Apparently Brits are good at queueing, but day two of a 6am start and minus temperatures was a real test of character. Today the saga continued with many having queued yesterday for 12 hours before being rejected entry. But even in the long, chilly queues, where disappointment was evident, the dedication was admirable. Basically the Danish Government – hosting the COP15 – is now applying a quota for the number of observers entering the conference: 7,000 today and tomorrow, dwindling to 90 on Friday.

After regaining feeling in my frozen feet, the rejection from the Bella Center opened up the day to investigate other events happening in Copenhagen around the COP meeting. The Klimaforum (www.klimaforum09.org) is running a two week event in parallel with the COP with press briefings, seminars etc. It is very well attended as it is open to all and attracts speakers such as George Monbiot.

One session focused on the growing number of arrests happening around the city. The Danish police have started randomly searching people in the street, turning up undercover at NGO parties and arresting 'suspicious' activists. One incident occurred in a location where second hand bikes were being prepared for a 'Bike Block'. The police arrested not only those fixing the bikes, but apparently also the bikes! I’m not sure how that scenario went - 'Mr Bicycle, I'm afraid you’re under arrest for freewheeling your way through life. Come with me.' A large march is going to take place tomorrow around the Bella Center and the contact numbers for legal aid have been handed out 'just in case'...

The so-called 'Water Warriors' from the Italian Committee World Water Contract took to the stage to make their case that water is not at all addressed under the UNFCCC negotiations despite the fact that the displacement of water significantly affects climate change. Another session by Attac Germany focused on a new type of climate deal which raised issues such as 'if you’re not paying, you don’t care', playing on the 'polluter-pays' principle (the party responsible for the pollution is responsible for paying for the damage done to the natural environment).
 
Inside the Bella Center, talks were focusing very much on the two tracks of the negotiations - the LCA (Long-term Cooperative Action) and the Kyoto Protocol. The EU is keen to merge the two, whereas the developing countries are keen to hold onto the two-track approach because the Kyoto Protocol includes actual targets. Currently the two-track approach is still going ahead, but it is not clear how this will be implemented.

Following on from yesterday’s topic of inclusivity, even if a country does have access to those meetings behind closed doors it needs to have enough delegates to attend them. Take Sweden, a well-organised delegation of around 200 people, which is therefore able to ensure good representation at all technical and ministerial meetings. On the flip side, some developing countries only have a handful in their delegation which means they may miss out on key decision-making meetings.

There is also a rumour that we can hopefully confirm soon: the Africa Group has apparently agreed on a new common position which would mean 44% emission cuts by 2020, on the condition that $400 billion in financing is provided by industrialised nations.
Another rumour is that the Ethiopian Prime Minister has been in discussions with the French PM about accepting a 2 degree stabilisation target. Other African countries are not happy with this, though, as they believe a 2 degree stabilisation globally is 'climate genocide' for Africa, as it really means 3 degrees for most of the African continent.

Time for bed, as it’s another 6am start for a third and final attempt to get inside the Teletubby land of the Bella Center. Third time lucky as they say....

Anya Boyd for Green Energy Republic