ANSWERED Write a short report of around 300 words on the Kyoto Protocol.

The United Nations (UN) created the Kyoto Protocol in 2005 in a global attempt to curtail the damage that led to global warming. It is one of the most comprehensive attempts at forcing countries to reduce environmental pollution. Since then, more than 170 countries have committed to implementing the Kyoto Protocol.

The UN originally proposed the Protocol in 1997, an extension of the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Nations that agreed to restrict their greenhouse gas and carbon dioxide emissions signed the treaty. The US declined to sign the Kyoto Protocol, preferring to introduce its own emission-control standards. Some of the nations that signed it withdrew before the introduction of an updated “Kyoto II” treaty in the face of impending failures to meet the emission control deadlines. These nations included Canada, Japan, and Russia.
The main objective of the Kyoto Protocol is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to levels that will not create any disturbances in the planet’s climatic system. The Protocol distinguishes between greenhouse gas emissions through natural human activities, such as respiration and decomposition, and anthropogenic activities (activities that are unnatural and caused by humans), such as the burning of fuel.

The Kyoto Protocol began with a long-term goal (a five-year commitment period from 2008 to 2012) wherein participating nations were to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by at least 5 percent from their 1990 levels. It was a challenge because gas emissions have steadily risen every year.

The commitments to reducing greenhouse gas emissions vary from country to country, and the Protocol offers flexibility. This means that if a country cannot reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by curtailing industrial activity and vehicle use, it can compensate for it by performing “sink” activities. Sink activities include changing land use requirements and increasing forest cover to help bring down carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere.

The Kyoto Protocol adopted a “cap and trade” system that enables companies to purchase carbon credits to comply with their commitment to offset their greenhouse gas emissions. If a particular company can bring down its greenhouse gas emissions in less expensive ways than another company can manage, it can trade with the other company for mutual benefits.

If a company cannot curtail its greenhouse gas emissions, it receives a carbon tax for the defaulted amount. The funds gathered through this carbon tax assist with reforestation and other activities that help in offsetting greenhouse gas emissions. This way, companies such as power plants (coal-based) pay heavy carbon taxes and help to fund projects that will mitigate the effects of climate change.