BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | US CO2 emissions 'violate rights'

US CO2 emissions 'violate rights'



"US CO2 emissions 'violate rights'
Catching fish through an ice hole (Image: AP)
Traditional hunting and fishing techniques are at risk from thin ice
A delegation of Inuit has travelled to Washington to argue that the US government's climate change policies violate human rights.

The group has filed a legal petition to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, demanding that the US limits its emission of greenhouse gases.

The Inuit say pollution is contributing to melting ice and thawing permafrost, affecting their way of life.

Temperatures in the Arctic are rising at about twice the global average.

Representatives for Inuit communities living within the Arctic Circle presented evidence to the Commission on Thursday in an attempt to link human-induced climate change to international human rights.

The hearing is the latest stage in the legal process, which began in December 2005 when the petition was filed.

Call for caps

The delegation is being led by Sheila Watt-Cloutier, a former chairwoman of the Inuit Circumpolar Conference, a representative body for Inuit in Alaska, Canada, Greenland and Russia.

Mrs Watt-Cloutier, who has been nominated alongside former US Vice President Al Gore for a Nobel Peace Prize for their work on climate change, was responsible for submitting the petition.
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