The United Nations conference on climate change held in Montreal adopted most of the rulebook for the Kyoto Protocol on Wednesday, which will make the protocol "fully operational."

President of the conference Stephane Dion said the move was "a historic step."

The rules, known as the Marrakesh Accords, specified measures needed to put the protocol into effect, including how greenhouse gas emissions are measured and how targets for emission reduction are set.

Although some of the rules are already in use, they have to be ratified to become, in effect, international law.

Under the Kyoto Protocol, which entered into force on Feb. 16, 2005, more than 30 industrialized countries are bound by specific and legally binding emission reduction targets.

The countries attending the conference also produced a mechanism called the "clean development mechanism."

Under the mechanism, developed countries can invest in one another, in particular central and east European countries, and thus earn carbon allowances which they can use to meet their emission reduction commitments.

In addition, the clean development mechanism also allows industrialized countries to invest in sustainable development projects in developing countries and also earn carbon allowances.

Other decisions adopted define a wide range of operational considerations for running the protocol, which include how the emissions of countries are accounted for; precise guidelines on the data systems that have to be set up; and the rules governing how absorption of carbon dioxide by agricultural soils and forest is measured.

Richard Kinley, acting head of the United Nations Climate Change Secretariat, said, "The adoption of the Marrakesh accords formally launches emissions trading and the other two mechanisms under the Kyoto Protocol."

"With these decisions in place, we now have the infrastructure to move ahead with the implementation of the Kyoto Protocol," said Kinley. "It sets a solid basis for future steps to bring emissions down."

Source: Xinhua