With Tuesday's ratification of the Kyoto Protocol, Japan has taken a first step toward tackling the problem of global warming, which threatens modern civilization. Coming four and a half years after the protocol was approved at an international conference in Kyoto in 1997, the ratification is in line with the government's international pledge and is expected to help increase Japan's say in environmental matters. Such a role is supported by both public opinion and nongovernmental organizations here.
Fifteen European countries have already ratified the protocol, and when Russia and nations responsible for more than 1.8 percent of 1990 carbon dioxide emissions sign on it will be pushed into force. While this may be difficult to achieve in time for the U.N. World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, which runs through early September, we hope that Russia will step up its ratification efforts.
Under the protocol, Japan is obliged to reduce its emissions of greenhouse gases by 6 percent of the 1990 level on average between 2008 and 2010. This is an awesome task, indeed. Not only did the reduction of CO2 which accounts for the bulk of greenhouse-gas emissions, not make any headway in the 1990s, CO2 emissions have increased by about 10 percent over the 1990 level, so on balance Japan will have to achieve cuts of 13 percent when all six targeted greenhouse gases are included.