By: Jay Alvin Co
In 1997, 194 nations collectively promised as a first step to reduce emissions by about 5 percent below 1990 levels by 2012. But only 37 industrialized nations agreed to binding targets under the treaty, known as the Kyoto Protocol; the developing nations promised simply to do their best.
The overall results have been dismal, even by Kyoto’s modest standards. Even 1997 signatories like Japan and Canada will not endorse a new treaty unless the Chinese do, which they won’t.
From 1990 to 2009, global emissions of carbon dioxide, the main greenhouse gas produced by burning fossil fuels, rose by a whopping 38 percent. The increase would have been far worse were it not for the economic collapse of the old Soviet bloc; emissions from those countries dropped by about one-third.
The biggest obstacle to global progress has been countries like China and India that made no pledges at Kyoto because, they continue to argue that the industrialized world caused most of the problem and thus bore most of the responsibility for solving it. Over all, emissions in countries that did not agree to targets have more than doubled, while China’s have tripled.
In the United States, as the largest per capita emitter of greenhouse gases among big economies, America should have taken a leadership role but it did not. The Senate refused to ratify the Kyoto accord, President George W. Bush flatly repudiated it, and Congress failed to put a price on carbon. Having pledged to reduce greenhouse gases by 7 percent, America saw its carbon emissions rise by almost that amount.
On the contrary, it has not been all negative as carbon dioxide emissions rose steadily in the 1990s partly because the economy took off after the 1992 election, and power plants and factories started operating at full capacity. Emissions then leveled off after 2000, partly because some manufacturing moved abroad but also because rules requiring more energy efficiency began to kick in.
And further improvements are within reach. In the United States, old coal-fired power plants are closing, the price of natural gas is dropping, and automobiles are becoming more efficient. Clean energy sources like solar power are being introduced in poor African nations, and the Chinese are investing heavily in clean energy as well.
All nations should work together to reduce the level of emission even if the industrialized nations caused most of the problem. With all nations working together for a common goal further improvements are possible.
TumugonBurahinIf only all of the different nations worldwide will participate and act upon this, maybe this earth would be much better place to live in. It could save us from experiencing the consequences of global warming and at the same time could somehow improve unity among the nations.
TumugonBurahinIt is understandable for other countries who wish for their development. Although there should also be another way for them to participate without sacrificing development, the truth is they would also prosper for participating in this.
TumugonBurahin