Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Perspectives on the Top 20 Emitters and Developed Versus
Developing Nations
"Using the World Resources Institute (WRI) database on greenhouse gas
emissions and related data, this report examines two issues. The first issue is the
separate treatment of developed and developing nations under the United Nations
Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Kyoto Protocol.
This distinction has been a pivotal issue affecting U.S. climate change policy. The
second issue is the continuing difficulty of the current approach designed to address
climate change through limiting greenhouse gas emissions to a specified percentage
of baseline emissions (typically 1990). The data permit examination of alternative
approaches, such as focusing on per capita emissions or the greenhouse gas emission
intensity (measured as emissions per unit of economic activity)..."