International and Local Policies Against Climate Change

Essay by ginageeeeeUniversity, Bachelor's April 2006

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Questions to be addressed:

Is there global warming/climate change and what does this mean internationally and locally?

* Is there CO2 growth in the atmosphere, is there global warming and are they anthropogenic and connected?

* What can be done against it in global and local level?

Goals: to reduce on an international level and to adopt in a domestic level.

1. International Policies Against Climate Change

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC), 1992

Framework agreement, with goals to:

* gather and share information on greenhouse gas emissions, national policies and best practices;

* launch national strategies for addressing greenhouse gas emissions and adapting to expected impacts, including the provision of financial and technological support to developing countries ;

* cooperate in preparing for adaptation to the impacts of climate change.

Kyoto Protocol to the UNFCC, 1997

Only Parties to the Convention that have also become Parties to the Protocol (i.e

by ratifying, accepting, approving, or acceding to it) will be capable of taking place int he Kyoto mechanisms and be bound by the Protocol's individual commitments, greatly differing between Annex I and Annex II countries. Total cuts in CO2 emissions will have to add up to a total cut in greenhouse-gas emissions of at least 5% from 1990 levels in the commitment period 2008-2012.

Next to local policies to be taken, the Protocol also establises:

* emissions trading, an Annex I Party may transfer some of the emissions under its assigned amount, known as assigned amount units (AAUs), to another Annex I Party that finds it relatively more difficult to meet its emissions target. It may also transfer CERs, ERUs or RMUs that it has acquired through the CDM, joint implementation or sink activities in the same way. In order to address the concern that some...