Global warming is an issue that affects countries across the world and states put their hands together to work towards the reduction of its effects. There are treaties which countries sign and should abide by such as the Kyoto protocol. However, there is need to go a step further and come up with more ways to battle global warming by coming up with initiatives that meet the needs of each country. While other countries put their focus on deforestation and the increase of the use of renewable energy, others are more into cap-and-trade plans. Such plans restrict industrial emissions, and no industry should emit more than what it is its cap. Where firm wishes to emit more gases, they can buy a permit from another company which has space to spare. Countries all over the world are looking for means that can help them reduce their greenhouse emissions. With only three years to go to get to 2020, the Climate Action Partnership will be waiting to see how close they get to their targets.
Australia
This state has an aim of reducing the emission of greenhouse gases by at least five percent below two thousand levels by the year 2020. They signed the Kyoto Protocol in 2007 when the Labor Party took over the government. Australia, under the Climate Pact, agreed to maintain its greenhouse gas emissions at eight percent above the one thousand nine hundred and ninety levels for the period between 2008 and 2012. They have met their targets by ensuring that deforestation and land clearing practices get kept to a minimum. On November in 2011, the Australian Parliament came up with a carbon trading plan which is the most massive outside of Europe. In the program, the worst polluters in the country would get subjected to tax for every ton of carbon they emitted from July the following year. The plans to merge their carbon market with that of New Zealand would prevent the dismantling of the market if the conservatives took over the country.
Brazil
Brazil aims to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to one thousand nine hundred and ninety-four levels and to cut deforestation by eighty percent by the year 2020. They have a plan known as the National Climate Change Plan which focuses on the expansion of the renewable electric energy industry as well as the increase of the biofuels in transportation. The government has a heavy focus on the reduction of deforestation, and they plan to ensure that their net loss of forests falls by zero by 2020.
Canada
When this country signed the Kyoto Protocol, they committed to the reduction of the emission of greenhouse gases y six percent below one thousand nine hundred and ninety levels. They later came up with a plan to reduce their emissions by at least seventeen percent from two thousand and five levels by the year 2020. This ambitious policy is in line with that of the United States. Though they have not been successful at the reduction of emission because of the extraction of oil, they have managed to shift their energy sources from coal to gas, thus making a stride towards the reduction of global warming.
China
They have not made any pledges concerning the reduction of greenhouse gases and with the growth of their economy; it is likely that the emissions will increase. However, they have promised to make their operations more energy efficient by at least forty percent by the year 2020. China is the highest consumer of coal in the world and has a large production capacity. They release the most greenhouse gases and are second in the consumption of energy. Under the Kyoto Protocol, China was not to lower its emissions because it was a developing country. The country imports a lot of fossil fuels, and they are adopting the use of renewable energy in a bid to become more energy efficient. A law passed in the year 2005 stated that power grid companies must buy a certain percentage of their power supplies from renewable sources. The government provides subsidies to those who adopt clean energy to attract more industries to renewable energy. China also plans to boost its national forest coverage, and they have introduced a carbon market.
India
India could not commit to the reduction of greenhouse gases because such measures would hurt the livelihoods of most of its citizens. As such, it plans to combat global warming through the use of other means. It plans to increase its energy efficiency levels by at least twenty percent. This country is the third largest greenhouse gases emitter in the world. Under the Kyoto Protocol, they are not required to reduce their emissions because they are a developing country and should take up other means of battling global warming. India participates in the Clean Development Mechanism which is a carbon offset plan that got established by the Kyoto Protocol. This mechanism allows developing nations to get credits when they put up projects which reduce emissions. These 'credits' can then get sold to an industrialized nation which can ass the points towards their overall emission reductions. Most of India’s emission projects revolve around biomass and wind power. The country hopes to have at least twenty gigawatts of solar power by the year 2020. One such gigawatt is adequate to meet the power needs of a small city. They have also introduced a levy on coal to push their industries towards renewable energy.
Indonesia
They plan to cut their greenhouse emission gases by twenty-six percent by the year 2020. This country is home to a large number of tropical forests which suck up the carbon in the atmosphere, making the environment clean. However, these forests are getting logged at fast rates which mean that more carbon dioxide is getting into the atmosphere. Indonesia got into a deal with Norway which gave them one billion shillings for forest conservation efforts in exchange for concessions on the clearing of forests.
United States
They planned to reduce their emissions by seventeen percent by the year 2020, but the plan got pushed out by Congress. They have introduced fuel-efficiency standards on vehicles. States are coming up with their regulations to help them reduce emissions. California plans to cap the emission of gases starting from industries and finally capping emissions from vehicles.
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