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CANBERRA – The Australian Greens say the federal government is making a multibillion dollar mistake by rejecting the Kyoto Protocol on climate change.
A United Nations conference in Canada at the weekend ended with a deal to extend the life of Kyoto.
The 189 nations attending the Montreal talks also agreed to launch a dialogue between Kyoto members and the United States on long-term action for tackling greenhouse gases.
But the federal government remains opposed to what it says is a flawed agreement to battle greenhouse emissions, saying a new framework will succeed where Kyoto has failed.
Environment Minister Ian Campbell insists the debate has "moved on", with no need for the government to ratify Kyoto. Greens Senator Bob Brown says the government is making a costly mistake.
"Ian Campbell is thumbing his nose at everybody else and it's a huge mistake for Australia, a multibillion dollar mistake," Senator Brown said.
"The world is moving on to a post-Kyoto agreement and Australia's being left out. "No one at the conference, except Ian Campbell, was saying publicly that Kyoto has lapsed. "Senator Campbell's talking himself up a back alley and no one's believing his anti-Kyoto mantra except himself."
Labor and conservation groups also say Australia can no longer ignore Kyoto.
Australia and the US are the only industrialised countries to have refused to sign Kyoto, which calls on nations to cut greenhouse emissions by 5.2 per cent below 1990 levels between 2008 and 2012.
The federal government has agreed to limit emissions increases to 108 per cent of 1990 levels over the same period.
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