Fewer Valentine's roses as Norway goes 'carbon neutral'

OSLO (AFP) — Fewer roses on a wintry Valentine's Day, less room for kids in smaller cars and costlier holidays in the tropics: life in Norway will be less glamorous but more climate-friendly as the country aims to be the world's first "carbon neutral" economy by 2050.

When Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg on April 19 announced Norway's pledge to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions to zero, the Scandinavian nation set the most ambitious climate target in the world.

The UN's top experts are meeting in Bangkok this week to outline options for reducing greenhouse-gas pollution, and the Stoltenberg government is likely to scrutinise them closely as it tailors its own programme of measures.

Perhaps no other country is the world is as well-placed as Norway for meeting such a goal.

The country has population of just 4.6 million, who are well-educated, sensitive about ...