Bonn - Leading industrialised nations are working to undermine the effectiveness of the world’s only agreement to combat global warming, according to analysis released today by a global coalition of environmental organisations including Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace and WWF.

The Kyoto treaty that is supposed to reduce emissions of global warming pollution by 5 per cent over the coming decade could be twisted to allow OECD emissions to increase by 15-20% per cent.. The environmental movement singles out the United States, Canada, Japan, Australia and New Zealand as the main culprits from among more than 120 nations convening for two weeks of climate talks in Bonn.

"These governments are trying to create the impression that they are moving ahead on climate policies while in reality, in the smoke-filled backrooms of these negotiations, they are systematically attempting to shred every last bit of environmental integrity from the Kyoto Protocol," said Bill Hare of Greenpeace.

The environmental movement remains steadfast in pushing the Kyoto Protocol towards its stated purpose to reduce greenhouse gas emissions as a first step to avoid dangerous climate change. However environmentalists are increasingly concerned that loopholes in the operating rules for the Kyoto Protocol could permit the worst polluters including USA, Japan, Australia, Canada and New Zealand to continue increasing emissions, and avoid domestic efforts. One of the largest loopholes concerns rules for forestry activities. Canada, Japan, Australia, USA, New Zealand, Sweden and France favour rules which would give incentives to chop down old-growth forests and replace them with new plantations from which they can claim pollution cr edits.

The treaty offers enormous flexibility for countries to meet their targets by trading pollution "rights", via projects in each other’s countries and by relying on forests to soak up carbon pollution from the air. Governments now appear determined to stretch this flexibility to breaking point.

"If governments don't pull the helm over, the Kyoto Protocol is headed for the rocks," said Jennifer Morgan of WWF International.

Environmental groups are also pressing to prevent Canada, Japan, France, Australia, the USA, New Zealand and the UK from having nuclear power accepted under the guide of Kyoto's "Clean Development Mechanism".

"These countries are looking out for their own special interests and failing in their duty to take action to prevent dangerous climate change. We are disillusioned with Governments and feel that we have a responsibility to tell the public how bad it really is," said Roda Verheyen of Friends of the Earth.

"The Kyoto Protocol is slowly but surely being destroyed as governments seek to open up loophole after loophole. It would allow them to avoid doing anything to reduce emissions from burning fossil fuels, which is the primary cause of climate change," warned Karla Schoeters of Climate Network Europe.

"Just as surely as we are seeing the world warm, and the first signs of climate disasters ahead like the floods in Mozambique and the big storms in Europe at the end of 1999, the main polluters are trying to escape putting their own house in order," said Mie Asaoka of Kiko Network.