S.D. Voices Heard Amid Fray: 

Biofuels, Ag Touted at Climate Conference

As the nations of the world try to come to consensus on climate change - amid protests that turned violent Wednesday - South Dakotans who flew to Copenhagen for the United Nations Climate Change Conference say an accord is vital for the planet.

South Dakotans who are in Denmark, or recently returned from the conference that began Dec. 7 and concludes Friday, include South Dakota Farmers Union President Doug Sombke, University of South Dakota graduate student and Iraq War veteran Leighann Dunn, Augustana College senior Jamie Horter, Poet Chief Executive Officer Jeff Broin and USD environmental law professor Elizabeth Burleson.

"I felt like agriculture, which I went there to represent, got a very good chance to explain what we can offer to address the issue," said Sombke, who returned from Denmark on Monday. "And I believe the countries of the world were made aware of the role agriculture can play in climate issues and food security."

Police fired pepper spray and beat protesters with batons outside the U.N. climate conference Wednesday, as disputes inside left major issues unresolved - just two days before President Obama and more than 100 other leaders hope to sign a historic agreement to fight global warming.

Hundreds of protesters were trying to disrupt the 193-nation conference, demanding "climate justice." Police said 230 protesters were detained.

"Many delegates are now torn between trying to attend Bella Center proceedings and risking unrest as rumors circulate that protests might hinder access at the venue," Burleson wrote on her Web site. "I remain optimistic that light will shine through these short days in Copenhagen, and together the international community will find peaceful middle ground that effectively responds to our collective climate change challenge.

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Earlier Wednesday, negotiators dealing with core issues debated until just before dawn without setting new goals for reducing greenhouse gas emissions or for financing poorer countries' efforts to cope with climate change, key elements of any deal.

"I regret to report we have been unable to reach agreement," John Ashe of Antigua, chairman of one negotiating group, said.

With talks seemingly stalled, Horter said on her blog Wednesday that two words keep cropping up inside the Bella Center - youth and hope.

"It's inspiring to hear that those people who have aspired to create positive change for humanity put their hopes for the future in the capacity of today's youth to work for a better world," she wrote. "We're living on coffee and adrenaline inside this Bella Center bubble, but the real force driving us is not the energy we have through the visual actions, but the underlying hope we collectively share for the future we wish to have and will create."

Dunn, a veteran of the South Dakota Army National Guard, is in Copenhagen representing Operation Free, a coalition of veteran and national security organizations concerned with the national security implications of climate change.

"We're very excited to be here and share our experience as veterans with the rest of the world," she said via e-mail. "It's clear to me that we're being taken very seriously and that our perspective is an important contribution here in Copenhagen. The threat posed by climate change is real, and it's making the world a more dangerous place.

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Sombke said he toured a methane digester cooperative company and a biomass plant that provides heat to 5,000 homes by burning straw. He also met with William Henhostein, chief negotiator for the United States at the conference, and attended a forum with U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack.

"After taking part in the Copenhagen climate talks, it's clear to me that many of the world's developed nations are leading the way to stop climate change," Sombke said. "The United States must make changes to its policy on harmful emissions and create a system where agriculture can be part of the global solution.

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Broin is in Copenhagen to speak to the global potential of biofuels.

"I think of farmers as the original environmentalists," Broin said in prepared remarks during a side event. "...the thing that inspires me the most is the global potential of biofuels. I believe the potential is virtually limitless."

Reach Thom Gabrukiewicz at 331-2320. The Associated Press contributed to this report.