Anthony Brunello, deputy secretary of the California Resources Agency, noted that tropical deforestation, which accounts for a large portion of the imbalance of carbon in the atmosphere, will be a major issue in the treaty negotiations. Trees store carbon, and when they are burned, they emit large amounts of carbon dioxide.
"This will be one of the biggest topics in Poland," he said.
Executives from such companies as Pacific Gas & Electric and Wal-Mart will participate in the Beverly Hills confab, along with a broad range of politicians from Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido to Irwandi Yusuf, governor of the Indonesian province of Aceh. Representatives of such wealthy nonprofits as the Nature Conservancy and the Rockefeller Bros. Fund are also on panels.
Schwarzenegger won't be sitting in on the workshops. He will make welcoming remarks, participate in signing ceremonies and take dignitaries on a tour of corporate exhibitors and of the L.A. Auto Show.
Schwarzenegger had invited all 49 other U.S. governors, but only four plan to attend part of the conference: Republican Charlie Crist of Florida and Democrats Rod Blagojevich of Illinois, Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas and Jim Doyle of Wisconsin. In addition, seven others have said they will add their names to the declaration.
Of 31 governors of Mexican states, only Sonora's accepted. Of 10 Canadian premiers invited, only one, from Manitoba, will be at the conference. None of the six Australian premiers, nor any top regional politicians from India or China accepted Schwarzenegger's invitation. But three Brazilian governors and two Indonesian governors will be present.
From a global-warming perspective, it may be fortunate that not all of the 1,400 people Schwarzenegger invited are planning to attend. The Associated Press calculated that the full list would have emitted more than 2,500 metric tons of carbon dioxide in air travel alone.
Schwarzenegger spokeswoman Lisa Page said conference organizers were trying to minimize the carbon footprint of the summit by such measures as using name badges, lunch boxes, plastic utensils and coffee cups made of recycled materials. A private firm, EcoSecurities, is donating offsets for the conference, including payments made for wind farms in China and India.
The governor, known for his fondness for high-polluting Hummers, "is taking thoughtful, thorough steps to offset the carbon footprint of every last piece of this summit," Page said.
Will all the talk promising technology transfer, research cooperation and incentives produce results or just add more hot air? There's no guarantee, but "the declaration is one step," Tutt said. "Going forward, there is an expectation we will follow up."
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margot.roosevelt@ latimes.com
