The interests of profit-hungry and polluting corporations have won at the Durban UN climate talks, Greenpeace said yesterday.

“Polluters won, people lost,” said Greenpeace International’s executive director Kumi Naidoo in a statement.

“Our governments these past two weeks listened to the carbon-intensive polluting corporations, instead of listening to the people who want an end to our dependence on fossil fuels, and real and immediate action on climate change,” said Naidoo.

Earlier yesterday, SA Minister of International Relations Maite Nkoana-Mashabane expressed satisfaction at the outcomes reached after 14 days of deliberation at the 17th UN Conference of Parties (COP17) talks on climate change.

Naidoo criticised the fact that the next treaty on climate change matters would only be implemented in 2020.

“Right now the global climate regime amounts to nothing more than a voluntary deal that’s been put off for a decade.”

Christian Aid spokesperson Mohamed Adow also said the delay in implementation was unacceptable.

“Action against climate change in 2020 will come a decade too late for poor people on the front-line – they urgently need it now.

“Their lives are already ravaged by floods, droughts, failed rains, deadly storms, hunger and disease and we know that these disasters will only get worse.”

Adow said the only “notable achievement” of the Durban talks was the agreement reached that the green climate fund – designed to assist developing countries combat global warming – would soon have staff and an office. But money was still needed to get this fund going.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) said a “new spirit of compromise” was evident between the countries represented at the talks.

ID chief whip Lance Greyling said:“The global stalemate has tentatively been broken, but developed countries need to show that they are determined to make this work.” – Sapa