VZCZCXYZ0000
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHMN #0052 0221913
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 221911Z JAN 10
FM AMEMBASSY MONTEVIDEO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0178
INFO MERCOSUR COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS MONTEVIDEO 000052 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: SENV KGHG ENRG UY
SUBJECT: Uruguay Recognizes the Importance of a New Climate Change 
Agreement 
 
REF: STATE 3080 
 
¶1. On January 21, Charge met with Minister of the Environment 
Carlos Colacce and advisor Dr. Daniel Rueda to discuss reftel 
demarche and Uruguay's plans to counter climate change.  Minister 
Colacce, who was present in Copenhagen, noted that although seen by 
many as a failure, the Copenhagen summit represents another step 
forward in the long-term process of dealing with climate change. 
He will make his recommendation to associate with the Copenhagen 
Accord at President Vazquez' January 25 cabinet meeting. 
Currently, Colacce is not aware of any opposition to Uruguay's 
association with the Accord.  Nevertheless, the Minister noted that 
it was premature to count Uruguay in at this time, noting that the 
process seems rushed and that they have been unable to locate a 
final version of the Accord in Spanish.  In the case that Uruguay 
decides to associate, they are currently undecided on the level of 
detail they will report on mitigation goals and targets in Appendix 
II. 
 
 
 
¶2. Colacce mentioned his concern that the Accord's language on 
which countries will be the priorities for adaptation funding 
(specifically mentioning least developed countries, small island 
developing states, and Africa) may rule out Uruguay from receiving 
adaptation funds.  The GOU pointed out that Uruguay is particularly 
vulnerable to the effects of climate change, and should not barred 
from this funding.  Uruguay is a coastal country with over 50 
percent of its population living on the coast, and houses Uruguay's 
tourism industry which makes up 5 percent of GDP, tourism-related 
construction excluded.  Additionally, Uruguay has suffered extreme 
climate variation, resulting in long bouts of droughts and floods, 
which threatens its agricultural industry, which makes up 10 
percent of GPD.  The GOU estimated losses of USD 868 million from 
the six-month drought in 2009, the equivalent to around 1.5 percent 
GDP.  Also, 70 percent of Uruguay's electricity comes from 
hydropower, and during times of drought Uruguay faces severe energy 
shortages. 
 
 
 
¶3. Colacce emphasized that the GOU has been a cooperative 
international partner on climate change, having participated in the 
Convention since its inception, and set voluntary targets for 
emissions cutting even as a developing country.  Uruguay was the 
co-leader of the Ad Hoc Working Group on Long-term Cooperative 
Action under the Convention subcommittee on enhanced action on 
mitigation of climate change in agriculture- the only working group 
that was able to successfully complete and submit a proposal for 
the Accord.  The GOU is also an effective partner for aid in 
general; it is often chosen as a pilot country for programs due to 
its small size, transparent government, and its well-established 
reputation as a responsible executor of international funds.  It is 
currently conducting GEF-funded research on green house gas 
emissions in agriculture and projects for adaptation in coastal 
areas. 
 
 
 
¶4. Colacce and Rueda underlined that the GOU has committed to 
increasing non-traditional renewable energy use for electricity 
from 6 to 15 percent by 2015 through a combination of wind, 
biomass, and solar power.  On February 10 the GOU will release an 
updated national plan following the creation of the National System 
for Climate Change in May 2009, an interagency workgroup dedicated 
to prioritize climate change strategies for the coming years.  The 
plan will outline cross-cutting strategies for the major adaptation 
problems confronting Uruguay including, but not limited to, in the 
agricultural sector, meteorology, water management, land use 
management, and outreach on the effects of climate change. 
 
 
 
¶5. Comment:  Uruguay has been a serious participant in the climate 
change negotiations and can be helpful in G77 discussions in the 
future.  While the GOU has a fairly clear plan on both adaptation 
and mitigation, it will only be able to proceed at a faster pace 
with international cooperation.  Post strongly believes that 
inclusion of Uruguay, in a modest way, in U.S. adaptation and land 
use funding mechanisms, would be an extremely effective means to 
obtain their support in the ongoing negotiating process.  The sums 
can be small, but the recognition that Uruguay is particularly 
vulnerable to increasing climate variability, rise in sea levels, 
and other climate change impacts, will be of tremendous value. 
Embassy Montevideo will continue to seek opportunities to engage 
Uruguay through existing mechanisms such as expert speakers and 
facilitating joint research.  End comment. 
Matthewman