Monday, May 17, 2004
Japan says it won't meet Kyoto targets
Kenji Hall (AP) Tokyo, May 15
Japan, a staunch advocate of the Kyoto protocol on global warming, is struggling to meet its targets for cutting pollution, as it considers a range of environmental policy alternatives to cap carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas levels. Since last year, an Environment Ministry task force has been examining ways to reverse a steady rise in emissions from factory smokestacks to household appliances expected over the next few years. Environmentalists criticise Tokyo for making renewable energy - such as wind and solar power - a low priority.
Yoshinori Tanaka, assistant director of the ministry's climate change policy division, said that Japan can't meet the Kyoto targets unless it takes more drastic measures. Tokyo has promised a 6 per cent cut in emissions of greenhouse gases, which are widely thought to be a key cause of global warming.
"Government forecasts show greenhouse gas emissions will be up 4.1 per cent to 4.6 per cent in 2010, from 1990," Tanaka told The Associated Press in a recent interview. "But we plan to take advantage of the credits allowed under the Kyoto protocol ... to improve the forecast."
The Kyoto protocol was signed in 1997 at an international conference held in Japan. Its fate has been uncertain since U.S. President George W. Bush said Washington would not sign the pact because the strict targets would hinder U.S. growth. Under the rules of the pact, Russia's approval is needed for the pact to go into effect. But Moscow hasn't committed to do so. Unlike the United States, Japan doesn't view the pact as an economic hindrance. New measures such as tax reforms that would help Tokyo achieve its targets are likely to cut into growth by only 0.01 per cent a year, a recent Kyoto University study found. Last month, Japan's Environment Ministry task force released a progress report that shows exhaust from cars and delivery trucks and effluents from coal-fired power plants are Japan's largest source of pollution. Emissions of greenhouse gases were up 8.2 per cent in 2001, from the 1990 level, it said.
Tanaka said a sharp surge in greenhouse gases from office buildings has added to emissions levels.
New policies now under consideration include tax incentives to encourage wider use of energy-saving technology as well as new laws to prod companies to shift deliveries from land routes to sea, Tanaka said. Specifics aren't expected to emerge for months, he added.
The task force report recommended accelerating plans for an emissions trading system, much like the one Europe is set to launch next year. The trading system would let companies whose factories and buildings exceed pollution limits to buy the right to emit car dioxide from other companies. However, Tokyo is counting on the carbon dioxide-absorbing effects of forests and tree-planting projects for a big share of emissions reductions, Tanaka said. Forest credits are allowed under the Kyoto protocol.
Environmentalists say using forests and emissions trading to cap emissions could mask a rise in carbon dioxide levels. Greenpeace Japan's Masaaki Nakajima criticized Tokyo for spending too little on solar and wind power for homes and businesses. About 1 per cent of Japan's energy supply comes from solar, wind and water power, according to government statistics.
"Although renewable energy isn't a practical replacement of current sources, Japan should increase its share of dependence on the technology," said Nakajima.
© Hindustan Times Ltd. 2004.