However in the realm of heavy power and politics, nations such as the United States, and those of heavily industrialized Western Europe, control the basic structure of this policy. While these nations whose economies are more or less in transition as a developing country are as equally important to the agreement as the U.S. and Western Europe on the issue of global warming, in a report by CNN, Bush states .
"emission growth today is largely in the "developing" world. The rest of the world emits 80 percent of all greenhouse gases, and many of those emissions come from developing countries," he said. "The world's second largest emitter of greenhouse gas is China, yet China was entirely exempted from the requirements of the Kyoto Protocol." He pointed out that India also was exempt from the Kyoto pact. "Kyoto is in many ways unrealistic," Bush said, contending arbitrary and non-scientific environmental goals were set by the protocol for many countries.
In March 2001, in the face of mounting energy supply problems, the U.S. declared the Kyoto Protocol as unworkable, and the U.S. was not a party to the agreement reached.
William D. Fay, president and CEO of the American Highway Users Alliance agrees. Because of the close link between energy and economic development, numerous studies have shown that the impact of the Kyoto Protocol could have a dramatic adverse effect on the American economy. Fay states "The agreement is not global in scope -- China, Mexico, and India, for example, are not affected -- because it does not cover greenhouse gas emission limitations on developing countries." "The entire burden is placed on developed nations with the U.S. suffering the greatest damage" Fay said. For the U.S. to meet targets set under the treaty, severe restrictions on Americans' mobility will be necessary. More stringent CAFE (fuel economy) standards, no-drive days, no-drive zones, parking surcharges and other limits are all on a White House list as "actions for consideration" to reduce the amount of emissions in the U.
