The Pros And Cons Of The Kyoto Protocol

In the late eighties and early nineties, the international community became increasingly concerned by the problem of climate change and realized that it is indeed an acute global issue. Amidst such an atmosphere, the text of an international treaty, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was adopted at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, and the Convention entered into force in 1994. However, by 1995 the countries realized that the provisions on emission reductions in the Convention were not adequate . The Kyoto Protocol, adopted in Kyoto, Japan, on 11 December 1997, was a result of the ensuing negotiations to make the global response to climate change more effective. The UNFCCC defines the Kyoto Protocol
However, since it is primarily the developed countries that are the main cause of the high levels of greenhouse gases (GHG) in the atmosphere due to their industrial activities spanning more than the past 150 years, the Protocol places higher emissions reduction targets on them under the principle of "common but differentiated responsibilities" . Today there are 195 parties to the UNFCCC and 192 parties to the Kyoto Protocol. According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development , the key features of the Kyoto Protocol can be summarized under 5 points:
1. As was already mentioned, industrialized countries were committed to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions through legally binding targets for the 2008-2012 period. The GHG include six main categories of gases: Carbon dioxide (CO2), Methane (CH4), Nitrous oxide (N2O), Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs); Perfluorocarbons (PFCs); and Sulphur hexafluoride (SF6).
2. The Protocol’s goal was to achieve at least a 5% emissions reduction in industrialized countries for the 2008-2012 timeframe compared to