14 September 2005
The Kyoto Protocol -- officially, the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) -- is an international treaty dealing with greenhouse gas emissions and global warming. The treaty was negotiated in Kyoto, Japan and adopted on 11 December 1997.
For those nations that signed it, it became binding 15 February 2005. More than 140 countries have signed the agreement, which affects 85 percent of the world's population. The United States (36.1% of global carbon dioxide emissions) is conspicuous by its absence; it joins Australia (2.1%) and Monaco (0.0%) as the only "Annex-1" countries not to sign the agreement.
Binding ratification rested on two conditions:
- A minimum of 55 countries had to sign the agreement.
- Those countries had to represent at least 55 percent of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from a list of industrialized countries (referenced as Annex 1 in the UNFCCC).
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Background
The Kyoto Protocol commits industrialized countries to reduce their collective emissions of greenhouse gases by 5.2 percent, compared to the year 1990. Because of increased industrialization and population growth, this translates to a 29 percent reduction in projected emissions without mitigation.Six greenhouse gases are affected: carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, sulfur hexafluoride, HFCs, and PFCs. The target is a five-year average of these gases for the period 2008-2012.
Individual nation-state targets range from 8 percent for the European Union to 7 percent for the US (not a signatory) and 6 percent for Japan.
The agreement specifies that signatories must implement various emission reduction strategies, including:
- preparating a national inventory of emissions removals by carbon sinks
- promoting climate-friendly technology transfer
- fostering partnerships in climate research, impact analyses and response strategies