1. The dangers and the problems of global
warming have already been outlined and documented in the previous report of the
Committee adopted by the Assembly in November 1998. However, with the Kyoto Treaty the Committee may think it should
consider whether further consideration should be given to the problem and
whether action by the Committee could assist the present situation.
BACKGROUND
2. The Kyoto meeting in 1997 represented an
acceptance that climate change was happening.
It was considered likely for there to be human influence on that change
caused by major emissions into the atmosphere of gases by the modern structure
of industry and life. The Treaty sets
out the cuts in greenhouse gas emissions necessary for each country to help
meet this problem. It is claimed that
the cuts are far below the 60% reduction believed necessary to stabilise the
concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, but the process was to be
the first step by industrialised nations to prove good faith to the developing
world.
3. The protocol has 84 signatories, but only
33 have ratified the protocol; 55
nations need to do so for the Treaty to come into effect.
4. The problem of climate change was first
considered at international level at the Earth Summit in 1992. It was at that time that the conflict,
between the US wanting China and other G7 nations to be included and those
nations believing the US had to show some leadership, first became evident.
5. Therefore basically the United Nations
Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) tried to agree legally binding
targets for the reduction of the human induced gasses responsible (or believed
to be responsible) for climate change.
The Protocol set out to reduce emissions by developed countries by 5.2%
of the 1990 baseline by 2008/2012. But
these reductions vary - the EU as a whole agreed an 8% reduction, the UK 12%
and it was predicted that the US reduction should be 7%. However, these simple figures do not take
into account the complication of trading by nations that achieve greater
emissions than their target figure nor the problem of ‘carbon sinks‘.
6. An outline of the Kyoto Protocol is set
out at Annex I and an outline of ‘carbon sinks‘ at Annex II.
OBJECTIONS
7. The US had approached Kyoto with some
reluctance. It seemed unlikely that a
Republican Senate and Congress would ratify the Treaty. President Bush has reinforced that view by
claiming that there is now ‘an energy crisis’ in the USA.
8. Objections to the Kyoto Protocol vary on
different issues, but the greatest objection is from the USA who now consider
the Treaty dead. However on certain
obligations such as ‘leakage’, the umbrella group consisting of Russia, Japan,
Canada, Australia, New Zealand, with
Columbia, Bolivia, Chile and Costa Rica sometimes working in parallel, provided
opposition..
9. The American position kindly outlined by
Doug Dereuter, the leader of the American delegation to the Assembly is: “The Bush administration made a
determination to consider the Kyoto Protocol ‘dead’ in terms of US policy, and
instead announced a cabinet level review of climate policy. Furthermore, President Bush, in various
letters to Members of Congress, noted that he opposed the Protocol ‘because it
exempts 80% of the world, including major population centres such as China and
India, from compliance, and would cause serious harm to the US economy’.”
10. Those worried by the American position note
that whilst many nations have reduced their emissions since 1990, the USA has
increased its emissions by over 30% and certain experts estimate that without
some positive action this will increase by a further 20% over the next 10
years. The greatest objections come
from the major American oil companies.
TARGETS
11. In the Kyoto Protocol target figures as a
percentage reduction of 1990 emissions for each country are:
Australia 108 Hungary 94 Portugal 92
Austria 92 Iceland 110 Romania 92
Belgium 92 Ireland 92 Russian
Fed. 100
Bulgaria 92 Italy 92 Slovakia 92
Canada 94 Japan 94 Slovenia 92
Croatia 95 Latvia 92 Spain 92
Czech Rep. 92 Liechtenstein 92 Sweden 92
Denmark 92 Lithuania 92 Switzerland 92
Estonia 92 Luxembourg 92 Ukraine 100
E.C. 92 Monaco 92 UK
& NI 92
Finland 92 Netherlands 92 USA 93
France 92 New Zealand 100
Germany 92 Norway 101
Greece 92 Poland 94
12. The Kyoto Protocol essentially provides
three mechanisms to reduce emissions.
The first is the simple expedient of avoiding carbon emissions through
becoming more energy efficient and using renewable sources of energy. The second is trading schemes whereby
permits to emit can be traded between one nation that is emitting less
greenhouses gases than it is allowed and another that is exceeding its
allowance. The potential to make
financial gains could act as an incentive to invest in emission reductions. The third mechanism, or flexible mechanisms,
was to get credits for helping developing nations to avoid emissions.
13. The way in which these mechanisms could be
made to work needs considerable study.
FURTHER ACTION
14. The Committee has to consider whether any
action or report by the Committee would assist in possibly making any
suggestion or recommendation which might help to resolve the present impasse.
15. It could be considered somewhat negligent
if the Science and Technology Committee of the Parliament Assembly of NATO were
to take no action. What therefore needs
to be considered is what could be done to find ways of bringing the disparate
parties nearer to agreement.
