Oops...Japan's CO2 emissions continue to go up...

There is just no way for the world to reduce CO2 emissions without painful economic consequences...

Japan's carbon dioxide emissions reached record levels in 2007. New data shows that 1.37 billion tons of greenhouse gases were emitted here in 2007. The amount is 8 percent more than levels in 1990. According to NHK World, the amount exceeds the national reduction target set in the Kyoto Protocol by about 15 percent.

Japan is obliged under the Kyoto Protocol to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 6 percent from 1990 level during the 5 years from 2008 to 2012 but that looks increasingly difficult. The government attributes the increase to suspended operations at the Kashiwazaki Kariwa nuclear power plant in Niigata Prefecture, after it was damaged in a major earthquake.