Environmental Studies

Environmental Studies Assignment-1 Submitted by-Anchit Dayal,Sec-B BBA+MBA (IB)-Dual

SUMMARY-This case study talks about the discussions of four new interns at the senate committee on foreign relations on the need for US to sign the Kyoto Protocol for reducing the carbon emissions. Each of the four people, has different views as to how the US should or should not sign the treaty. Each of them talks about global warming and its various effects on the environment.According to izzy, Global warming has many effects on the environment such as melting of glaciers leading to subsequent rise of the sea levels. While each of them talks about the environmental consequences of it, one of them named Kendall considers it to be a boon for the nature. This case study is a debate between four youngsters as to how global warming can affect the nature and the topic that why should the US get involved with the Kyoto Protocol.

Ans-1-Global warming basically refers to the rising of earth’s overall atmospheric and oceanic temperature. It is due to greenhouse effect. The greenhouse effect is the process by which absorption and emission of infrared radiation, by gases in the atmosphere warm a planet's lower atmosphere and surface also. There are many greenhouse gases but the one mainly responsible for global warming is carbon dioxide (CO2). Since 1980, earth’s overall temperature has been increased to noticeable levels. Global warming today has become one of the topics of serious concern. The effects of global warming cannot be ignored. First and foremost, due to the global increase in temperatures, the glaciers have started to melt rapidly due to which

the overall sea level is rising at a continuous rate. Changes have been observed in the amount, intensity, frequency, and type of precipitation. Widespread increases in heavy precipitation have occurred, even in places where total rain amounts have decreased. Projections of future climate changes at the regional scale do not hold as high a level of scientific confidence as projections made at the global scale. It is, however, expected that future warming will follow a similar geographical pattern to that seen already, with greatest warming over land and high northern latitudes. The effects are not limited geologically,infact many other consequences are also there such as habitat change, extreme climates in some regions, alterations in agricultural produces, changes in the biochemical and geochemical cycles,etc.Global warming not only has serious implications on humans,infact the whole nature is affected at large.

Ans-2-The Kyoto Protocol is the protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), whose sole objective is to tackle the problem of global warming. It is an environmental treaty which aims at reducing the greenhouse emissions in the atmosphere. The Kyoto protocol aims at reducing greenhouse emissions to a fixed percentage of 1990 emissions. The main provisions of Kyoto protocol are• Emissions Trading: The countries that have signed the Kyoto protocol, have accepted the terms of limiting or reducing their emissions up to a certain level. Emissions trading allow countries that have emission units to spare emissions permitted them but not "used" - to sell this excess capacity to countries that are over their targets. • Clean Development mechanism (CDM): CDM allows a country that has signed the Kyoto protocol’s terms of reduced or limited emissions to implement an emission reduction project in the developing countries. Such projects can earn saleable certified emission reduction (CER) credits, each equivalent to one tonne of CO2.

• Joint Implementation: JI allows a country under the emission reduction or emission limitation commitment under the Kyoto protocol, to earn emission reduction units (ERU’s), from an emission reduction project in another country, each equivalent to one tonne of CO2.

Ans-3-There are many scientific evidences that are enough to support the cause of global warming. Firstly, the melting of ice caps resulting in an overall rise in sea level is a cause of major concern worldwide. The major cause of global warming is the trapping of CO2 in our atmosphere Carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere have increased from about 280 ppm in the early 1800s up to 360 ppm today which has led to substantial rise in temperatures all around the globe. Due to the continuous melting of the glaciers, global sea level has risen 20 cm (8 inches) in the past century and forecasts suggest that it will rise another 35 cm (14 inches) in the next 50 years. All these effects are due to greenhouse emissions. Apart from all this, extreme weather conditions have also been observed in many places. Increased CO2 content in our atmosphere will certainly affect the agricultural produce and hinder the habitats of many plants and animal also which can cause alterations in the food chains and food webs. The detrimental effects of global warming due GHG emissions are observable in every sphere of nature.So,all the countries, agencies including the superpowers have got enough reasons to control the greenhouse emissions or at least take preventive measures towards limiting the emissions to the best possible levels.

Ans-4-There are many policy considerations that need to be considered for the Kyoto Protocol. Politics indeed plays a vital role in the functioning of the Kyoto Protocol. The only reason why the US didn’t sign the treaty was the fear of economic downfall because in its opinion, the developing nations are not required to participate in the Kyoto protocol as limiting their carbon emissions, would

prove as a hindrance to their economic growth. The basic aim should be to bring the superpowers together for signing the treaty and to make a common commitment to reduce or limit the rate of carbon emissions. This will help to spread the need and urgency to try to stop global warming and if the superpowers work towards this aim, then the rest of the nations would also give their best shot in reducing the emissions. Political disparities should be ignored at once by all the nations and they should make a joint effort in reducing GHG emissions and subsequently reducing Global Warming……together moving towards a greener and safer future

Ans-5-It seems that all the four people, izzy, Kendall, jay and lee, have different views about the Kyoto protocol. Izzy’s views-Izzy considers global warming as one of the biggest problems to humankind. She is really concern over the melting of glaciers and the subsequent rise in the overall sea level of the earth. In her opinion, the Kyoto protocol is the most appropriate method to fight greenhouse emissions as far as now. According to her, the US should sign the treaty as this is the United Nations only strategy to fight global effect of greenhouse emissions.

Jay’s views- Jay has a completely different view from izzy.According to him; there is no point for the US in signing the Kyoto protocol. Even though he does not ignore the effects of global warming, but he thinks that the Kyoto protocol would not stop the greenhouse gas emissions, but merely asks industrialized countries to reduce their emissions to 93% or 94% of 1990 levels. According to him, there is a need to start working on all new power systems---wind, solar, maybe nuclear--that don't produce greenhouse gases. Everything else is merely offering lip service to a monumental problem. The best Kyoto protocol can do is to decrease the rate of increase in the GHG emissions.

Kendall’s views-Kendall thinks that global warming is not bad for the nature. According to him, this problem is not a matter of concern and we should not disrupt our entire lifestyles for a cause that we don’t even understand. In his view, surely a few tropical islands would be destroyed along with some expensive beach houses, but there would not be a catastrophe.Instead,we could be having an entirely new variety of crops growing that could grow fast and various other benefits from global warming. So according to Kendall, it’s simply useless signing the Kyoto protocol.

Lee’s views-Lee applies his political insight for the refusal of US towards signing the Kyoto Protocol. According to him, the Kyoto Protocol is a compromise document that considers the needs of more than a hundred different countries. He thinks that the negotiators chose the year 1990 as a target of lowering down the emissions just to make it more appealing the USSR and the eastern bloc countries since they collapsed in 1990 and now have a fair chance of earning profits by selling the emission credits. The US did not sign the treaty just because of the reason that the developing countries require no participation in the Kyoto protocol as it might hinder their growing economies. The US senate also passed a resolution stating that the US will not participate in any emission reducing project as it would be detrimental for the Us economy. In essence, the Senate wants to keep the playing field level, and they're concerned that other countries will experience substantial financial gains at the expense of the U.S. as a result of the Kyoto Protocol. Keeping all the four viewpoints in mind, the viewpoint of izzy seems most appropriate and beneficial according to the current environmental scenario. Global warming is now one the major environmental threats having serious implications on humankind as well. Greenhouse emissions need to be controlled urgently. The increased carbon dioxide content in nature will affect many biochemical and geochemical cycles, leading to imbalance in nature. It would also affect the habitats of many plants and animals. The consequences of Global Warming are uncountable and unforeseeable. Some political reasons might be

there behind the implementation of the Kyoto Protocol but still, it’s the first step towards reducing the GHG emissions. The US should support the treaty wholeheartedly. It should ignore the economic effect of signing, instead it should focus more on the environment, that how much it will be benefitted and how we can achieve a greener and healthier tomorrow. The problem of global warming should be tackled immediately or else it might lead to detrimental consequences.

CONCLUSION: Global Warming currently has become a topic of grave concern and needs to be addressed urgently. The greenhouse emissions are harmful to the environment in every possible way. So urgent steps are required to stop or just to decrease the amount of carbon emissions throughout the world. The Kyoto Protocol is the first initiative towards it.It brings various countries together under a commitment to limit or reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases that cause global warming. According to the present circumstances, the US should indeed participate in this cause. It should sign the treaty and help the other nations to reduce their emissions and decrease the rate of global warming and over a period of time, get over the problem of global warming .People and nations as a whole, should get aware of the seriousness of the situation and should not form light opinions over it.This problem has to be solved urgently and if not, then the future of the humankind is in darkness.