The Kyoto protocol
Negotiated in Kyoto (Japan) in December 1997, the Kyoto protocol is a multilateral agreement, by which industrialized countries that ratified the treaty agreed to reduce their emissions of GHGs. The agreement came into force in February 2005.
The table shows the percentage of the amount of greenhouse gas emissions by countries in the period from 2008-2012 compared with the base year 1990.
Country |
Target (1990–2008/12) |
EU-15, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Monaco, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Switzerland |
-8% |
US (not intending to ratify) |
-7% |
Canada, Hungary, Japan, Poland |
-6% |
Croatia, Belarus |
-5% |
New Zealand, Russian Federation, Ukraine |
0% |
Norway |
+1% |
Australia |
+8% |
Iceland |
+10% |
Under the Kyoto Protocol there are a variety of country classifications, the main ones being:
Annex 1- These are the 41 industrialised nations that were first defined be the UNFCCC in 1992. They are committed to adopting national polices and taking measures to mitigate climate change. They include the members of the OECD (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development) and the economies in transition (EIT), including the Russian Federation, the Baltic States, and several Central and Eastern States.
Annex B – These are the 39 countries specified in Annex B to the Kyoto Protocol that have agreed to binding commitments on their GHG emissions for the 2008-2012 period relative to 1990. This group is identical to Annex 1 countries with the exception of Belarus and Turkey which are not included.
Non-Annex 1 – These are developing countries that have signed the Kyoto protocol that have no specific commitments to reduce levels of GHGs e.g. China, India or Brazil, but must assist in the monitoring of GHG emissions.