Whats the Kyoto Protocol?
The Kyoto Protocol is an international treaty aimed at curtailing emissions of four key greenhouse gases — carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, sulphur hexafluoride — and two groups of gases — hydrofluorocarbons and perfluorocarbons. Man-made emissions of these heat-trapping gases are blamed for the average rise in the temperature of Earth’s atmosphere over the last few decades, as well as the associated consequences, such as ice melt and sea level rise. The stated target for reduction of greenhouse gases under the Kyoto Protocol was an average of 5.2 percent below 1990 levels by 2012 for 37 industrialized countries, including the United States. The methods countries use to reduce emissions were left open to several options and are at the discretion of each country, though the treaty allowed for development of a cap-and-trade emissions system.
