Kyoto Protocol in the EU: European Community and Member States under International and European Law

The participation of the European Community and the Member States in the international climate change regimes is a complex issue. In the case of the Kyoto Protocol, this is rendered more complicated by the fact that, for the purposes of Article 4 of the Kyoto Protocol, the membership of the European Community and Member States is frozen at a particular point in time. The result of this is that, under international law, the European Community and a part of the Member States (EU15) have agreed to jointly fulfil some of those obligations, whereas under community law all Member States share a certain degree of responsibility to meet the obligations created by the Kyoto Protocol. This book analyses in great detail the Kyoto Protocol and the obligations established, such as monitoring and reporting obligations, eligibility criteria and reduction commitments.

• Analyses the architecture of the Kyoto Protocol, demonstrating how obligations affect the EC and its Member States, both under international and community law
• Examines the status and the position of the EC and its Member States in the Kyoto Protocol, giving the reader a new interpretation of how they can comply with international law
• Written by one of the major experts in the field, it gives the reader a broad and unique overview of legal questions related to the obligations of the EC and its Member States