Kyoto Treaty starts today

I make this thread because I am somewhat proud of the the buinesses in the United States of America. Why you ask? Because a bunch of them are considering going on board with the treaty even though it isn't enforced upon them. It is a trend that I hope catches on.

Quote:

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WASHINGTON (AFP) - US President George W. Bush (news - web sites)'s refusal to ratify the Kyoto protocol to reduce greenhouse gases, which today took effect, is being countered by some US industries which have adopted measures to staunch global warming.

"A lot of private companies like Dupont, Dow Chemical, Chevron, Conoco, Alcoa, International Paper, IBM ... are actively thinking about this issue," said Richard Rosenzweig, of energy brokers Natsource.

Their decision is a consequence of globalization and the restrictions on carbon dioxide emissions from cars and power plants that several US states have imposed.

Most of these businesses have manufacturing plants in countries that have signed the 1997 Kyoto Protocol (news - web sites). These plants must comply with the treaty, which aims at trimming greenhouse gas emissions between now and 2012 by 5.2 percent compared with the level recorded in 1990.

"If you are a power company in the US," Rosenzweig said, "you believe you might be regulated in the future, you want to be prepared and learn about this issue... these are the main reasons why those companies are involved."

In contrast, many of the leaders in the fossil fuel industry, such as the oil giant ExxonMobil, fully supports the Bush administration, citing the costs Kyoto would add to cleaning up power stations and of the conversion to cleaner energy sources.

On its website, Dupont said it began to cut CO2 emissions at its plants in the early 1990s to forestall market pressures that will develop as the world economy adapts to the challenge of global warming.

Dupont said that over the past 10 years it has cut greenhouse gas emissions to 50 percent of what they were in 1990 and that it expects to further reduce them anywhere from 65 to 100 percent by 2010.

More than 50 million dollars has been invested in the clean-up operation, it said.

Dupont has already offset the cost of the C02 reduction by selling polluting competitors, especially in Great Britain, its rights of emissions as well as the technology they need to clean up their act.

Alcoa, the world's top aluminum producer, also began very early to cut its greenhouse gases emissions.

Former Alcoa CEO Paul O'Neill, who served as treasury secretary for two years under Bush's first administration, told a group of industry professionals in 1998 that "civilization could go down the drain" if climate change was not taken seriously.

Alcoa has cut its greenhouse gases emissions to 25 percent of its 1990 levels and, like Dupont, expects to cash in on its investment.

Around 50 US businesses six months ago launched a CO2 emissions exchange in the Chicago stock market to create their own financial inducements similar to Europe's international carbon trading schemes, in accordance with the Kyoto Protocol.

By cutting their CO2 emissions to below promised target levels, they can sell their rights of emissions to companies that have not reached their goals.

"The trading has going very well," said Natsource's Rosenzweig, whose firm helped set up the pilot program.

However, he added, "in the future, in order to get emission reduction we'll need a mandatory program like in Europe."

For Bruce Braine, of American Electric Power, a US electricity giant and participant in the trading scheme, it will be a matter of time before the United States falls into line with the rest of the world: "We believe that at some point in the US there will be mandatory legislation."

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http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...s_050216153008

While some of them are just doing it because the rest of their facilities around the world are doing it, it still makes me happy that they are going to do it here also. It is going to happen eventually because it will NEED to be done.

I will post more on how I feel about this later.

That's definitely pleasing to see, that some companies aren't just discounting this issue as a formality.
Let's hope more follow suite.

We can all breath a sigh of relief then.


spot the pun

That's good to hear. In fact, knowing that just made my day. Maybe there is faith in rich people after all? Maybe...

I was pretty angry when I heard we wouldn't be joining the treats because it would cause us to loose a certain number of jobs. If jobs now are more important than the continued existence of our planet years down the road, we should re-evaluate our position. Still, it's great to see some companies are doing the stand-up thing and joining.

With America, India, and China all refusing to ratify the Protocol, I would encourage every business and household to do as much as they can to look after the environment.

[Also, I'd've thought that a reduction of 5% by 2012 wasn't nearly enough to aim for, but I guess we'll see what happens.]

Environmental protocols of any description make little impact unless they have universal criteria. Carbon dioxide emissions and logging affect the economies of those reluctant to join.

To illustrate, both Japan and Norway - avid whaling nations, refused to sign the Pacific treaty endorsed by both the USA and Australia... ;)
The production possibilities of these nations, both with interests in the pacific (Norway has fishing rights in Antarctica), is reduced when this industry is restricted.

To the American, Chinese or Indian firm, the protocol on green house gas emissions is absurd, while the energy efficient Japan and Germany (early birds) were more than happy to comply. Also Japan, with its 6/7ths mountainous geography can certainly do without logging, while America, China, India, Australia and Brazil - the latter two nations hesitated to comply - would experience rapid inflation, collapsed building industries and needless to say exchange deflation.

Amazing that Kyoto was sympathetic to Japanese industries, a protocol designed by Japan, with a clear bias for the Japanese position.


P.S. Personally, I would have liked to see world compliance with Kyoto, but it is reasonable that some nations have not...for their own ends that is. ;)