International Energy Agency said that the global economic crisis will slash carbon emissions in 2009, opening a narrow opportunity to take decisive action on global warming. It added that carbon dioxide emissions could fall by 3% worldwide in 2009 due to the global economic crisis.

Mr Fatih Birol chief IEA economist said at a press conference in Bangkok that he predicted 3% fall in energy related CO2 pollution compared with a year earlier would be the steepest drop in 40 years. He added that the global carbon output up to now has on average grown 3% annually

Mr Birol said that this silver lining drop in carbon pollution was a unique window of opportunity for the world to put itself on a path to limit the increase in global temperatures to 2 degrees Celsius the scientific threshold for dangerous global warming. He added that the recession driven fall would lead to CO2 emissions in 2020 being 5% lower than the IEA forecast from just a year ago, even if no further action is taken to curb global warming.

The IEA estimate is part of its World Energy Outlook report, an excerpt of which was released at UN climate talks under way in the Thai capital. It outlined how steeply countries would have to cut their energy-related carbon emissions over the next 20 years in order fix the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere at a level that would ensure the two degree threshold is not crossed.

The climate talks under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change have been stymied for months, and are running out of time to deliver a new global climate treaty at a December conference in Copenhagen.

(Sourced from www.bangkokbank.com)