MOSCOW, August 16 (RIA Novosti) - The Kyoto protocol member states are to define quotas on carbon dioxide emissions in Montreal, Canada this fall, Economic Development Ministry representative Vsevolod Gavrilov said Tuesday.
"The method of defining carbon dioxide emission quotas has yet to be established... I know of at least six possibilities," Gavrilov said. He added that the emission level might be "pegged to the basic period, or perhaps to the size of each country's GDP like now."
Gavrilov said it would be unfortunate if the participants failed to reach an agreement. "The results of these agreements will call for Kyoto protocol amendments anyway, so members will again decide whether or not to ratify it," the official said.
Commenting on reports that the U.S., China, India, and some other countries were going to form an alternative agreement similar to the Kyoto protocol, Gavrilov said such an agreement would do no harm to the Kyoto process.
"If we believe what George Bush said, Americans see the Kyoto protocol as a threat to their economy. But they have to implement the UN Convention on Climate Change, which is why this agreement arose. I do not think it is a threat to the Kyoto process," the ministry representative said.
Speaking on Russia's fulfillment of its Kyoto protocol commitments, Gavrilov said the necessary measures have already been included in Russian laws, including increasing efficiency in the economy's energy-intensive sectors.
"It is hard to specify an exact figure for total expenditures, but I can say it is hundreds of millions of dollars a year. Only a small part of expenditures will fall to the federal budget. Companies invest the majority of the money," Gavrilov said.
