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Copenhagen climate conference

Global Insight: Was G8 more than hot air?

By Fiona Harvey, Environment Correspondent

Published: July 15 2009 17:20 | Last updated: July 15 2009 17:20

All international climate change meetings, like all political careers, end in failure.

In a sense, it cannot be otherwise. Climate science has become much more certain in recent years, with a growing consensus that global greenhouse gas emissions must peak by between 2015 and 2020 to avoid the worst effects of warming. Yet such a level of action is next to impossible for governments to agree, especially given the atmosphere of suspicion that prevails between rich and poor nations over the course to pursue.

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