Copenhagen, Dec 9, 2009 11:28 am

Tuvalu addressed the plenary this morning, re-presenting a proposal for adding an additional protocol to the Kyoto protocol, and calling for a 1.5 degree celsius maximum temperature increase target and a green house gas stabilization limit target of 350 ppm.

Excerpt from Tuvalu’s address:
“Tuvalu, being one of the most vulnerable countries in the world to the impacts of climate change is honored and pleased to speak on this agenda item. Our future depends upon the outcome of this meeting. ”

“As parties are aware, Tuvalu has proposed a legally binding protocol to be incorporated under the COP. This protocol is not a replacement of the Kyoto protocol, we believe it should complement the ongoing Kyoto protocol. We have proposed amendments to the Kyoto protocal to make this clear. this The proposal for a new protocal was tabled six months ago. Therefore this is not a last minute matter. All parties have had a chance to read this proposal, and let me explain some of the key elements of the protocal.”

“Our protocal proposal follows closely the elements on the Bali action plan. It has a section on shared vision. It highlights the importance that actions to address climate to address climate change must aim to insure that global temperature increases are well below 1.5 degrees Celsius and that green house gas concentrations must stabilize at 350 parts per million at the most. Our survival is contingent upon these numbers. It’s a matter of survival.”

Senegal voices support for the Tuvalu proposal “as the only way of paying back the climate debt, which is the result of unlimited exploitation of natural resources”.