Research and Systematic Observation (Agenda Item 6): Intervention by the United States Delegation: Meeting of the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technical Advice

As submitted to UNFCCC Secretariat.

Mr. Chairman, the United States continues to work with its partners to carry out the actions delineated in the “Implementation Plan for the Global Observing System for Climate in Support of the UNFCCC.” Significant shortfalls in both surface-based and space-based observations need to be addressed. Space agencies, through the Committee on Earth Observation Satellites (CEOS), are taking cooperative actions to meet some of these challenges, in particular, the development of Virtual Constellations. We encourage continued close collaboration between CEOS and the Global Climate Observing System (GCOS).

During the past year, the United States continued its support for improving observing systems for climate in developing nations, and we encourage support from other donor countries to further enhance capacity in data sparse regions.

We note with pleasure the continued close collaboration between GCOS and the Group on Earth Observations (GEO) on climate observing activities, including development of the climate sections of the GEO 2007-2009 Work Plan. We encourage continued close collaboration. We congratulate GEO on the highly successful Earth Observation Summit in Cape Town last Friday, November 30, at which ministers recognized early achievements in the development of the Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS) and committed to improved data access and full realization of GEOSS, including the climate component.

The United States thanks the GCOS Secretariat for its “Updated proposal for possible revision of the UNFCCC reporting guidelines on global climate change observing systems.” At its 23^rd Session, SBSTA agreed to revise the UNFCCC reporting guidelines to reflect the priorities of the GCOS Implementation Plan. The draft guidelines are generally acceptable to the United States, and we hope for some movement in this area so that Parties are in a better position to report on their observing system capabilities in the 2008 timeframe.

The United States also thanks the Secretariat of the Global Terrestrial Observing System (GTOS) for its two papers related to “Further progress in the development of guidance materials, standards and reporting guidelines for terrestrial observing systems for climate.” The first paper assesses the status of standards for terrestrial observations, especially the essential climate variables identified by the GCOS Implementation Plan, and addresses the SBSTA-23 request for GTOS "to assess the status of the development of standards for each of the essential climate variables in the terrestrial domain." The United States encourages GTOS to continue with its work of coordinating methodologies and developing standards for the implementation of terrestrial observations. We also encourage parties to facilitate the completion of the work and the adoption of common approaches.

The second GTOS paper offers implementation options for addressing Decision 11/CP.9, which invited GCOS and GTOS "to develop a framework for the preparation of guidance materials, standards and reporting guidelines for terrestrial observing systems for climate, and associated data and products…” 

The United States has some concern with options in the paper that might lead to creation of a new organizational body, for we had expected that GTOS would itself be the primary coordinating body for terrestrial-related climate observations.  The framework requested should be a plan, a way forward, for developing standards and reporting guidelines for terrestrial observations – which GTOS has begun in the first document. 

The United States agrees that parties should support and facilitate further development of guidelines for consensus methodologies and standards, and we encourage parties to maintain and improve their terrestrial observing networks, as we will endeavor to do.  We also encourage parties to work through GTOS to develop harmonized data sets of terrestrial observations for climate, and we strongly encourage the GTOS sponsoring organizations to strengthen their support for GTOS.

Mr. Chairman, thank you very much for the opportunity to address these issues.