Amsterdam Law Forum (Feb 2010)
Climate Policy: Quo Vadis?
Abstract
This article starts from the premise that the man-made global warming hypothesis, which constitutes the scientific underpinning of the Kyoto Protocol, that expires in 2012, is fundamentally flawed. It nevertheless presents two scenarios of a possible ‘Son of Kyoto’: ‘Europe’s Alleingang’ and ‘World-Wide Kyoto Participation’. Both scenarios promise great sacrifice, whereas neither of them will have a detectable impact on worldwide temperatures. All pain and no gain. The article further analyses the positions of the major players in the run-up to the international climate conference in Copenhagen in December 2009. It concludes that these are so far apart that this event will most likely end in a deadlock. In that light, the author recommends the EU to reconsider its position, since it has isolated itself from the rest of the world with its costly and ineffective climate policy.
