Belgium has ratified the Doha amendment to the Kyoto Protocol. The Belga press agency learned this, on the margins of the 23rd United Nations Conference on Climate change in Bonn (COP23) on Wednesday.
The Doha amendment adopted in December 2012, subjects developed countries to greenhouse gas reduction commitments over the period 2013 to 2020, Under the framework, this is the second commitment period under the Kyoto Protocol after 2008 to 2012. The period after 2020 is covered by the Paris agreement, concluded at the end of 2015, which came into force in November 2016.
The implications for Belgium of the Doha amendment are an anticipated reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, of 18% in 2020 compared to 1990. The latter is the reference year of the Kyoto Protocol, after an objective of a 5% reduction for 2012. Moreover, the text adds nitrogen trifluoride (NF3) as amongst the six greenhouse gases targeted.
However, the Doha amendment has not yet come into force, owing to an insufficient number of ratifications by Protocol member countries. A total of 144 ratifications are necessary, whilst only 88 have done so up to now.
Belgium lodged its Instrument of Ratification on Tuesday at the United Nations in the presence of Germany, the host of the COP23, as well as Sweden and Spain.
These ratifications come at a time when numerous parties are speaking out during COP23 in Bonn in favour of raising the pre-2020 goal in the fight against climate change.
The Brussels Times
