Question

How have some of the world's largest corporations and key environmental groups (again, U.S. or international) joined together to push for the government to impose mandatory limits on carbon emissions?

Answer 1

Increasing human activities has brought an increase in concentration of carbondioxide and other green house gases. The two main culprits of global warming and climate change are carbon emissions and ozone depleting substances.

According to Second Report (1995) of Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change ( IPCC) global warming will lead to rise in sea levels, fluctuating crop yields and loss of biodiversity.

• Concentrations of carbondioxide has increased since preindustrial era by 30% because of fossil fuels use, land use changes and agriculture.
• Even if carbondioxide emissions are maintained at 1994 levels, its concentration in atmosphere will reach 550 ppm by end of 21st century, twice the preindustrial levels.
• Global mean surface temperature would be about 2oC above pre industrial levels by 2030 and about 4oC above pre industrial levels by 2090.
• Drastic change in weather patterns bringing more floods or droughts.
• Sea level is projected to rise between 9cm and 29cm by 2030 and 96cm by 2090

Hence there is a great pressure on countries to reduce carbon emissions by international bodies/ conventions through the following conferences/ protocols.

• February 1979 - First World Climate Conference in Geneva organised by World Meterological Organisation concluding that anthropogenic Carbondioxide emissions have a long term impact on climate
• November 1987 - World Commission on Environment and Development also called Bruntland Commission called on UNEP and WMO to take further action  ( against the backdrop of Montreal protocol on substances that deplete Ozone layer)
• June, 1988(Torronto Targets) - Conference on changing atmosphere: Implications for global security organised at Toronto, Canada. Recommended 20% reduction of carbon emissions over 1990 levels by 2005, known as Torronto Targets.
• November 1988 - IPCC ( Intergovernmental Panel on climate Change) established
• November 1989 - Noordwijik Declaration stating industrialized nations have specific responsibilities towards climate change.
• May 1990 - Bergen Declaration of UN Economic Commission for Europe( UNECE) indicates the desire of some countries for CO2 stabilization
• May 1992 - UNFCCC was formally adopted at UN headquarters in New York.
• June 1992 - UNFCCC opens for signature at UNCED at Rio de Janerio on climate change conventions and Biodiversity asking to stabilize carbon emissions to 1990 levels by 2000.
• March 1995- First conference of of parties ( COP - 1 ) held at Berlin to cut carbon emissions
• July 1996 - CoP 2 in Geneva
• December 1997 - Cop 3 held at Kyoto. Kyoto protocol tobthe UNFCCC was adopted
• November 2000 - CoP 6 held at Hague, Netherlands where climate negotiations broke down completely as the EU refused to given to US demands
• February 2005 - The Kyoto Protocol became legally enforceable on all parties that ratified the treaty.
• November 2006 - CoP 12 of UNFCCC held at Nairobi, Kenya. US refuaed to budge from its earleir position with EU pushed for carbon emission cuts.

November 30 December, 2015 - PARIS AGREEMENT (CoP 21) - Representatives of 196 nations including 150 heads of states participated in the conference. Parties to UNFCCC negotiated for 2 weeks.

• Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Sweden , Switzerland, the UK and US announced a pledge to put in 248 Million US Dollar into the least development countries fund, a Climate Fund hosted by the global environment facility.
• US $100 billion be given by developed countries every year taking into account their needs and priorities for five years till 2020 mitigating global warming and adoption to clean Technology
• The Paris Agreement's long-term goal is to keep the increase in global average temperature to well below 2oC above pre-industrial levels; and to pursue efforts to limit the increase to 1.5oC by reducing carbon emissions

COUNTRY	COMMITMENT
China	Levelling off carbon emissions by 60-65 % from 2005 levels by 2030
US	cut overall green house gas emissions by 26 to 28% below 2005 levels by 2025. U.S. has taken initiatives under Obama administration to achieve the target include the Clean Power Plan (a state-by-state program to cut carbon pollution from the power sector) and the tightening of automotive fuel economy standards to reduce transportation emissions—both policies the Trump administration is working hard to roll back.
EU	EU economy adopted Climate neutral by 2050 and to reduce carbondioxide emissions to 40% by 2030 compared to 1990 levels.
India	To cut carbon emissions by 33 to 35 % below 2005 levels.