By washingtonpost.com staff
(Updated: November 1998)

Pact highlights and tasks ahead

The average global temperature in the lower atmosphere has risen about one degree Fahrenheit in the last century – a development that many scientists and environmentalists say is directly linked to the growth in use of fossil fuels by humans. According to these global warming theorists, a combination of gases, dust and industrial emissions from burning fossil fuels is now trapping solar heat in the atmosphere – the way glass traps the sun's warmth in a greenhouse – causing a general warming of the planet. The pollutants come largely from fuels like coal, oil and gasoline, although smokestacks, autos and appliances are also believed to contribute to this problem.

What's the big deal? Many scientists and environmentalists claim that a rapid jump in fossil fuel emissions is already producing disturbing environmental trends, including a rise in sea levels caused by melting polar ice caps. Increasing emissions, they argue, could also disrupt food and water supplies for much of the world and wreak havoc on plant and animal ecosystems.

The scientific community, however, is far from unified on the causes behind – or the implications of – the earth's rising temperatures. Many experts say the one-degree increase is merely the result of normal fluctuations in the earth's climate. Scientific skeptics go on to say that a mild, gradual warming could actually benefit many parts of the world by increasing crop yields in the Northern Hemisphere.

"We need to reduce emissions one or two percent per year for the next century." – Environmental Defense Fund's Michael Oppenheimer

World leaders, nonetheless, responded to the perceived threat by seeking a global treaty to reduce greenhouse gases. After a series of smaller conferences, representatives from more than 160 nations gathered in December 1997 in Kyoto, Japan, to decide how rapid and deep the cuts should be.

Climate summit delegates ultimately agreed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions among industrialized countries deferring until later the contentious issue of how developing countries would participate in the accord. The treaty required industrialized nations to lower pollution by an average of 5.2 percent below 1990 levels by 2012.

"The Clinton-Gore global climate plan threatens the quality of life for all Americans," and restrictions would "result in higher energy prices for working Americans, sending U.S. jobs overseas." – Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner Jr. (R-Wis.)

With the Kyoto treaty approved by the participating nations, government ministers met in Buenos Aires in November 1998 for the next phase of negotiations – mainly discussions on how to implement and enforce the Kyoto accord, and talks on whether developing countries would take on greater obligations for curbing their emissions.

Marathon negotiations produced an agreement on an "action plan" – one which the participating countries said would speed up the timetable for combating global warming. The deal was hailed as evidence of momentum in implementing the Kyoto treaty, with the United States finally signing the Kyoto pact during the discussions and some developing countries voluntarily adopting some restrictions on the growth of their emissions.

Critics, however, noted that the Kyoto treaty still requires ratification by a host of national legislatures, including the U.S. Congress. Treaty opponents in the United States have tried to influence congressional leaders and their constituents with a multi-million dollar negative advertising campaign. Their claim is that there is not enough evidence of global warming to justify jeopardizing the country's standard of living.

Europe and the United States also put off until next year their biggest dispute: whether to set limits on the amount of trading in "emissions" credits and other market mechanisms that would allow rich countries to have higher emissions at home in return for investing in "clean" technology abroad. Europeans favor strict limits on trading while the United States wants maximum flexibility.