WMO Whistleblower Awarded Nearly $500,000
UN Weather Office Found to have Harassed, Defamed and Wrongfully Terminated Chief Internal Auditor

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND; 7 October 2009 — in what is believed to be its largest judgment to date in its 64 year existence, the International Labour Office Administrative Tribunal (ILOAT) recently ordered the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) to pay its former internal auditor Maria do Rosario Veiga nearly USD$500,000 in exemplary, material and moral damages, lost salary and allowances after it found that she was harassed, defamed and wrongfully terminated by the WMO’s Secretary-General Michel Jarraud and/or other WMO officials in the course of performing her statutory audit duties. The ILOAT’s 70 page Judgment N° 2861 can be found at: http://tinyurl.com/veiga-v-WMO .
Ms. Veiga, 49, a Portuguese/Italian national and experienced professional auditor who had worked for WMO for 4 years, and previously more than 5 years for another UN agency, was suddenly fired in November 2006 after she refused to discontinue her investigations into or otherwise cover-up an internal embezzlement scheme in which some USD$3.5 million was stolen by senior WMO officials and used in part to apparently rig the outcome of the 2003 election of the organisation’s chief executive, which election resulted in the appointment of its current Secretary General, Michel Jarraud, a French national, who at the time had been the WMO’s Deputy Secretary-General.
The WMO is a UN specialized agency headquartered in Geneva, and is the co-founder and sponsor of the UN’s global warming body, UNIPCC. In April 2007, nine US Congressmen wrote a letter to the US Comptroller General, demanding that he conduct an investigation into Ms Veiga’s termination as well as her whistleblower claims, citing the US government’s contribution to the WMO of more than USD$10 million over the prior decade. Such request was ignored by the then UN Comptroller General who was interestingly elected to the Independent Audit Advisory Committee (IAAC) of the United Nations later in 2007, and no such investigation ever took place. As of the present date, none of the senior WMO officials responsible for the actions that led to the recent ILOAT award have been sanctioned or punished. Despite wide press coverage of Ms. Veiga’s allegations, and the initiation of a criminal corruption investigation by the Geneva Attorney General, in early 2007 Mr. Jarraud was over-whelmingly elected to another term by the WMO Congress.
In a companion case, Judgment N° 2742, decided in July 2008, the ILOAT awarded Ms. Veiga CHF 79,000, bringing her total award paid by WMO from its public funds to more than USD$ 550,000. As the ILOAT refused to order Ms. Veiga’s reinstatement or otherwise compensate her for lost future earnings, she intends to pursue her rights to be made whole through several companion claims that include a criminal complaint pending against her harassers in Geneva, an alien tort claims act pending before the US Federal Appeals Court of the 2nd Circuit, and a claim before the European Court of Human Rights challenging the WMO’s immunity from Swiss law.

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The final details of the Government’s scheme to save organisations money on fuel bills and to reduce carbon emissions have been unveiled today by the Department of Energy and Climate Change.

The Carbon Reduction Commitment Energy Efficiency Scheme is a new regulatory incentive to improve energy efficiency in large public and private sector organisations. Large energy users in business and the public sector will be required to take part in the scheme from 1st April 2010.

Following extensive consultation with businesses and trade bodies, DECC has made some improvements to the scheme:

• To smooth the introduction of the scheme and to help ease the upfront costs, organisations will only have to report emissions in the first year (2010/11). In subsequent years organisations will have to buy allowances corresponding to their emissions from energy use, and then surrender them by the end of the year.
• In the second year (2011/12) extra weighting will be given to organisations which take action early to improve energy efficiency.
• Recognition will be given to organisations which use onsite renewable energy like wind turbines or solar panels by publishing the increased carbon savings from such measures.
• Organisations will be given greater flexibility in how they participate. Subsidiaries who are large enough to qualify in own right (at least 6000MWh) may opt to do so separately from their organisational group.
• Given the primary focus of the scheme is energy efficiency, the CRC will now be known as CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme.

The CRC will help to ensure that large organisations play their full role in contributing to our emissions reductions of at least 34% on 1990 levels by 2020 through improved energy efficiency.

The scheme is mandatory and will save participants around £1billion per year by 2020 through cost effective energy efficiency measures that are not yet being taken up.

By 2020 the scheme is expected to have delivered emissions savings of at least 4.4 Mt CO2 per year.

The scheme will target organisations whose annual half hourly metered (HHM) electricity use is at least 6,000 Megawatt hours (MWh) will qualify for the scheme – typically those that spend £0.5 million a year on electricity. The Environment Agency will publish the qualification and registration guidance for potential CRC participants by November.

The basic timeline for CRC remains;

First phase – The three year ‘Introductory Phase’ starts in April 2010. An unlimited number of allowances will be available at a fixed price of £12/tCO2. From the second compliance year onwards, participants will annually have to purchase allowances, monitor energy use, report emissions and surrender allowances. Participants will also receive a revenue recycling payment each year.

Phase 2 –From 2013 Government will cap the number of allowances available each year and all allowances will be auctioned. The cap will be set taking into account advice from the Committee on Climate Change which they will provide in 2010.

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Case Studies

The below organisations fall within the remit for CRC and would be happy to be contacted for media purposes;

• HILTON HOTELS
  Press Office contacts 020 7856 8076 or email: Jules.Kerby@hilton.com
• GUY’S AND ST THOMAS’ NHS FOUNDATION TRUST
  Press Office contacts 020 7188 5577 or email: press@gstt.nhs.uk
• THE NATIONAL THEATRE
  Press Office contact details: 020 7452 3235 or email:   press@nationaltheatre.org.uk
• LONDON FIRE BRIGADE
  Press Office contacts: 020 8536 5922 or email: press@london-fire.gov.uk

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The warning comes from sustainability experts Envirowise and follows research which found that 70% of sustainability specialists consider the threat of dwindling water supplies to be equal to the impact of carbon emissions, while 54% believe the world will run out of water before it runs out of fuel1.

It is predicted that UK groundwater will begin to decrease by 2025, with the overall amount of water available in English and Welsh rivers reducing by 15 per cent by 20502.

In London, the issue is a particularly pressing one – the Environment Agency has identified the region as under serious water stress3, highlighting the need for water efficiency measures to be implemented. In addition, many companies could face changes to licences granted to allow water abstraction as result of the Water Act 20034.

Sophie Greenhalgh, Envirowise Regional Manager for London, said: “Water is set to become one of the most dramatically affected resources as the impact of climate change takes hold, but many businesses are not aware of the steps they can take to mitigate against this risk.

”Companies in the capital should explore practical steps including water saving devices and water recovery and reuse technology such as membrane filtration systems, which enable a large proportion of wastewater to be reused for processes such as heating, cooling and cleaning. This can result in major cost savings through lower mains water and disposal charges, as well as an enhanced environmental reputation with customers and investors.

“Taking such action now could not only pay enormous dividends in future years, it can also lead to short-term benefits. In fact, recent Envirowise research5 revealed that UK companies could be missing out on combined savings of up to £10 million per day by failing to make changes in this area.”

UK businesses which pay income or corporation tax can also claim tax relief on recovery and reuse systems and water saving devices through the Water Technology List (WTL), which is managed by Defra and HM Revenue & Customs in partnership with Envirowise as part of the Enhanced Capital Allowance (ECA) scheme for water-efficient technology.

Further information on the benefits of reducing water usage is available at www.envirowise.gov.uk.
ENDS

Issued on behalf of Envirowise and the WTL by Trimedia. For further media information please contact Abi Dare or Davinia Livock on 0117 929 2311.

Notes to editors

1) Statistics taken from http://environment-analyst.com/downloads/Water-survey-press-release.PDF, issue by WSP Energy & Environment, September 2009
2) Statistics taken from ‘Water for people and the environment: Water Resources Strategy for England and Wales’, Environment Agency, March 2009
3) From ‘Water resources in England and Wales – current state and future pressures’, Environment Agency, December 2008 (http://publications.environment-agency.gov.uk/pdf/GEHO1208BPAS-e-e.pdf)
4) ‘The Water Act 2003: Modernising the Regulation of Water Resources’, published by the Environment Agency and available at http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/static/documents/Business/water_act_leaflet_833646.pdf
5) Estimate based on data taken from ‘A Review of Water Use in Industry and Commerce’ Addendum Report, Envirowise, March 2008

About Envirowise:
Envirowise is a Government-funded programme dedicated to putting the sustainable use of resources at the heart of UK business practice.

Since 1994 Envirowise has helped UK businesses save over £1bn by enabling them to significantly reduce their environmental footprints.

Envirowise offers businesses of all sizes and sectors a wide range of free, independent and practical advice designed to genuinely improve their processes, profitability and competitiveness. Services include:

• The Envirowise Advice Line on 0800 585794
• An encyclopaedic website (www.envirowise.gov.uk) of valuable and relevant information
• Over 200 events each year, from Product Design Workshops to major exhibitions

About the WTL:
Managed by Defra and HM Revenue & Customs in partnership with Envirowise, the WTL provides a selection of water efficient products that meet published eligibility criteria. The web-based list, available at www.eca-water.gov.uk, is part of the Enhanced Capital Allowance (ECA) scheme for water saving technologies, enabling UK businesses which pay income or corporation tax to claim 100 per cent first-year capital allowances when they purchase listed products for use in their business. This provides a helpful cash flow boost and results in a shortened payback period, allowing companies to quickly reap the financial benefits of water efficiency.

Since its launch in 2003, the WTL has grown to encompass more than 1,800 products which qualify for tax relief. These cover categories ranging from efficient taps and toilets to membrane filtration systems, mechanical seals, efficient washing machines and vehicle wash reclaim units.

http://www.envirowise.gov.uk

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Met Office Hadley Centre scientists investigated how often decades with a neutral trend in global mean temperature occurred in computer modelled climate change simulations. They found that despite continued increases in greenhouse gas concentrations, a single-decade hiatus in warming occurs relatively often.

Jeff Knight, the article’s lead author, commented: “We found about 1 in every 8 decades has near-zero or negative global temperature trends in simulations which would otherwise warm at expected present-day rates. Given that we have seen fairly consistent global warming since the 1970s, these odds suggest the observed slowdown was due to occur.”

But why do these anomalies occur at all, whether in climate models or in reality? The answer lies in something called ‘internal climate variability’ — the capacity for slow natural variations in the oceans to temporarily modify climate. Computer models used to make climate predictions reproduce this intrinsic character of our climate because they successfully represent many of the necessary fundamental climate processes.

One such internal fluctuation over the last decade could have been enough to mask the expected global temperature rise. However, the Met Office’s decadal forecast predicts renewed warming after 2010 with about half of the years to 2015 likely to be warmer globally than the current warmest year on record.

Commenting on the new study, Vicky Pope, Head of Climate Change Advice at the Met Office said, “Decades like 1999–2008 occur quite frequently in our climate change simulations, but the underlying trend of increasing temperature remains. We cannot be complacent. Indeed, other signals of climate change are increasing as fast, or even faster than ever due to the combined effects of global warming and natural variability — the rapid loss of summer Arctic sea ice is one such example. Early action to reduce the extent and impacts of climate change remains vital.”

ENDS

Notes to editors

For further information contact Met Office Press Office 01392 886655 or email pressoffice@metoffice.gov.uk

Notes:

· The Met Office Hadley Centre is the UK’s foremost centre for climate change research. Mainly funded by DECC (the Department of Energy and Climate Change), Defra (the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) and the Ministry of Defence, it provides information and advice to the UK Government on climate change issues.

· The American Meteorological Society (www.ametsoc.org) is the USA’s premier scientific organisation for those involved in the atmospheric and related sciences.

· To request a copy of the paper, send your name, organization, and phone number to Stephanie Kenitzer at kenitzer@ametsoc.org

· ‘Do Global Temperature Trends Over the Last Decade Falsify Climate Predictions’ by J. Knight, J.J. Kenney, C. Folland, G. Harris, G.S. Jones, M. Palmer, D. Parker, A. Scaife, and P. Stott is published in a supplement to the August issue of the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society
Contacts

NDS Enquiries
Phone: For enquiries please contact the above department
ndsenquiries@coi.gsi.gov.uk

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“While the Greens have suggested slowing down controversial cuts to tree protection, National are hell bent on fast tracking changes. They are using urgency in Parliament and are moving an amendment that will remove tree protection almost immediately,” Green Party Co-Leader Russel Norman said today.

“Ring fencing tree protection – not the ring barking approach taken by the Government – is what’s needed. Sadly the Labour Party has decided to vote for this bill which weakens environmental protection.”

Trees bring a city to life, and are an important amenity for residents, but the Government seems intent on taking that away from the public, Dr Norman said.

The Resource Management (Streamlining and Simplifying) Amendment Bill will be debated under urgency in Parliament this week. Clause 52 of the Bill bans all general tree protection rules from 2012. Only trees specified in a Council’s plan will be protected.

In a last minute amendment, the Government will bring forward the removal of protection from trimming from three years away in 2012 to just three weeks away.

“The Government shows extreme arrogance by fast tracking removal of protection for our cities’ beautiful trees, allowing anyone to hack away at them from 1 October this year,” Dr Norman said.

The Green Party will table amendments today to protect Auckland’s trees, including compromise options and new ministerial powers to permit general rules protecting types of trees, i.e. all pohutukawa on the Auckland City coastline.

“Trees clean the air, provide a home for birds, and make cities like Auckland great places to live, work and play. Why on earth would we want to allow them to be axed?”

Aside from reducing tree protection, the bill also cuts environmental protection and community participation in a number of ways.

* Link to the Green Party’s minority report on the Bill: http://www.greens.org.nz/misc-documents/green-party-minority-report-resource-management-simplifying-and-streamlining-amendmen

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The petition will ask the Government to halt any plans for mining New Zealand’s most highly-protected land and water.

“Kiwis who care about their natural treasures can tell the National Party that they don’t want mining in our most highly valued places,” Green Party Co-leader Metiria Turei said today.

The Government has announced plans to do a ’stock take’ of the mineral deposits in public conservation areas currently protected from mining in Schedule 4 of the Crown Minerals Act. Schedule 4 areas include wildlife sanctuaries, national parks, marine reserves, and wetlands of international importance.

The Government has also instructed Crown Minerals officials to look at what areas should be taken out of Schedule 4 in order to open them up for mining.

“Even the economics of mining don’t add up,” Mrs Turei said. “The financial value of protected land is in the perpetual fresh water, flood protection and other ecoservices that far outweigh the one-off and environmentally-damaging mineral revenues.

“Mining would also risk thousands of Kiwi jobs that rely on our tourism industry.”

The national parks, reserves and sanctuaries were also part of New Zealanders’ heritage, Mrs Turei noted: “Thousands of Kiwis have invested countless volunteer hours and dollars to protect these places. That heritage should be passed on to our kids not destroyed for short term profit.”

Meanwhile,the Government’s search for coal and lignite was also out of step with the world’s shift to renewable energy sources, Mrs Turei said.

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“Far from choosing the most cost effective option, the Government is planning for failure, with kiwis picking up the tab,” said Jeanette Fitzsimons, Green Party Climate Change Spokesperson.

“It will see our emissions continue to climb unchecked, with no incentive to reduce them.

“Kiwis will have to pay for their own emissions up front via their electricity and petrol bills, and then pay for those of our largest polluters, via their taxes.”

The Report of the Emissions Trading Scheme Review Committee shows that National’s plan is for polluters to get more free credits the more they pollute, and for a price cap to be put on carbon, shutting forestry out of the market.

“The current ETS will become the sceptic’s ETS, as only the Act Party could support intensity based allocation,” Ms Fitzsimons said.

“What the Government is proposing is the biggest wealth transfer in New Zealand history from the taxpayer to the big polluters.

“It would be easier and cheaper if the National Party just wrote some big cheques and handed them to our largest foreign-owned companies.

“It is an outrage that a scheme meant to tackle the most pressing issue of our generation has been high jacked to line the pockets of the wealthy corporations, rather than protect the most vulnerable, our children.

“The Green Party had great difficulty supporting the weak scheme put forward by Labour. It will be much easier to reject this time around,” Ms Fitzsimons said.

For the full report back to the House, (see page 66):
http://www.parliament.nz/NR/rdonlyres/83AC973B-6FDE-4260-846E-E7CCFBD3FE…

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The Earth is home to countless living things, all of whom depend for their continued existence on the extent to which we provide for their sustained presence. The key to all our survival is the extent to which we learn the lessons of the ancients, who knew when to sow and when to reap, when to leave a field to “lie fallow”. Modern man has fallen in love with his power, and in the course of his time, he has unlearned the balance he inherited.

The purpose of Equilibrium is to help remind us all that we can relearn that way of treating our collective home, despite our record of forgetfulness. We will challenge man to build his environment in balance with the ecosystems of the planet.
Patrick A Rahming

This site is the personal project of Patrick A Rahming.

Patrick Rahming, has a special commitment to the cultural and economic development of the Caribbean.

For more than thirty years, his Architectural practice has focused on the Bahamas. This focus has made Mr. Rahming a multiple recipient of the Governor-General Award for Design Excellence.

Visit the site here

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The government launched a consultation today on revising insolvency rules to help businesses facing financial difficulties.

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The 160-page “Copenhagen Climate Treaty”, which will be distributed to negotiators from 192 states, took some of the world’s most experienced climate NGOs almost a year to write and contains a full legal text covering all the main elements needed to provide the world with a fair and ambitious agreement that keeps climate change impacts below the unacceptable risk levels identified by most scientists.

“This is the first time in history that a coalition of civil society groups has taken such a step. Together we have produced the most coherent legal document to date showing balanced and credible climate solutions based on equity and science,” said Kim Carstensen, head of WWF’s Global Climate Initiative.

The document describes the path the world must be on to avoid catastrophic climate change, recognizing that global temperature increase must be kept well below 2 degrees Celsius. It sets a global cap on emissions – a carbon budget – and explains in detail how both industrialized and developing countries can contribute to the safety of the planet and its people, according to their means and responsibilities and shows how the poorest and most vulnerable on the planet can be protected and compensated.

“We have put protection of the climate and therefore the planet and its people at the heart of this Treaty and we should expect and demand no less of our governments,” said Martin Kaiser of Greenpeace International. “All that is needed now is political will and the ‘cut and paste’ feature to produce the agreement the world is waiting for.”

Adaptation is another key component of the Treaty outlining an Adaptation Action Framework which includes grants, insurance and compensation for the most vulnerable countries.

“Help for the poor and vulnerable to deal with the climate impacts that are unavoidable is crucial. Without a strong, effective deal in Copenhagen we could also be looking at more resource wars, disruption, refugees and natural catastrophes in the very near future,” said Wael Hmaidan, IndyACT.

The Treaty calls for a legally binding agreement consisting of three parts: the Kyoto Protocol updated to strengthen industrialized country obligations; a new Copenhagen Protocol that has legally binding commitments for the USA and sets out low carbon pathways for developing countries, supported by the industrialized world; and a set of decisions that lays the groundwork for the next three years.

The “Copenhagen Climate Treaty” was drafted by Greenpeace, WWF, IndyACT – the League of Independent Activists, Germanwatch, David Suzuki Foundation, National Ecological Centre of Ukraine and expert individuals from around the world.

Notes to Editors:
The Copenhagen Climate Treaty includes:

• The annual global carbon budget in 2020 from all sources of greenhouse gases
  (not counting those controlled by the Montréal Protocol) would be no higher than 36.1 Gt CO2e, bringing emissions down to roughly1990 levels and would need to be reduced to 7.2 Gt CO2e in 2050, in other words by 80% below 1990 levels.
• A design proposal for a new institution – the Copenhagen Climate Facility – to manage the processes for emissions cuts, adaptation and forest protection under the new global treaty.
• A recipe for long-term action plans for both developed countries (Zero Carbon Action Plans, ZCAPs) and developing countries (Low Carbon Action Plans, LCAPs).
• Binding targets for Newly Industrialized Countries (NICs) like Singapore, South Korea and Saudi Arabia in line with the Convention principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities

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