With reference to the Agreement at the UNFCCC Meeting in Paris in 2015, which of the following statements is/are correct?
- The Agreement was signed by all the member countries of the UN and it will go into effect in 2017.
- The Agreement aims to limit the greenhouse gas emissions so that the rise in average global temperature by the end of this century does not exceed 2°C or even 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.
- Developed countries acknowledged their historical responsibility in global warming and committed to donate $1000 billion a year from 2020 to help developing countries to cope with climate change.
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
[UPSC Civil Services Exam – 2016 Prelims]
(a) 1 and 3 only
(b) 2 only
(c) 2 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
Answer: (b)
Explanation:
- Statement 1 is incorrect. The Paris Agreement was opened for signature on April 22, 2016, in New York and entered into force on November 4, 2016, after being ratified by at least 55 countries responsible for at least 55% of global emissions.
- Statement 2 is correct. The primary aim of the Paris Agreement is to strengthen the global response to the threat of climate change by limiting the global temperature rise this century to well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit it even further to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
- Statement 3 is incorrect. While developed countries committed to mobilizing $100 billion per year by 2020 to support developing countries in coping with climate change, there have been challenges in meeting this target.
