Kyoto protocol, Paris agreement and Japanese environmental policy

1.    Kyoto protocol

<General details>

Signed in 1997 in COP3 held in Kyoto, Japan. Kyoto protocol is an international agreement about global warming. It required all of its developed country members to reduce average 5% of their carbon emission compared to 1990 by around 2008 to 2012. This was the first international agreement created a framework for reduction of carbon emission.

<How Japan reacted to the agreement>

Japan was required to reduce 6 percent of its greenhouse gas emission by 2012, and successfully achieved the goal.

  Since developing countries were not required to reduce their carbon emissions in Kyoto protocol, Japanese government argued that this agreement was not so effective and didn't join the second term of this agreement.

However, Kyoto protocol played an important role to raise Japanese people's consciousness about climate change and to promote social environmental movement in Japan.

2. Paris agreement

<General details>

Signed in 1997 in COP21 held in Paris, France. One of the most important goals of this agreement is to keep a global temperature rise in 21st century less than 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase even further to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

 Once in every 5 years, each country is required to submit review of their past 5 years and new goals for next 5 years.

<How Japan reacted to the agreement>

  Japan?s goal is to reduce 26 percent of its carbon emission by 2030. Japanese government is promoting renewable energy, reforestation, and CFC regulations to achieve this goal. Japanese government increased budget 1.3 times for renewable energy industries. Renewable energy is more expensive than fossil fuels, but this energy shift is inevitable to achieve sustainable society.