UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — India and U.K. are turning climate ambition into action

Q1. With reference to the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are NOT correct?

  1. The hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) it regulates were widely adopted as substitutes for ozone-depleting substances and do not themselves significantly deplete stratospheric ozone.
  2. It requires Parties to eliminate the production and consumption of HFCs completely, mirroring the earlier treatment of chlorofluorocarbons.
  3. It sets different phase-down timelines for developed countries and for developing (Article 5) countries.
  • A. 1 and 3 only
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 2 only
  • D. 1 only

Q2. Consider the following statements: Which of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

  1. The Montreal Protocol, although negotiated to protect the ozone layer, is credited with significant climate-change mitigation benefits.
  2. Many of the ozone-depleting substances it phased out, such as chlorofluorocarbons, are also potent greenhouse gases.
  • A. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II explains Statement-I
  • B. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II does not explain Statement-I
  • C. Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
  • D. Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct

Q3. Consider the following assertion: A treaty modelled on the Montreal Protocol, with uniform binding controls on a short list of substances, would be far harder to apply to carbon dioxide than it was to ozone-depleting substances. Which of the following statements support/supports the above assertion?

  1. Ozone-depleting substances were made by a relatively small number of industrial producers, and alternatives for most of their uses could be commercialised.
  2. Carbon dioxide is emitted across almost every sector of the economy, including power, industry, transport and agriculture.
  3. The Antarctic ozone layer is projected to return to 1980 levels later than the ozone over the rest of the globe.
  • A. 2 and 3 only
  • B. 1 only
  • C. 1, 2 and 3
  • D. 1 and 2 only

Q4. With reference to the design of the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above are correct?

  1. A dedicated Multilateral Fund under the Protocol meets the agreed incremental costs that developing country Parties incur in complying with its control measures.
  2. Its control measures apply to both the production and the consumption of listed substances.
  3. It was adopted as a protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.
  4. Developing country Parties were permitted to follow later phase-out schedules than developed country Parties.
  • A. 1, 2, 3 and 4
  • B. 1, 2 and 4 only
  • C. 1 and 3 only
  • D. 2, 3 and 4 only

Q5. With reference to the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) on climate finance adopted at COP29 in Baku, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. Its core finance goal for developing countries is framed with developed country Parties taking the lead.
  2. It ends the distinction between developed and developing countries by making contributions from all Parties equally mandatory.
  3. Its wider call for scaled-up finance counts flows from public as well as private sources.
  • A. 1 and 3 only
  • B. 1, 2 and 3
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1 only

Q6. Consider the following statements: Which of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

  1. The Paris Agreement states that developed country Parties should continue taking the lead by undertaking economy-wide absolute emission reduction targets.
  2. The principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities was first introduced into the international climate regime by the Paris Agreement.
  • A. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II explains Statement-I
  • B. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II does not explain Statement-I
  • C. Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
  • D. Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct

Q7. Suppose that between 2005 and 2030 a country's real GDP grows about four-fold while the emissions intensity of its GDP falls by 45 per cent, and nothing else is known about the country. Which of the following inferences can validly be drawn?

  1. The country's absolute greenhouse gas emissions in 2030 would be higher than in 2005.
  2. About half of the country's installed electricity capacity would have come from non-fossil sources by 2030.
  3. The country's per-capita emissions in 2030 would be lower than in 2005.
  • A. 2 and 3 only
  • B. 1, 2 and 3
  • C. 1 and 3 only
  • D. 1 only

Q8. In debates on 'green growth' as a path to prosperity, an economy is said to have achieved absolute (as opposed to relative) decoupling when, over a given period:

  • A. its total emissions fall solely because its output contracts over the same period
  • B. its output rises while its total emissions fall over the same period
  • C. its output rises and its emissions per unit of output fall, but its total emissions still rise
  • D. its emissions per person fall while its output and total emissions both rise