“WE HAVE FINALIZED the rescue operation,” the European Union’s environment commissioner, Margot Wallstrom, said. Delegates had feared failure to reach a deal would doom the pact first drafted in Kyoto, Japan.
Europe also highlighted the fact that the United States stood nearly alone in its opposition to Kyoto. “Almost every single country stayed in the protocol,” said Olivier Deleuze, the EU’s chief negotiator. “There was one that said the Kyoto Protocol was flawed. Do you see the Kyoto Protocol flawed?”
Japan was the last major country to agree to a compromise put forward by the conference chairman. Towards the end, its main objection was over how to enforce sanctions against violators of the Kyoto Protocol.
In Tokyo, Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi welcomed the compromise and said he would work to bring the United States back into the Kyoto fold.
European envoys admitted the deal fell short of the tight enforcement rules they initially sought but they emphasized that it kept the pact alive.
“I prefer an imperfect agreement that is living to an imperfect agreement that doesn’t exist,” Deleuze said.
Added British Environment Minister Michael Meacher: “It’s a brilliant day for the environment ... It’s a huge leap to have achieved a result on this very complex international negotiation. It’s a huge relief.”
Still, without the United States — which emits one-quarter of global greenhouse gases — the treaty lacks considerable force.

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In another major concession to Japan, Russia and Canada, the European Union also agreed to let nations offset some of their obligations to reduce carbon dioxide by counting forests and farmlands, which absorb CO2.
Carbon dioxide is one of the gases that many scientists believe are warming the globe via a “greenhouse” effect that traps heat in.
Environmental groups said the heavy allowance for these carbon “sinks” effectively reduced the commitment in the Kyoto accord to cut emissions by 5.2 percent from their 1990 levels. The real reduction would be closer to 1.8 percent, the World Wildlife Fund calculated.
But the group said the accord was still worthwhile. “Overall, we see this as a strong architecture for the Kyoto Protocol that would start the world moving forward,” said WWF climate director Jennifer Morgan.
Greenpeace agreed, with its climate expert Bill Hare arguing that “it shows that George Bush is totally isolated in the climate debate.”
And while the European Union gave in on two fronts, it was able to hold fast to clauses preventing nations from claiming credits for investing in carbon-free nuclear plants in developing countries.
Japan, Russia and a few others had sought to include nuclear technology. But fears of accidents in poor nations and the problems of waste storage helped derail that idea.

Yes, something has to be done about pollution. The Bible calls us to be "good stewards of the earth", we have not been.
But I don't believe we have to form a one world dictatorship in order to help the environment. Our leaders are selling out national sovereignty to a global entity.
In a democracy leaders don't secretly create laws and allegiance, rather government should be an open book, closely scrutinized by an involved public.
Protesters are braving tear gas, random beatings, imprisonment and even death to stand up for their nations sovereignty.

As you know a protester was shot to death for throwing a fire extinguisher at a paramilitary vehicle. The really disturbing part is that the leaders of our nations have yet to condemn this action, most fully support the police in their brutality.
The death penalty for throwing a fire extinguisher?

Our government is using issues like the environment and the fight against aids to trick us into accepting tyranny.

I agree with you that one government is no answer to our environmental problems.

Think of the tradgey of the commons. When a town owns something it does a mediocre job at protecting it, when the state owns something, it is even more poorly protected. When the federal government owns something it is often ruined. How could giving it to the UN be any better?

When a man owns land he takes care of it. When a corporation owns land they take care of it. When a socialist one world government owns it it will be a mess.

Who is the biggest polluter in the US? The military AKA the Federal Government. Look at all those commie east european countries, all polluted, all done by the government.