassessed. I think that's one reason why the state of the world is where it is today; no one can ever seem to take accountability, come to an agreement or compromise and then actually stick to their words, promises, or intentions. Yet, I digress and the main reason I bring this up is that as the meeting up of the nations to discuss the state of our environment and to map out a plan to improve ethical consumption draws nearer there is ongoing turmoil.

One country isn't happy about the speakings of another's leaders and doesn't agree and then it sets off a big chain
reaction that gets everyone up in arms. Recently, Chinese spokesman Yu Qingtai pointed out that he believes it
isn't fair that all countries be held to the same level of accountability for carbon emissions in saying, "Developed
countries should not make requirements of developing countries that are unreasonable." This statement was met with a backlash because while China may fall under the category of a developing country they are also one that is fast growing and also responsible for the most greenhouse gas emissions out of any other country. Yu is hoping that by including his nation in with other developing nations that China will not be held accountable for the amount of reduction standards other developed countries are.

Personally, I think that is a cop out as I don't think it is fair to put China, with its obscene amount of greenhouse
gas emissions in the same category as say Ethiopia who while they are nowhere near one of the leading culprits of
toxic emissions they are suffering under more effects of Global Warming than those that are pumping out more wastes. I think Yu is basing his argument on a technicality; while China may still be termed 'developing' I don't feel that is wholly accurate and that they too should be responsible for curtailing just as much as other key countries. Yet I do agree with a portion of his statement in that the weight of responsibility and then the amount of cut backs necessary should vary among the countries. I think it is only logical that the countries producing the most waste need to cut back the most, and countries that are less pollutant or are without the means to change should be asked less of or be aided by other countries in order to do so.

Being an ethical consumer doesn't stop at your house, your state, or your country. We are all on the Earth together
and I think we need to work together to fix its current state. If that means that serious changes need to be made,
whether you like it or not, Yu, they need to be changed if you are a major player in polluting the air. In closing, I
really don't like politics and for the most part really don't follow up much, and one main reason is that so much of it
is a game and arguments are based around technical terms or looking for little loopholes. People feel free to correct me if I'm wrong because I do not claim to be the most politically savvy person, but I believe in terms of the issues at
hand at the Copenhagen climate summit leaders need to stop hiding behind weak excuses, buckle down, and promise to clean up their acts.

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Kathie Repath 4 December 2009

I agree that China is not at the entry level of developing nations, but it certainly isn't at a per capita level of prosperity that justifies asking most of the population to take a cut in living standards, as the Chinese are mostly poorer than residents of developed countries. I believe much of the tension around transferring technology to China is related to fear that lack of respect for intellectual property may lead Chinese factories to attempt to take over the market in low-emission energy technology, and fear that China will take over even more manufacturing for cost reasons if it is low carbon and wages remain low.

One of the main reasons that China is able to emit so much is that developed world corporations and governments purchase so many manufactured goods there for cost reasons. If we want China to pull their weight, perhaps supply chain carbon accounting standards will help put the onus on those who prefer to buy from China to help with the cost of mitigation there.