RUSUTSU, Japan — The world's richest countries agreed Tuesday to support a 50% reduction in worldwide greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 — but environmentalists and developing countries denounced the move as a mushy compromise that would do little to stop global warming. The South African environmental minister, Marthinus van Schalkwyk, dismissed the long-term emissions goal as "an empty slogan without substance." The Group of Eight industrialized nations set the goal at their annual summit here on the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido.
The 50% target is non-binding and "falls below what is scientifically required to stabilize the atmosphere at a relatively safe level," van Schalkwyk said.
mushy : lacking in definition or precision a mushy compromise 具体性のない妥協案=an empty slogan without substance