Asia's spat with the UN!

A UN report which said that enormous brown clouds of pollution over Asia – over India in particular - were killing hundreds of thousands of people has started a bit of a spat. Kapil Sibal, India’s Science and Technoogy Minister was deeply offended and dismissed it as propaganda. While the UN report suggested that the cloud was due to the burning of fossil fuels by countries - traffic, factory emissions and indoor cooking - Mr Sibal hit back with his answer.

'The atmosphere knows no territorial boundaries. So the source of the haze might be the increasing levels of pollution because of the great contribution of the western world," he said.

There are two different opinions here.Greenhouse gas emissions are 1.2 tonnes per capita in India compared with 23 tonnes in the US and 10 tonnes in European countries. But while per capita emissions are low in India, its huge population puts it among the world's top five greenhouse gas emitters. India, like China, says that having to meet binding emission cuts now will prevent it from bringing its people out of poverty as rich countries have already done on the back of industrial growth fuelled by coal, oil and gas.

Per capita income in India, which has over a 1.1 billion population, hovers at just above 700 dollars.

And so the debate continues.

Louise Burfitt-Dons Global Warming Alliance