The Kyoto Protocol is an international agreement linked to the UNFCCC. It sets binding emissions reduction targets for 37 industrialized countries and the European community to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by an average of 5% against 1990 levels between 2008-2012. The key principles are common but differentiated responsibilities, where developed countries take the lead in reducing emissions due to their historical contributions to climate change. The Kyoto mechanisms of emissions trading, clean development mechanism, and joint implementation allow countries flexibility in meeting their targets. By the end of the first commitment period in 2012, a new framework is needed to deliver further emissions reductions to stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations.

1. ASSIGNMENT ON
Kyoto Protocol
SUBMITTED TO SUBMITTED BY
Department: Law and justice
The department of law and Batch:
justice Section:
Southeast university

2. Kyoto Protocol
Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
Kyoto Protocol participation map as of February, 2012
Green indicates countries that have ratified the treaty
(Annex I & II countries in dark green)
Brown = No intention to ratify
Red = Countries which have withdrawn from the Protocol.
Grey = no position taken or position unknown
Signed : 11 December 1997
Location : Kyoto
Effective : 16 February 2005
Condition : Ratification by 55 States to the Convention, incorporating States included in
Annex I which accounted in total for at least 55 per cent of the total carbon dioxide
emissions for 1990 of the Parties included in Annex I
Signatories : 83
Ratifiers : 191
Depositary : Secretary-General of the United Nations
Languages : Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish
Kyoto Protocol
The Kyoto Protocol is a protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on
Climate Change (UNFCCC or FCCC), aimed at fighting global warming. The UNFCCC
is an international environmental treaty with the goal of achieving the "stabilisation of
greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous
anthropogenic interference with the climate system."
The Protocol was initially adopted on 11 December 1997 in Kyoto, Japan, and entered
into force on 16 February 2005. As of September 2011, 191 states have signed and
ratified the protocol. The only remaining signatory not to have ratified the protocol is the
United States. Other United Nations member states which did not ratify the protocol are

3. Afghanistan, Andorra and South Sudan. In December 2011, Canada renounced the
Protocol.
The Kyoto Protocol is an international agreement linked to the United Nations
Framework Convention on Climate Change. The major feature of the Kyoto Protocol is
that it sets binding targets for 37 industrialized countries and the European community
for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions .These amount to an average of five per
cent against 1990 levels over the five-year period 2008-2012.
The major distinction between the Protocol and the Convention is that while the
Convention encouraged industrialised countries to stabilize GHG emissions, the Protocol
commits them to do so.
Recognizing that developed countries are principally responsible for the current high
levels of GHG emissions in the atmosphere as a result of more than 150 years of
industrial activity, the Protocol places a heavier burden on developed nations under the
principle of “common but differentiated responsibilities.”
The Kyoto Protocol was adopted in Kyoto, Japan, on 11 December 1997 and entered into
force on 16 February 2005. The detailed rules for the implementation of the Protocol
were adopted at COP 7 in Marrakesh in 2001, and are called the “Marrakesh Accords.”
Background
Main article: Global warming
See also: global climate model#Projections of future climate change and Scientific
opinion on climate change
The view that human activities are likely responsible for most of the observed increase in
global mean temperature ("global warming") since the mid-20th century is an accurate
reflection of current scientific thinking. Human-induced warming of the climate is
expected to continue throughout the 21st century and beyond.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC, 2007) have produced a range of
projections of what the future increase in global mean temperature might be. The IPCC's
projections are "baseline" projections, meaning that they assume no future efforts are
made to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The IPCC projections cover the time period
from the beginning of the 21st century to the end of the 21st century. The "likely" range
(as assessed to have a greater than 66% probability of being correct, based on the IPCC's
expert judgement) is a projected increased in global mean temperature over the 21st
century of between 1.1 and 6.4 °C.
The range in temperature projections partly reflects different projections of future
greenhouse gas emissions. Different projections contain different assumptions of future

4. social and economic development (e.g., economic growth, population level, energy
policies), which in turn affects projections of future greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
The range also reflects uncertainty in the response of the climate system to past and
future GHG emissions (measured by the climate sensitivity).
Objectives
The main aim of the Kyoto Protocol is to contain emissions of the main anthropogenic
(i.e., human-emitted) greenhouse gases (GHGs) in ways that reflect underlying national
differences in GHG emissions, wealth, and capacity to make the reductions. The treaty
follows the main principles agreed in the original 1992 UN Framework Convention.
According to the treaty, in 2012, Annex I Parties who have ratified the treaty must have
fulfilled their obligations of greenhouse gas emissions limitations established for the
Kyoto Protocol's first commitment period (2008–2012). These emissions limitation
commitments are listed in Annex B of the Protocol.
The Kyoto Protocol's first round commitments are the first detailed step of the UN
Framework Convention on Climate Change (Gupta et al., 2007). The Protocol establishes
a structure of rolling emission reduction commitment periods, with negotiations on
second period commitments that were scheduled to start in 2005 (see Kyoto
Protocol#Successor for details). The first period emission reduction commitments expire
at the end of 2012.
The ultimate objective of the UNFCCC is the "stabilization of greenhouse gas
concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic
interference with the climate system." Even if Annex I Parties succeed in meeting their
first-round commitments, much greater emission reductions will be required in future to
stabilize atmospheric GHG concentrations.
For each of the different anthropogenic GHGs, different levels of emissions reductions
would be required to meet the objective of stabilizing atmospheric concentrations (see
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change#Stabilization of greenhouse
gas concentrations). Carbon dioxide (CO2) is the most important anthropogenic GHG
Stabilizing the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere would ultimately require the
effective elimination of anthropogenic CO2 emissions.
The five principal concepts of the Kyoto Protocol are:
• Commitments for the Annex I Parties. The main feature of the Protocol lies in
establishing commitments for the reduction of greenhouse gases that are legally
binding for Annex I Parties. The Annex I Parties took on legally binding
commitments based on the Berlin Mandate, which was a part of UNFCCC
negotiations leading up to the Protocol.
• Implementation. In order to meet the objectives of the Protocol, Annex I Parties
are required to prepare policies and measures for the reduction of greenhouse
gases in their respective countries. In addition, they are required to increase the

5. absorption of these gases and utilize all mechanisms available, such as joint
implementation, the clean development mechanism and emissions trading, in
order to be rewarded with credits that would allow more greenhouse gas
emissions at home.
• Minimizing Impacts on Developing Countries by establishing an adaptation fund
for climate change.
• Accounting, Reporting and Review in order to ensure the integrity of the Protocol.
• Compliance. Establishing a Compliance Committee to enforce compliance with
the commitments under the Protocol.
The Kyoto mechanisms
Under the Treaty, countries must meet their targets primarily through national measures.
However, the Kyoto Protocol offers them an additional means of meeting their targets by
way of three market-based mechanisms.
The Kyoto mechanisms are:
• Emissions trading – known as “the carbon market"
• Clean development mechanism (CDM)
• Joint implementation (JI).
The mechanisms help stimulate green investment and help Parties meet their emission
targets in a cost-effective way.
Flexible mechanisms
The Protocol defines three "flexibility mechanisms" that can be used by Annex I Parties
in meeting their emission limitation commitments. The flexibility mechanisms are
International Emissions Trading (IET), the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), and
Joint Implementation (JI). IET allows Annex I Parties to "trade" their emissions
(Assigned Amount Units, AAUs, or "allowances" for short).
The economic basis for providing this flexibility is that the marginal cost of reducing (or
abating) emissions differs among countries. "Marginal cost" is the cost of abating the last
tonne of CO2-eq for an Annex I/non-Annex I Party. At the time of the original Kyoto
targets, studies suggested that the flexibility mechanisms could reduce the overall
(aggregate) cost of meeting the targets. Studies also showed that national losses in Annex
I gross domestic product (GDP) could be reduced by use of the flexibility mechanisms.
The CDM and JI are called "project-based mechanisms," in that they generate emission
reductions from projects. The difference between IET and the project-based mechanisms
is that IET is based on the setting of a quantitative restriction of emissions, while the
CDM and JI are based on the idea of "production" of emission reductions. The CDM is
designed to encourage production of emission reductions in non-Annex I Parties, while JI
encourages production of emission reductions in Annex I Parties.

6. The production of emission reductions generated by the CDM and JI can be used by
Annex I Parties in meeting their emission limitation commitments. The emission
reductions produced by the CDM and JI are both measured against a hypothetical
baseline of emissions that would have occurred in the absence of a particular emission
reduction project. The emission reductions produced by the CDM are called Certified
Emission Reductions (CERs); reductions produced by JI are called Emission Reduction
Units (ERUs). The reductions are called "credits" because they are emission reductions
credited against a hypothetical baseline of emissions.
Monitoring emission targets
Under the Protocol, countries’actual emissions have to be monitored and precise records
have to be kept of the trades carried out.
Registry systems track and record transactions by Parties under the mechanisms. The UN
Climate Change Secretariat, based in Bonn, Germany, keeps an international transaction
log to verify that transactions are consistent with the rules of the Protocol.
Reporting is done by Parties by way of submitting annual emission inventories and
national reports under the Protocol at regular intervals.
A compliance system ensures that Parties are meeting their commitments and helps them
to meet their commitments if they have problems doing so.
Adaptation
The Kyoto Protocol, like the Convention, is also designed to assist countries in adapting
to the adverse effects of climate change. It facilitates the development and deployment of
techniques that can help increase resilience to the impacts of climate change.
The Adaptation Fund was established to finance adaptation projects and programmes in
developing countries that are Parties to the Kyoto Protocol. The Fund is financed mainly
with a share of proceeds from CDM project activities.
The road ahead
The Kyoto Protocol is generally seen as an important first step towards a truly global
emission reduction regime that will stabilize GHG emissions, and provides the essential
architecture for any future international agreement on climate change.
By the end of the first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol in 2012, a new
international framework needs to have been negotiated and ratified that can deliver the
stringent emission reductions the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has
clearly indicated are needed.
Targets

7. The targets cover emissions of the six main greenhouse gases, namely:
• Carbon dioxide (CO2);
• Methane (CH4);
• Nitrous oxide (N2O);
• Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs);
• Perfluorocarbons (PFCs); and
• Sulphur hexafluoride (SF6)
The maximum amount of emissions (measured as the equivalent in carbon dioxide) that a
Party may emit over the commitment period in order to comply with its emissions target
is known as a Party’s assigned amount. The individual targets for Annex I Parties are
listed in the Kyoto Protocol's Annex B.
Countries included in Annex B to the Kyoto Protocol and their emissions
targets
Target (1990** -
Country
2008/2012)
EU-15*, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia,Liechtenstein,
-8%
Lithuania, Monaco, Romania,Slovakia,Slovenia, Switzerland
US*** -7%
Canada, Hungary, Japan, Poland -6%
Croatia -5%
New Zealand, Russian Federation, Ukraine 0
Norway +1%
Australia +8%
Iceland +10%
* The 15 States who were EU members in 1997 when the Kyoto Protocol was
adopted, took on that 8% target that will be redistributed among themselves, taking
advantage of a scheme under the Protocol known as a “bubble”, whereby countries have
different individual targets, but which combined make an overall target for that group of
countries. The EU has already reached agreement on how its targets will be redistributed.
** Some EITs have a baseline other than 1990.
*** The US has indicated its intention not to ratify the Kyoto Protocol.
Note: Although they are listed in the Convention’s Annex I, Belarus and Turkey are not
included in the Protocol’s Annex B as they were not Parties to the Convention when the
Protocol was adopted.

8. Upon entry into force, Kazakhstan, which has declared that it wishes to be bound by the
commitments of Annex I Parties under the Convention, will become an Annex I Party
under the Protocol. As it had not made this declaration when the Protocol was adopted,
Kazakhstan does not have an emissions target listed for it in Annex B.
Common but differentiated responsibility
The notion of “common but differentiated responsibilities”, which was written down in
Article 3 of the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, is the
key principle of the Kyoto Protocol. According to the article, the Parties recognized the
direct responsibility of developed countries in global climate change as well as the
“special needs and special circumstances of developing countries” with the emphasis on
sustainable development.
In general, the parties agreed that:
1. the largest share of historical and current global emissions of greenhouse gases
originated in developed countries;
2. per capita emissions in developing countries are still relatively low;
3. the share of global emissions originating in developing countries will grow to
meet social and development needs.
The principle, which put the emphasis on the leading role of developed countries, can be
increasingly less relevant as global context is changing. According to International
Energy Agency (IEA) 2011 statistics, starting from 2008, carbon emissions from non-
Annex I countries have surpassed those of Annex I countries. By 2009, while CO2
emissions from Annex I countries were back at 1990 levels, those from non-Annex I
countries kept growing. Therefore, to make the regime work successfully, emission
reductions from developing countries such as China and India needs to be well
considered and included as well.
Emissions
Per-capita emissions are a country's total emissions divided by its population (Banuri et
al.., 1996, p. 95). Per-capita emissions in the industrialized countries are typically as
much as ten times the average in developing countries (Grubb, 2003, p. 144). This is one
reason industrialized countries accepted responsibility for leading climate change efforts
in the Kyoto negotiations. In Kyoto, the countries that took on quantified commitments
for the first period (2008–12) corresponded roughly to those with per-capita emissions in
1990 of two tonnes of carbon or higher. In 2005, the top-20 emitters comprised 80% of
total GHG emissions (PBL, 2010. See also the notes in the following section on the top-
ten emitters in 2005). Countries with a Kyoto target made up 20% of total GHG
emissions.
Another way of measuring GHG emissions is to measure the total emissions that have
accumulated in the atmosphere over time (IEA, 2007, p. 199). Over a long time period,

9. cumulative emissions provide an indication of a country's total contribution to GHG
concentrations in the atmosphere. The International Energy Agency (IEA, 2007, p. 201)
compared cumulative energy-related CO2 emissions for several countries and
regions.Over the time period 1900–2005, the US accounted for 30% of total cumulative
emissions; the EU, 23%; China, 8%; Japan, 4%; and India, 2%. The rest of the world
accounted for 33% of global, cumulative, energy-related CO2 emissions.