Kyoto Protocol not enough to fight global warming: IEA

Houston (Platts)--15Dec2004

While the Kyoto Protocol is an important step, more efforts are needed to
promote energy efficiency and new technologies to cope with climate change,
Claude Mandil, executive director of the International Energy Agency, said
Tuesday in Buenos Aires at the UN Conference of Parties on Climate Change. 

The
targets, if met, "are only a very small contribution towards global climate
change mitigation, which requires much stronger worldwide CO2 reductions," he
said. IEA statistics show world energy-related carbon dioxide emissions are
16.4% above their 1990 level, rising 2% in 2002 alone. IEA, which acts as
advisor for its 26 member countries on energy policies, projects that measures
adopted up to 2003 cannot prevent a rapid increase in CO2 emissions. In a
business-as-usual scenario, developing countries emissions will more than
double between 2002 and 2030, from 8.2 to 18.4 Gt CO2, IEA said.

The Kyoto Protocol requires some 30 industrial countries to reduce their
greenhouse gas emissions, primarily CO2, by 5.2% from 2008 through 2012
starting Feb 16. The US, the leading source of greenhouse gases, has refused
to ratify the treaty because it excludes countries such as China and because
of its perceived adverse impact on the US economy. 

IEA said emissions could be
curbed through a strong push on energy efficiency policy, support for
renewables and further use of nuclear energy. A 16% reduction in emissions
from business-as-usual levels could be achieved worldwide by 2030, with energy
efficiency contributing to 60% of the reduction, it said. In this alternative
scenario, IEA countries' emissions would start declining in the 2020s, but
even this scenario does not bring emissions to sustainable levels and more
policy efforts and technology breakthroughs are needed, IEA said. Existing
technologies must be improved and new ones developed and deployed, it said.
Nuclear, carbon capture and storage have a role to play..." Mandil said.

This story was originally published in Platts European Power Alert
(http://www.platts.com/Electric%20Power/Real-Time%20Information/European%20Po
wer%20Alert/)

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