AN OVERVIEW:
Ten Years have elapsed between the Kyoto Protocol (December 1997) and the Bali Declaration of December 2007.This period has been certainly momentous for those who
are truly concerned about disastrous effects of ‘global warning’ or ‘climate change’. The world cannot shut its eyes and ears to the latest fourth report of Inter-governmental Panel on Cimate Change (IPCC) highlighting sure to happen phenomena.
IPCC WARNING
According to the report, the world will witness air and ocean temperatures increasing between 1.1 C to 6.4 C, widespread melting of snow and rising sea levels between 18cm
to 59cm by 2100.This would create extreme climate conditions of droughts, floods, hurricanes, unduly hot summers and wet, stormy winters. What an irony; the poor countries of Asia, Africa and Latin America – the least emitters of green-house gases (GHGs)-would be the worst affected.
KYOTO PROTOCOL
The above findings are based on the researches of internationally renowned scientists.
The former US Vice-President, Mr.AlGore has issued a stern warning to the political leaders and administrators of the world’s rich nations on these issues. Conferring 2007 Nobel Peace prize on Mr.AlGore and IPCC is testimony to the fact that global warming unequivocal.
To what extent the above legally binding targets will be met by rich countries is not clearly known. The progress in this direction is far from satisfactory, though EU countries appear to have taken this challenge with somewhat greater sensitivity.
CARBON TRADING:
As a measure to reduce global warming, it is provided in the Kyoto Protocol that if rich nations are unable to meet their targets, they will have to buy what is called Certified Emission Reduction (CER) Certificates from the developing nations.The Certificate can be bought at a price by rich nations for not meeting their targets. This is called “carbon
trading”.
Carbon trading earnings of a country should be used only for the seller technologies for the seller of carbon credits. The buyer of these credits should also show a clear plan to reduce emission rather than depend on carbon credits.
Conclusion:
The crux of the global warming problem is to strike a balance between the need of poor
nations (to eradicate poverty) and the greed of rich nations (to get materialistic). Which is why developing countries like India have raised the issue of per capita emission as the criterion for fixing for fixing limits on emissions.
