Japan Commits to 26 Percent Emissions Cut by 2030 Compared to 2013 Levels

摘要

Japan said it will formally submit a long-term greenhouse gas reduction plan to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change July 17, committing to reduce emissions 26 percent by 2030 compared to 2013 levels. The plan largely ratified a pledge announced by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his Cabinet earlier this year (38 INER 756, 6/17/15). Some environmental groups have objected to Japan's starting point of 2013, a year the country's emissions were elevated as it burned more fossil fuels than normal to replace cleaner power that would have come from the country's nuclear reactors, which were shut down after the 2011 Fukushima-Daiichi disaster. Other major economies that have made their pledges to the UN have used 1990 or 2005 as baseline years. The pledges are being submitted ahead of the end-of-year climate summit in Paris.