Kyoto

A Performance Assessment of the Kyoto Protocol Introduction The Kyoto Protocol, adopted in 1997 by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), was designed to address the global emissions of greenhouse gasses. Effective in 2005, it provided legally binding targets for countries which varied depending on the level of development of the country as well as contained certain measures for collaboration between countries for trading credits. Evidently, to successfully reduce global greenhouse gas emissions requires complete international cooperation, especially the cooperation of heavy polluting nations. If there is not full cooperation from heavy polluting nations, no matter how successful the protocol is with the cooperating…

emissions under the Kyoto Protocol because it should not have initially ratified the agreement. The responsibility for creating change within Canada has been passed from one government to the next, leading to successive governments failing to even attempt to meet Kyoto targets. With the United States not ratifying the agreement, Canada was at risk to severely damage the national economy by attempting to meet targets. Furthermore, the economic repercussions to design and implement a plan to…

In December 1997, there was an international treaty adopted unanimously by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) that was named after a Japanese City, it was called the Kyoto Protocol. It took only one year for members of the UNFCCC to decide that there needed to be stricter demands for reducing gas emissions (UNFCCC, 2014). This Protocol was designed to reduce the emissions of gases that contribute to global warming. Given that, there were 41 countries plus the…

The Effectiveness of the Kyoto Protocol in reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions What is climate change and what is the Kyoto Protocol? Climate change is believed to be the consequence of the steady and substantial release of greenhouse gases (GHGs) caused by humans since the industrial revolution. These GHGs are scientifically agreed upon to have led to an increase in average global temperatures (IPCC, 2014). The increasing global temperatures associated with GHG emissions is predicted to have a…

Canada became the leading nation to withdraw from the Kyoto Protocol in December 2011. Canadian government 's choice to discontinue its international commitment to the Kyoto Protocol will negatively impact Canada in the long term. Despite the many issues the Kyoto protocol has, it was the first serious step towards slowing global warming and was leading to progressive action on climate change.(source 1) Leaving the Protocol altogether was not the answer, Canada should have pushed through and if…

There hasn’t yet exactly been an effective collective state response when responding to the issue, there have been numerous treaties and long-term endeavors proposed, however, a lack of progress continues for many countries around the globe, especially for China and the United States. Individuals, businesses and the governments of various nations are forthcoming ways to respond to the issue, however, there have been considerable setbacks and other conflicts down the line. A prime example would…

Kyoto Protocol to the UNFCCC (2005) The Agreement and its Goals: The Kyoto Protocol is an international agreement linked to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) which aimed to mitigate anthropogenic effects of greenhouse gases on the environment by introducing a set of binding emission reduction targets for individual countries. Considering the threatening scale of the problem and the wide geographical distribution of GHG emissions, the Protocol required…

The Kyoto Protocol was designed to fight the global warming by reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Global warming is defined as the increase of the earth’s average surface temperatures due to the greenhouse effect, which acts to trap heat that would have otherwise escaped from earth. The Kyoto Protocol is able to reduce global warming by forcing countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, therefore reducing the greenhouse effect. The initial goal of the Kyoto Protocol was to reduce worldwide…

Kyoto Protocol to the UNFCCC 2005 Greenhouse gas emissions have continuously risen not only due to natural activity but human as well; there is a strong relationship between anthropogenic factors and global climate change. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has estimated that average global temperatures will rise 1.4-5.8 C by 2100 if greenhouse gas emissions continue to increase (York, 2005). A call for action was necessary so the UNFCCC began to discuss the Kyoto Protocol in 1997.…

Firstly, China (which shares about 23% of GHG emissions worldwide), India (5% of global emissions) and several developing countries never signed the treaty to begin with (Global Greenhouse Gas Emissions Data, 2015). All of the countries mentioned have a large contribution towards GHG emissions and will only continue to rise. Even if the Kyoto Protocol were to be successful at decreasing global emissions by 5%, the previously mentioned countries would affect the outcome and only decrease that…