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Smoke and Mirrors: The Kyoto Protocol and Beyond

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  • G. Cornelis van Kooten

Abstract

The Kyoto Protocol (KP) is considered a necessary first step towards an effective future climate accord. As argued in this paper, however, the KP will likely fail because it has too many loopholes, inadequate governance structures and insufficient compliance provisions. This view is supported by case studies of Canada, Japan and the Netherlands. These countries are unlikely to achieve their self-imposed targets, or, if they do, the costs of compliance will be unacceptably high. Consequently, the difficulty of achieving agreement to reduce global emissions by half (as required to mitigate climate change) is greatly increased.

Suggested Citation

  • G. Cornelis van Kooten, 2003. "Smoke and Mirrors: The Kyoto Protocol and Beyond," Working Papers 2003-04, University of Victoria, Department of Economics, Resource Economics and Policy Analysis Research Group.
    • Handle: RePEc:rep:wpaper:2003-04
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    File URL: https://web.uvic.ca/~repa/publications/REPA%20working%20papers/WorkingPaper2003-04.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Climate change mitigation; Kyoto Protocol and implementation; Carbon sinks;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • Q54 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Climate; Natural Disasters and their Management; Global Warming
    • Q58 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Environmental Economics: Government Policy

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