Kyoto Protocol and Global initiatives towards Climate Change

The adoption of the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention was the major step to tackle the problem of the climate change. It mainly focuses on the stabilization of the greenhouses gases at various levels into the atmosphere. Climate change could have apocalyptic consequences if the green house emissions are not cut atleast 80 percent by 2050. The following reductions in emissions are rigorous but affordable.

The 1997 Kyoto Protocol was an agreement in which the developed (industrialized)nations agreed to limit their green house gas emissions to 1990's level. The main objective is to lower is to lower overall emissions from the six green house gases – carbon-d-oxide, methane, nitrous oxide, sulfur hexafluoride, HFCs and PFCs calculated as an average over the five year period of 2008-12. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCCs ) forth assessment report in November 2007 stressed on the fact that temperature will going to rise by 1.8-4C (3.2-7.2F) by the end of the century. The sea level is going to rise by 28 to 43 am and the global warming was likely to influence the intensity of the tropical storms. In the past so many years the Intergovernmental Climate Change negotiations has produced a course of action that is strict in principle but somehow ineffective.

The legal binding emissions commitments under the Kyoto Protocol apply only to the developed, industrialized countries. This is due to the belief that it is the industrialized countries that are chiefly responsible for the for the accumulated green house gas emissions since the industrial revolution. And now there is a constant fight on the question that the lack of legal binding commitments by the developing countries would place the developed nations industries at the competitive disadvantage and undermine the effectiveness of the Protocol. The developing country parties are only concerned to the voluntary participation under the Kyoto Protocol.

The industrial developed nations are committed to transfer the climate friendly technologies to the developing countries and to the countries with economies in transition. In addition to that they are also pledged to provide the financial resources to the developing countries. The hope is that the so much of the global efforts will finally help in combating the climate change and save the world from further global warming.

Aparana Chauhan