International Relations: A Simple Introduction by K.H. Erickson

Author:K.H. Erickson
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: global warming, climate change, game theory, comparative advantage, cultural difference, cultural conflict, gains from trade, power and interdependence, trade liberalization, trade theory

The failure to reduce greenhouse gas emissions

Global warming and the resulting climate change has been a well-known and well-publicized problem for a long time, but there has been a notable lack of action to resolve it. While the damage that chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) caused to the ozone layer was resolved with the 1980s Montreal Protocol international treaty, as countries worldwide agreed to phase out CFCs for more ozone friendly alternatives, the damage to the earth’s climate caused by agriculture related methane and from burning fossil fuels continues on a massive scale. And the type of efforts seen with the elimination of CFCs remains elusive.

November 2014 agreements on the reduction of GHG emissions may appear to have finally started the resolution of the global warming problem, as the world’s two biggest polluters China and the USA agreed to reduce their emissions. This followed an agreement a month earlier by the European Union countries (together the third biggest GHG emitter) to also reduce GHG emissions. But closer inspection of the agreements reveals their limitations.

China, the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases by some distance, didn’t mention any intention to reduce their current levels of GHG emissions which are the highest in the world, and only stated that their emission levels after the year 2030 would be lower than those which will occur in 2030. And even this agreement won’t necessarily stand as the Chinese president who agreed it, Xi Jinping, is limited to two five years terms in office at the most, and having been elected to the presidency in 2013 he will be out of office by 2023 at the latest. The next Chinese president could decide that he wants to take China in a different direction, and renounce his predecessor’s international agreement on GHG emissions.

The United States, currently the second largest emitter of GHGs, agreed to cut emissions 20% by the year 2020 and 26-28% by 2025, with all cuts relative to 2005 emission levels. However, it was president Barrack Obama who agreed this and his last term in office ends January 2017, and his successors may abandon the agreement before it would be fully implemented. This may be especially likely to occur if Obama’s successors are Republicans, who have been openly critical of Obama’s policies on climate change.

The European Union (EU), together as a set of countries the third largest GHG emitter, agreed a 40% cut in emissions on 1990 levels by the year 2030. But this is only binding on the EU as a whole and there are no targets for any countries individually. And this sets up the situation where the EU countries can blame each other if the target isn’t met (Guardian, 2014).

Many people have hope for future climate change agreements, but from past evidence it appears that the biggest GHG emitters, USA, China, and the EU countries, will only agree to GHG emission reductions which they can’t be held to. Instead of taking actual action to reduce GHG emissions and improve welfare countries appear to be adopting a cunning strategy, where they claim to work toward this goal while doing very little.

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