Obama has decided he will go to Copenhagen to help decide how much of America’s wealth will be looted and given away: 
The president will attend the summit on Dec. 9 before heading to Oslo to accept the Nobel Peace Prize, the official said. Obama’s attendance had been in question until now.
The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because the formal announcement has not been made.
The conference had originally been intended to produce a new global climate change treaty on limiting emissions of greenhouse gases that would replace the 1997 Kyoto Protocol. However, hopes for a legally binding agreement have dimmed lately, with leaders saying the summit is more likely to produce a template for future action to cut emissions blamed for global warming.
There was never any doubt that Obama would have America participate in the latest installment of the Kyoto Protocol, even if Al Gore and Bill Clinton refused to when they had the chance.
But if we are looking at doing even more with this next treaty, shouldn’t we look at how effective the previous on was. For example, did it reduce emissions? Not so much:
The industrialized world again in 2007 boosted, rather than reduced, its emissions of global-warming gases, the UN reported Wednesday, as international negotiators looked ahead to crucial climate talks in December.
Emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases rose by one percent between 2006 and 2007 among 40 nations classified as industrialized under the 1992 UN climate treaty, the treaty secretariat reported, detailing data for the latest available reporting period.
It was the seventh consecutive year of an upward trend, it said.
Interesting. So what happens when a country doesn’t decrease its emissions enough to reach their goal? They pay:
Japan, Italy and Spain face payments of as much as $33 billion combined for failing to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions as promised under the Kyoto treaty. (Source.)
and
TAXPAYERS face having to fork out more than €270m so that Ireland can “buy its way” into meeting the Kyoto agreement on greenhouse gas emissions.
Ireland is set to overshoot its Kyoto targets by almost 100pc as things stand, according to the latest figures from the European Commission. (Source.)
and
New Zealand’s Kyoto liabilities have deteriorated by a further $500 million, official papers show. (Source.)
Two questions come to mind. First, why were they unable to decrease emissions and second, where does all this money go?
According to the article on Japan, Italy and Spain increasing emissions, “they underestimated economic growth and future emissions from factories and utilities.”
They had a better year economically than they expected, so they have to pay a fine. Makes sense to a Marxist.
As for where the money goes:
Under the Kyoto Protocol to the UN Climate Change treaty, endorsed by 175 nations and organizations, countries that exceed their emission caps must buy credits in the market. The sellers are typically investors or industrial polluters that have accumulated a surplus of credits, also called permits.
…
Under Kyoto, governments create a limited number of permits they grant freely to industrial polluters. If the CO2 created is more than the amount the nation pledged not to exceed, the country must buy permits to make up the difference — essentially a penalty for discharging too much.
Russian power producer OGK-6 has sold some 4.5 million Euros ($6.83 million) of emissions reduction credits under the Kyoto Protocol to the U.K.-based Clean Planet Group, its parent firm said on Monday.
The Kyoto Protocol is an international treaty meant to fight global warming by obliging many developed nations to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases in 2008-2012 by 5 percent compared to 1990 levels.
So New Zealanders get to pay Russians for their unexpected economic growth. And so will we, if we join in the next version of Kyoto. We either stop growing, cause electrical rates to skyrocket and scale back our standard of living or we pay countries like Russia a penance for our sins.
And our president is thinking this is a good thing.
Linked up at Tom Nelson, the global warming hereitic’s Instapundit. Thanks Tom!
