The Kyoto Protocol to the Global Convention on Climate Change came into force on February 16 with consequences for 141 countries around the globe including both Asian and European signatories and others.

For example, although both the EU and Japan have been in the vanguard of the drive for acceptance of the Kyoto Protocol, both are struggling to meet their Protocol objectives to reduce greenhouse gases by 2012 despite mounting scientific evidence of the consequences.

The entry into force of the Kyoto Protocol called attention to the challenges facing a number of major Asian countries and the scope for cooperation with European and other industrialised countries.

Major Asian countries, such as China, Japan and India, were in the spotlight because of their special circumstance in the Climate Change evaluation being conducted on a global scale.

Chinese authorities underlined the tremendous challenges and consequences they were already experiencing related to climate change, but also stated the sensitivity and efforts to effectively take part in dealing with the problem.

China is the world's second-largest source of greenhouse gases but although along with India it has no obligation to cut carbon dioxide emissions during the pact's first phase to 2012, analysts say China will come under pressure on its environment nonetheless -- and is likely to respond -- keen to show it is a good global citizen serious about cleaning up its polluting power sector and factories.

"This definitely will have a strong impact on the Chinese government to make some adjustments in their strategy and policy toward climate change," said Yang Fuqiang of the Energy Foundation, which provides grants to Chinese researchers working on energy issues.

At the rate its economy is growing, China is likely to surpass the United States on emissions by 2030.

"At this moment, if the Chinese government recognises this as the pattern, it has to do something right now to avoid ... replacing the U.S. as the target," Yang said.

"That would really be political trouble for China," he said. "After the Kyoto Protocol they have no way to say this is only discussion or negotiation, but we don't need any action."

The countrys initial communication to the Climate Convention office also highlighted its awareness of the possible consequences of climate change, extreme temperature changes and other results of greenhouse gases. It pointed to already noticeable glacier melting in the Himalayas, coastal erosion and highly precarious water resources in some regions that could have severe impact on crops, other resources and urbanisation and industrialisation. But it also noted positive results in efforts to decouple economic growth and energy intensity. It also put a special accent on past and planned development of renewable energy, energy efficiency, clean production and other mitigation measures.

In a dramatic green U-turn in recent weeks, China has abruptly slowed and halted work on building 22 major energy projects to assess their environmental impact. The Chinese State Environment Protection Agency, the country's top environmental regulator, long considered a toothless bureaucracy, challenged the country's powerful energy industry demanding that power projects should not proceed until their impact on the environment had been reviewed.

The suspended energy projects are worth more than 14 billion U.S. dollars and span some 13 provinces in the country. Topping the banned list is a power plant that is part of the Xiluo dam project, operated by the China Three Gorges Project Corp, developer of the highly controversial Three Gorges Dam -- the world's biggest hydroelectric power project.

In another step aimed at reducing pollution, the State Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) ordered 46 power plants last month to install de-sulphurisation units or face closure.

The Chinese Government has also set up an examining committee for the clean development mechanism (CDM), which is a crucial part of the protocol. Under CDM, developed countries can carry out emission-reduction projects in developing countries through financial and technical co-operation. The country has so far approved two CDM projects and more are being prepared. Some European countries have actively been exploring and advertising for such potentially useful partnerships.

As early as 1990, China set up a National Climate Change Co-ordination Committee to look at policy making and scientific research. The committee is currently composed of 15 government departments and institutions, with the National Development and Reform Commission, Ministry of Science and Technology, State Environmental Protection

Administration and China Meteorological Administration as key members.

The director-general of the Treaty and Law Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Gao Feng said a new round of international talks on the issue will take place in 2005. Participants will talk about moves after 2012 when the protocol expires. Gao, who is also one of the Chinese negotiators on the climate change issue, anticipates that in the new round, developing countries such as China and India will be expected to come under some reduction obligations.

In Japan, the entry into force of the Kyoto Protocol was marked by a Government declaration of confidence that the objective of reducing emissions could be met despite a rise of 8% in the previous year had been caused primarily because of the suspension of nuclear power stations because of security concerns, according to the top cabinet secretary. The event also coincided with a surge in legislative proposals designed to put more teeth and pressure into the drive to reduce emissions. One such plan would oblige major companies to report their emissions above a certain level.

Japanese business and industry leaders also used the event to display their own support for the Protocol and to urge the Government to develop more effective plans to galvanise Japans technological expertise to meet this task. This was the jist of a declaration by the head of the powerful Keidanren industrial organisation. And despite some business criticism of the Protocol as detrimental to Japans business and industrial interests, Kakutaro Kitashiro, chairman of the Japan Association of Corporate Executives, agreed, saying, "A broad framework is necessary for the pact." Kitashiro called for Japan to put its environment-related technologies to good use. "Japan has the world's top-level environmental technologies," he said. "Japan should further push for technological innovation and disseminate technological achievements to the world in order to make the pact globally effective."

There was also a strong interest in Japan to use the various elements of the Kyoto Mechanisms to assist in meeting the objective of cutting emissions by 6% under the original plan, or 14% because of the recent rise. The tools include the Clean Development Mechanism an Joint Implementation to allow industrialised countries to meet part of their objectives by financing projects in developing countries, and through Emissions Trading, which Europe has just launched. The CDM and JI activities appear a cost-effective means for Japanese industry to meet the Kyoto objectives since much of its technology and production is already highly energy-efficient. But also, trading house Sumitomo Corp. plans to make profits by cutting emissions in developing countries. More than 10 CDM projects are on its drawing board, according to Ryuzo Yamamoto, general manager of its global environment department.

Korea is the world's 11th-largest economy and the ninth-largest emitter of greenhouse gases. Over the past few years, companies have been straining to prepare for the new environmental protocol. In a statement, the Commerce Ministry said that it has established a team of professionals to prepare for the climate accord, while arranging regular meetings with the CEOs of companies that consume the most fossil fuels.

ROK companies and lawmakers also said they will set up a forum to build four massive offshore wind farms that could generate a combined 1m kW of electricity. Lawmakers from both the ruling and opposition parties will take part to lend their political support. It will push to construct wind farms off Pusan, Cheju, Inchon International Airport and a yet-to-be-picked site along the south coast at a cost of 3 trillion won (2.92bn US dollars), according to the sources.

Another major Asian country, India, was also cast into a pivotal role as having made great strides in both environmental awareness and clean energies, but yet needing to accomplish much more to avoid important sources of pollution and greenhouse gases as its economy expands. The previous Nationalist Government in New Delhi had been cool to participation in the Kyoto Protocol which it saw as primarily the responsibility of wealthy industrialised countries.

The country in fact was one of the first to establish a Ministry for renewable energies and has become one of the leading producers or wind and other clean energies.

But the country, like many others in South and Southeast Asia, is deemed highly vulnerable not only because of rising industrialisation, consumption and urbanisation, but also because of the adverse consequences of climate change.

Others also, such as Indonesia, could be seriously affected by rising seas that could eventually flood thousands of islands in the country.