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RUEHZN/ENVIRONMENT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 GENEVA 000448 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR IO, OES/EGC, OES/ENV, EEB 
STATE PASS TO NOAA, NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE, 
STATE PASS TO OSTP AID/EGAT, NATIONAL SCIENCE COUNCIL, EPA 
PARIS PASS TO AMCONSUL FOR MONACO 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ECON SENV WMO
SUBJECT: BRIDGING WEATHER TO CLIMATE - OES DAS REIFSNYDER MEETINGS 
WITH WMO ON LEAD-UP TO WCC3 
 
¶1. SUMMARY:  Dan Reifsnyder, OES Deputy Assistant Secretary for 
Environment and Sustainable Development, met with the World 
Meteorology Organization's (WMO) Secretary General Michel Jarraud to 
discuss progress on the upcoming World Climate Conference 3 (WCC3). 
In a far-reaching conversation Jarraud touched on the key message of 
the WCC3, noted possible high-level participants, reported on the 
state of Group Earth Observations (GEO) and opined on a future World 
Environmental Organization.  In another meeting, GEO Director 
Achache commented on the future of GEO and its role in WCC3. END 
SUMMARY 
 
The World Climate Conference Three 
---------------------------------- 
¶2. At a meeting on May 13, WMO SG Jarraud noted that the previous 
World Climate Conferences in 1979 and 1990 had resulted indirectly 
in the IPCC and the UNFCCC.  While the previous conferences had 
covered science and policy respectively, Jarraud characterized the 
goal of WCC3 as one of supporting decision-makers to manage risk 
over a period of decades in the context of climate uncertainty.  In 
particular, Jarraud spoke of two key areas that would benefit from 
the discussion and outcome of the WCC3: Disaster Prevention and 
Adaptation.  For example, decision makers in the area of food 
security need to know if climate variability will affect the El Nino 
cycle, and what that means for weather patterns in their region.  A 
robust support mechanism requires strengthened short-term, seasonal 
and decadal forecasting and better dissemination of climate 
information to all socio-economic sectors.   "The tricky part," said 
Jarraud, "is how to attract funding for Meteorological Services." 
He made the point that, "Improved near-term forecasting could 
benefit social services; money into Met services is an investment." 
 
¶3.  The private sector is also a key beneficiary of improved climate 
services.  Decision-makers in the private sector, in particular the 
insurance and reinsurance industry, transportation and the 
commodities sector, could all benefit from short-term climate 
information.  A more accessible mechanism for accessing short-term 
climate information in commodities agriculture might help level the 
playing field for developing countries and emerging economies 
competing in global agricultural markets. 
 
¶4.  Jarraud emphasized that no country can manage alone the risks 
associated with climate variability.  He advocated for Regional 
Climate Centers and Networks as well as organized Regional Climate 
Outlook Fora to address both improved climate data collection and 
sharing.  Jarraud noted that currently the regional climate fora are 
useful, but ad hoc and consequently their importance to the climate 
change discussion is not recognized or utilized by decision-makers. 
Reifsnyder urged Jarraud to make the importance of the Climate 
Centers and Fora a key message of WCC3, and Jarraud concurred. 
 
¶5.  Regarding the level of representation expected at the WCC3, 
Jarraud made it clear that he would be happy with 5 to 10 high-level 
leaders.  He said that, ideally, he would like representation from 
an assortment of States such as a Sahalian, a small island 
developing country and a land-locked country.  Jarraud is selling 
the WCC3 by reminding Heads of State that if they save their message 
for COP 15 in Copenhagen, their voice will be one of hundreds, 
whereas if they attend the WCC3 they will have a focused, attentive 
global platform that precedes the COP.  He is working his extensive 
connections, and expects the President of Iceland and the Prince of 
Orange (Netherlands) to attend.  He is also fairly certain that a 
member of the Spanish Royal family and the Prince of Monaco will 
also participate.  The Presidents of Burkino Faso and Mali have 
indicated their interest, as well as a Chinese Vice-Premier with the 
meteorology portfolio.  He confessed that he is lacking at present 
high-level representation from Latin America.  Secretary General Ban 
will open the WCC3. 
 
Group Earth Observations 
------------------------ 
¶6.  Jarraud noted that the Group Earth Observations (GEO) and the 
Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS) greatly benefited 
from the advocacy of former NOAA Administrator Lautenbacher, and 
feared that their future was uncertain in the absence of a strong 
proponent.   He thought GEO had raised the visibility of the need 
for earth observations, but that it has not succeeded in generating 
additional data and has so far fallen short of its goal of 
 
GENEVA 00000448  002 OF 002 
 
 
supporting new observations.   Jarraud gave full credit to GEO for 
spawning the WMO Observation Program, which he feels is successful. 
 
A Global Environment Organization? 
---------------------------------- 
¶7. Discussion on the idea of a Global Environment Organization came 
about as Jarraud noted that the WCC3 is not so much a WMO conference 
as one that represents multi-stakeholders from the UN as well as 
NGOs, the private sector and academia.  Jarraud flatly stated that 
he is not a proponent of a UN Environment Organization.  He 
explained that, in thinking about the challenge of coordinating UN 
organizations he characterizes each of them - FAO, WHO, UNESCO, etc. 
- as a "column."   The challenge of UN coordination, he says, is a 
"matrix managing problem that would not be solved by changing the 
topology of the problem; by exchanging columns for lines," as a 
unified Global Environment Organization would do.  He went on to say 
that UN coordination would be better served by identifying the 
weakest points and the programs that should be strengthened.   He 
noted that linking some of the multilateral environmental agreements 
and having fewer secretariats would strengthen environmental 
governance. 
 
¶8.  Still echoing the underlying theme of WCC3 as a conference for 
decision-makers, Jarraud went on to opine that it is important to 
separate the task of decision-making from the task of supporting the 
decision-maker, i.e. the provider of the information; these areas 
should be "complementary, but not overlapping."  He gave the example 
of the IPCC - a support group, which is not part of the UNFCCC - a 
decision group, noting that had they been integrated climate 
skeptics would have had a target; when, in fact, the separation has 
allowed the IPCC to work with credibility and acclaim. 
 
GEO Thoughts on WCC3 
--------------------- 
¶9.  Reifsnyder also met with GEO Director, Jose Achache who noted 
that without strong U.S. leadership GEO might eventually be dropped 
in favor of GEOSS, which is seeing steady contributions from the EU 
and, he predicted, "may become an EU/Africa/Chinese project." 
 
¶10.  Regarding the WCC3, Achache emphasized that the proposed 
deliverable should reinforce GEO activities rather than duplicate 
them. WCC3 is focusing on climate services at the regional and 
near-term scale.  Achache pointed to the need for shared data in 
order to make more accurate seasonal data and questioned whether 
many countries were willing to share data for regional forecasting. 
In the absence of a better data stream, Achache questioned WMO's 
ability to produce more accurate seasonal forecasting for 
decision-makers.  He went on to say, "Our capacity to predict 12 
months ahead is probably as good as an economist's, but politicians 
influence economics more than climate."  Reifsnyder pointed out that 
people understand every-day weather forecasting and even the 
long-term climate predictions of the IPCC, but the WCC3's focus on 
seasonal and near-term forecasting was necessary to bridge the gap 
between weather and climate.  He encouraged Achache to think in 
terms of a seasonal climate information product - for example, a 
regional climate almanac - that could be easily accessed and applied 
locally by farmers and other decision-makers whose very reliance on 
the product would reinforce funding for GEO and other climate 
programs and, consequently, more accurate forecasting. 
 
Comment 
-------- 
¶11.  As SecGen Jarraud notes, WCC3 will be a WMO hosted event but is 
entirely cross-cutting in nature.  It will succeed if it attracts 
high-level participants from multiple disciplines, not just met 
services or environment ministers, although these may be in the 
majority.  Jarraud is also canny in his observation that Heads of 
State/Government and other high-level reps have a golden opportunity 
in WCC3 to get this message across because the field will be much 
smaller than at the Copenhagen Climate Conference in December and 
the timing - on the way to Copenhagen - will be auspicious. 
STORELLA #