16 February 2005 will go down in history, for it is the day we begin to save the world.
On that date, the long-awaited Kyoto protocol will become law. The international treaty designed to curb global warming by cutting greenhouse gas emissions has spent the past seven years in limbo.
Carbon will instantly become a commodity that can be bought and sold, while the 30 industrialised countries signed up to the protocol will have to get to grips with meeting their emissions targets by 2012.
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鈥淭his is a historic step forward in the world鈥檚 efforts to combat a global threat鈥�
The protocol finally got the backing it needed when Russia formally ratified it on 18 November, triggering a 90-day countdown. The ratification documents, signed by Russian president Vladimir Putin, were presented to Kofi Annan, secretary-general of the UN, at a meeting of the Security Council in Nairobi, Kenya. 鈥淭his is a historic step forward in the world鈥檚 efforts to combat a truly global threat,鈥� Annan said.
