Stalling on Kyoto

last updated 8 January 2015

Moscow

Russia hasn’t yet decided whether to ratify the Kyoto Protocol, which limits greenhouse-gas emissions, President Vladimir Putin said this week. Putin’s announcement was a blow to environmentalists who were gathered in Moscow for the U.N. World Climate Change Conference, because the Kyoto treaty won’t go into effect unless it’s ratified by countries that account for 55 percent of global emissions. Since the world’s largest polluter, the U.S., has refused to sign on, Russia’s ratification is needed to preserve the landmark environmental accord. Russia is stalling, though, because it produces less pollution than the treaty allows, and it wants guarantees that it can sell its extra “pollution credits.” Putin also offended conference attendees by joking that global warming might be good for Russia. “We would spend less on warm coats,” he said, “and grain harvests would be up.”