The Economic Times: The UN climate change talks in Durban Sunday arrived at a four-pronged Durban Package to save the planet by controlling emission of greenhouse gases.

The main outcome of the Durban talks:

To extend the Kyoto Protocol: To extend for another five years the Kyoto Protocol – the only regime to combat climate change, that is due to end 2012. The parties to Kyoto are divided into two camps – Annex 1 countries — rich countries who are supposed to take legally binding emission cuts — and the non-Annex 1 nations — developing countries who have to make voluntary cuts. The second term of the Kyoto protocol will begin Jan 1, 2013.

Long-Term Cooperation (LCA) actions: These are the long term collective action by countries to fight climate change. At the Durban talks, India scored a major victory when the LCA text accepted India’s demand of equity — or equitable access to sustainable development for developing countries without being hindered by emission cuts. The LCA text recommendations have to be debated before the next meet.

Green climate fund (GCF): During the 2010 Cancun meet, rich countries agreed to provide $100 billion as GCF to help poor countries take measures to adapt to climate change. Though there is no money, a committee has been set up to start the process of figuring out contributions from countries.

It has been agreed that the fund will be controlled by the conference of parties (CoP) to the climate convention. It will have 24 members, equally from developed and developing countries.

Future of the Climate Change Regime: The Durban conference agreed to launch a process to develop a “protocol”, or come out with a new treaty under which all the countries will have to take legal emission cuts. It was agreed that the new regime should be completed by 2015, so that this new agreement can be implemented from 2020.

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