China-EU workshop on climate change opens

BEIJING, Nov. 14 (Xinhuanet) -- A China-EU workshop on climate change opened here Monday, aiming to further cooperation in the fight against climate change.

"The workshop shows the commitment to translate the recently agreed partnership into concrete action," said France Jessen, deputy head of the European Commission's delegation to China, at the opening ceremony.

The two-day workshop focuses on the Kyoto Protocal's clean development mechanism (CDM), which envisages emission-saving projects in developing countries, and emissions trading, as tools to combat climate change through cost-effective actions.

More than 100 officials and entrepreneurs from China and EU will also discuss a number of key issues in preparation for the upcoming UN climate change conference in Montreal, Canada, including CDM promotion.

In September this year, China and EU issued a joint declarationon climate change, agreeing to establish a partnership and jointly promote the implementation of CDM.

They also encouraged enterprises from both sides to participatein the cooperation of CDM projects.

China has issued rules to manage CDM projects and up to date, eight CDM projects in the country have been officially approved with four undergoing approval procedures.

"China has a great potential in the CDM market," said Zhu Guangyao, deputy director general of China's State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA), acknowledging that the market is far from mature.

He said he hoped that the workshop will provide constructive proposals on developing the market, so as to further promote China-EU cooperation.

The workshop was co-sponsored by SEPA and the European Commission Directorate of Environment