Climate meeting to discuss costs of emissions cut

The costs of cutting greenhouse gases and who will pay for doing it are likely to be the key issues at a major UN-backed climate change meeting of scientists and diplomats in the Thai capital this week, participants said yesterday.

Some of the world's biggest greenhouse gas emitters like the US and Australia and top oil exporters such as Saudi Arabia will try to water down language in a draft report, obtained by media earlier this month, that suggests reducing emissions could cost less than 3 percent of annual global economic activity, environmental activists said.

"Cost will be on everybody's mind," said environmental protection group WWF International's Martin Hiller. "Changing the energy system is costly but we can still afford to do it. The cost for doing nothing is staggering and could be up to 20 times more expensive."