25 RELEVANT LAW Air pollution International standards United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change of 9 May 1992 (UNFCCC)1 113. The objective of this Convention is to achieve the stabilisation of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system. 114. States are obliged to develop, periodically update, publish and make available to the Conference of Parties national inventories of anthropogenic emissions and sinks; to adopt and implement national and regional measures to mitigate climate change; and to promote the application of processes that control anthropogenic emissions, including technology transfers. Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change of 11 December 19972 115. The Kyoto Protocol has the same ultimate objective as the UNFCCC. In ratifying the Protocol, developed countries commit themselves to reducing their combined greenhouse gas emissions by the period 2008-2012. The targets cover the six main greenhouse gases, namely, carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs) and sulphur hexafluoride (SF6). The objective is to reduce by at least 5 per cent compared with the reference years : 1990 for CO2, CH4 and N2O, and 1995 for fluorinated gases. 116. The Protocol also establishes three innovative mechanisms, known as joint implementation, emissions trading (see § 152-158 below on European Union law) and the clean development mechanism, which are designed to help the parties listed in Annex I of the UNFCCC to reduce the costs of meeting their emission targets. 117. Each developed country was required to have made demonstrable progress in implementing its emission reduction commitments by 2005. The Protocol includes a procedure for the communication and review of information. Developed countries are required to incorporate in their national communications the supplementary information necessary to demonstrate compliance with their commitments under the Protocol. 1 2 http://untreaty.un.org Ibid.