New Zealand has made a last-minute commitment to the Copenhagen Accord but in the absence of any international consensus the climate change pact is still not legally binding.

The Government offered its signature to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change on the stroke of the January 31deadline.

International Climate Change Negotiations Minister Tim Groser explains New Zealand’s commitment merely backs the intent of other nations to pick up where negotiations fell apart at the pre-Christmas Copenhagen conference.

“What this accord does is provide a framework for more progress to be made,” he says. Under the Copenhagen Accord developed countries have to submit details of their proposed emissions targets for 2020.

New Zealand has reaffirmed its emissions reduction target of 10-20% below 1990 levels by 2020, based around a number of escape clauses including comparable efforts by other countries and effective rules governing land use change and forestry.

In the event these conditions aren’t met, Groser says New Zealand’s 2020 target will likely be less than stated.

“For our 2020 target to be representative of our fair share, other developed countries will need to set higher targets.” The Government accepts there is little indication that the accord will become legally binding.

The sticking point is that the international negotiations have a two-track process and developing countries do not want to see these replaced by the accord. On the other hand, a number of developed countries say they must merge to achieve a long-lasting and binding agreement.

In a recent speech Groser touched on the need for a new climate treaty with comprehensive, rather than limited, global participation.

“It is clear that UN-style negotiating process alone is unlikely to deliver an effective global agreement in the near future.

“Copenhagen demonstrated that achieving that sort of deal is extraordinarily difficult... the solution to the challenge of climate change is beyond the capacity of the mightiest of countries; international cooperation is the only way forward.”