Climate Change & Conservation — Treaties, Gases & India's Action, Made Simple
Understand the greenhouse effect, the main greenhouse gases, the global climate treaties from UNFCCC to Paris, ozone agreements, and India's climate actions.
By the PadhoDost Team · 📖 8 min read · Updated 4 August 2026
Part of UPSC Civil Services prep🧠 A blanket around the Earth
Imagine sleeping under a thin blanket. It keeps you warm by trapping your body heat. The Earth has a natural 'blanket' too, made of gases in the air. This blanket is good and keeps our planet warm enough to live. But when we add extra gases, the blanket gets thicker. Now too much heat is trapped, and the planet slowly overheats. That extra heating is climate change.
The natural warming is called the greenhouse effect. Sunlight reaches the Earth and warms it. The Earth sends some heat back towards space. Certain gases in the air catch this heat instead of letting it escape. Without them, Earth would be far too cold. The problem today is that humans have added too many of these gases, mainly by burning coal, oil, and gas.
The main greenhouse gases
Not every gas traps heat equally. Some are present in large amounts; others are far more powerful per molecule. The strength of a gas is measured by its Global Warming Potential (GWP), compared to carbon dioxide, which is set at 1.
| Gas | Main human source | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Carbon dioxide (CO2) | Burning coal, oil, gas; deforestation | Largest total contributor |
| Methane (CH4) | Paddy fields, livestock, landfills | Much stronger than CO2, but shorter-lived |
| Nitrous oxide (N2O) | Chemical fertilisers | Very high warming potential |
| Fluorinated gases (HFCs etc.) | Refrigerants, cooling, industry | Extremely powerful; human-made |
The global agreements — in order
The world has built a set of treaties, one after another, to control these gases. UPSC loves the sequence and the years. Learn them as a timeline so you never mix them up.
Climate treaty timeline
- 1IPCC (1988): The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change was set up by WMO and UNEP. It does not make laws; it reviews science and publishes reports.
- 2UNFCCC (1992): Signed at the Rio Earth Summit; it is the parent framework for all climate talks. Its members meet every year at a 'COP' (Conference of the Parties).
- 3Kyoto Protocol (1997): The first treaty with binding emission-cut targets, but only for developed (Annex-I) countries.
- 4Paris Agreement (2015, at COP21): All countries — rich and poor — pledge action through their own voluntary targets called NDCs.
The Paris Agreement's goal is to keep the global temperature rise well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, and to try to limit it to 1.5 degrees. Each country submits a Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) — its own promise of climate action — and updates it over time.
Ozone treaties — related but different
Do not confuse the ozone layer with climate change. The ozone layer blocks harmful ultraviolet rays. It was being destroyed by chemicals called CFCs. The Montreal Protocol (1987) phased out these ozone-destroying chemicals and is considered very successful. Later, its Kigali Amendment (2016) added a plan to phase down HFCs — gases that do not harm ozone but cause strong warming. So the Kigali Amendment links the ozone treaty to the climate fight.
India's response
India's key climate actions
- ✓National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC), 2008 — runs through 8 'National Missions', including the National Solar Mission and the National Mission for Enhanced Energy Efficiency.
- ✓International Solar Alliance (ISA) — launched by India and France in 2015 to promote solar energy, headquartered in India.
- ✓Mission LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) — India's idea of fighting climate change through mindful, low-waste daily habits.
- ✓Panchamrit — India's five climate commitments announced at COP26 (Glasgow, 2021).
📝 India's 'Panchamrit' targets from COP26
1. Reach net-zero emissions by the year 2070.
2. Reach 500 GW of non-fossil (clean) energy capacity by 2030.
3. Meet 50% of energy needs from renewable sources by 2030.
4. Cut total projected carbon emissions by 1 billion tonnes by 2030.
5. Reduce the emissions intensity of GDP by 45% by 2030 (from the 2005 level).
Conservation is the other side of the coin. Forests, oceans, and soil absorb CO2 from the air — they act as 'carbon sinks'. When we cut forests, we lose these sinks and release stored carbon. So protecting forests and growing new ones (afforestation) is a direct climate tool. The idea of paying countries to protect forests is known internationally as REDD+.
⚡ Quick check
Which statement about the global climate agreements is correct?
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