Pressure to reach a settlement has intensified. Social Democrats now run most European governments, in some cases directly in coalition with Greens. Recent scientific research has also made more concrete the dangers of global warming and the role played in it by the burning of fossil fuels, particularly oil and coal. The IPCC report presented to the summit concluded that the dangers were more significant than had been appreciated five years earlier and that the earth may warm up by as much as six degrees Celsius within a century, double the previous estimates. The result could be ever more erratic weather patterns, causing flooding, the spread of diseases like malaria and dengue fever and the eradication of certain forms of animal and plant life.
Many countries have a long way to go to meet their emissions objectives.
However, scientists now believe that carbon sinks are not as reliable at storing carbon dioxide as previously thought. Moreover, Kyoto was unable to agree on penalties that could be imposed against those countries that failed to meet their emission-reduction targets. The US, in particular, opposes financial penalties, and for good reason. It is estimated that America would have to cut its emissions by 20-30 percent from expected levels at the end of the decade. The Republican Party is particularly hostile to any concessions by the US, and has blocked ratification of the Kyoto protocol in the Senate.