{
  "id": "R46204",
  "type": "CRS Report",
  "typeId": "REPORTS",
  "number": "R46204",
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  "source": "EveryCRSReport.com",
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    {
      "source": "EveryCRSReport.com",
      "id": 615459,
      "date": "2020-01-29",
      "retrieved": "2020-01-30T23:01:50.554242",
      "title": "The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Kyoto Protocol, and the Paris Agreement: A Summary",
      "summary": "The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has been the principle forum for cooperation among nations on greenhouse gas (GHG)-induced climate change since its adoption in 1992. Its objective is \u201cto stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that will prevent dangerous human interference with the climate system, in a time frame which allows ecosystems to adapt naturally and enables sustainable development.\u201d\nStabilizing GHG concentrations in the atmosphere requires that the balance of \u201cgross\u201d emissions of GHG minus the removals of GHG from the atmosphere reach \u201cnet zero.\u201d\nTwo principles agreed in the UNFCCC are that (1) Parties should act \u201con the basis of equity and in accordance with their common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities\u201d and (2) developed country Parties should take the lead in combating climate change. The bifurcation of responsibilities among Parties into developed (Annex I) and developing countries has been a major point of contention. Annex I Parties, including the United States, had stronger obligations, such as more rigorous reporting and reviews. A subset listed in Annex II, including the United States, committed to provide agreed financial resources and technology transfers. The commitments are qualitative and collective, not binding on individual Parties.\nThe first subsidiary agreement to the UNFCCC was the 1997 Kyoto Protocol (KP), which entered into force in 2005. The United States signed but did not ratify the KP and so is not a Party. The developed Parties agreed to reduce GHG emissions by 5% below their 1990 levels, with different targets for each Party.\nIn 2009, a political declaration, the Copenhagen Accord, led to explicit pledges from many Parties to mitigate GHG, though they remained bifurcated as Annex I and non-Annex I (i.e., developing countries) by both the type of action and the frequency and format of the reporting requirements. In 2010, the Cancun agreements took note of a Copenhagen pledge by developed country Parties to jointly mobilize $100 billion per year by 2020. Funds provided \u201cmay come from a wide variety of sources, public and private, bilateral and multilateral, including alternative sources.\u201d\nThe Paris Agreement (PA) is the second major subsidiary agreement under the UNFCCC. The PA defines a collective, long-term objective to hold the GHG-induced increase in temperature to well below 2o Celsius (C) and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5o C above the pre-industrial level. In the PA, for the first time under the UNFCCC, all Parties participate in a common framework with common guidance, though some Parties are allowed limited flexibility.\nThe negotiators intended the PA to be legally binding on its Parties, though not all provisions are mandatory. All Parties must submit \u201cNationally Determined Contributions\u201d (NDCs) containing nonbinding pledges to mitigate GHG emissions. The Parties are to update or submit new NDCs by 2020 and every five years thereafter. Each successive NDC of a Party \u201cwill represent a progression\u201d and \u201creflect its highest possible ambition, reflecting its common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities, in light of different national circumstances.\u201d\nThe PA reiterates the obligation in the UNFCCC for developed country Parties to seek to mobilize financial support to assist developing country Parties with climate change mitigation and adaptation efforts, encouraging all Parties to provide financial support voluntarily. The decision to carry out the PA calls for continuing the Cancun collective mobilization through 2025. The Parties agree to set, prior to their 2025 meeting, a new collective, quantified goal of not less than $100 billion annually to assist developing country Parties. \nPresident Trump announced his intention in 2017 to withdraw the United States from the PA as soon as it was eligible. The U.S. Department of State notified the United Nations of U.S. withdrawal on November 4, 2019. The withdrawal takes effect on November 4, 2020, unless the U.S. government postpones or rescinds the withdrawal. A Party may reenter the PA 30 days after depositing notice that it has ratified, accepted, or acceded to the PA.",
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      "topics": []
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  "topics": [
    "Environmental Policy"
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}