Kyoto Protocol

KYOTO PROTOCOL

By Anton Antonio

December 24, 2015

“The Kyoto Protocol is an international treaty, which extends the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) that commits State Parties to reduce greenhouse gases emissions, based on the premise that (a) global warming exists and (b) man-made carbon dioxide emissions have caused it.  The Kyoto Protocol was adopted in Kyoto, Japan on 11 December 1997 and entered into force on 16 February 2005.  There are currently 192 Parties (Canada withdrew effective December 2012) to the Protocol.  The Kyoto Protocol implemented the objective of the UNFCCC to fight global warming by reducing greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere to “a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system”.  The Protocol is based on the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities: it puts the obligation to reduce current emissions on developed countries on the basis that they are historically responsible for the current levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.  The Protocol’s first commitment period started in 2008 and ended in 2012.  A second commitment period was agreed on in 2012, known as the Doha Amendment to the protocol, in which 37 countries have binding targets:  Australia, the European Union (and its 28 member states), Belarus, Iceland, Kazakhstan, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland, and Ukraine.  Belarus, Kazakhstan and Ukraine have stated that they may withdraw from the Protocol or not put into legal force the Amendment with second round targets.  Japan, New Zealand and Russia have participated in Kyoto’s first-round but have not taken on new targets in the second commitment period.  Other developed countries without second-round targets are Canada (which withdrew from the Kyoto Protocol in 2012) and the United States (which has not ratified the Protocol).  As of November 2015, 55 states have accepted the Doha Amendment, while entry into force requires the acceptances of 144 states.  Negotiations were held in Lima in 2014 to agree to agree on a post-Kyoto legal framework that would obligate all major polluters to pay for carbon dioxide emissions.  China, India and the United States have all signalled that they will not ratify any treaty that will commit them legally to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.”  (Wikipedia)

There are several international agreements --- that are aimed at mitigating the effects of global warming and climate change --- have already been passed and agreed upon by a majority of participating countries.  The next set of blogs/articles will be devoted to these international accords to increase the level of awareness on their history, aims and objectives.  One such international accord is the Kyoto Protocol.

Thoughts to promote positive action…

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REFERENCE:

Wikipedia, (2015).  “Kyoto Protocol”.  Retrieved on December 24, 2015 from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kyoto_Protocol