Japanese climate change plan dismissed

By Chisa Fujioka

MAKUHARI, Japan (Reuters) - Japan wants major emitters to fight climate change by targeting efficiency of industries, a trade ministry official said on Friday, but Britain dismissed it as the wrong approach.

Japan is hosting a three-day meeting of 20 of the world's top greenhouse gas polluters and believes sectoral curbs on major polluting industries such as cement makers and power generators can rein in growing carbon dioxide emissions.

Japan, the world's fifth-largest greenhouse gas emitter, argues nations should share energy efficiency indicators to figure out how much they can cut climate-warming emissions blamed for rising seas, more intense storms and melting glaciers.

"We think it is an approach which all major emitters will be able to take part in," said Toru Ishida, director-general at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry's Bureau for Industrial Science and Technology Policy and Environment.

"It is not putting a sector cap. It's adding up potential volume from each sector," he said in an interview with Reuters.

Full details of Japan's plan have yet to be announced, but introducing energy-saving technologies on a sectoral basis would be in its favour since many of its industries are already relatively energy efficient.

China, India and other developing nations have less cash to upgrade their industries and say rich nations should help them pay for cleaner technology.

"That's not the overall approach that Britain favours," Energy Minister Malcolm Wicks said in an interview in Tokyo on Friday as environment and energy officials from the G20 countries began talks.