Scroll down for French and Spanish The European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU-ETS) is the largest cap-and-trade scheme in the world. The EU-ETS regulates about half of EUs CO2 emissions. It includes more than 11,000 factories, power stations, and other installations in 30 countries—all 27 EU member states plus Iceland, Norway, and Liechtenstein. The caps for 2020 are set at 21% below 2005 emissions. …
Wind power can be a great source of renewable energy, but if put in the wrong place it can have considerable negative impacts on local livelihoods and resources. This article tells how local eco-restoration efforts were annihilated by the installation of a wind park and why this project should not be rewarded with carbon credits.
Carbon markets are in the dumps and the future for these so called “flexible mechanisms” is grim. It’s no wonder carbon markets are collapsing; we don’t need them because weak pledges and the economic crisis are reducing emissions for us. The next international climate negotiations (COP 18) are held at the end of November in Doha, Qatar. For two weeks delegates from close to 200 countries will negotiate the future of the planet. Our message is simple and clear: countries must dramatically increase their pledges to reduce emissions immediately, otherwise we will not stand a chance to prevent catastrophic effects of climate change.
The European Union is considered a leader in the international negotiations on climate change. Its main instrument to cut greenhouse gases (GHGs) from industrial emitters is the European Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS). However, the effectiveness of the EU ETS has been increasingly questioned because of a massive over-supply of emission permits. Still, it remains a crucial model for the development of other carbon markets globally and influences the way policies are constructed to tackle climate change.
Last month coal was let back into the CDM. Yes you heard right, despite all evidence new heavily polluting coal power plants can once again apply to earn carbon credits. So, theoretically, a coal-fired power plant in Europe can still offset its emissions with carbon credits from another dirty coal power plant in India. The situation is absurd! It’s the worst decision the CDM Executive Board has made in years and essentially helps to subsidise the construction of new coal power plants. This must be stopped. No more climate finance to coal!
In September, the High-Level Panel on the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) Policy Dialogue presented its final report with recommendations on how to improve the CDM. Overall, the report fails to address fundamental flaws of the CDM, is strongly based on political opinions and ignores important research. It does however include important recommendations about improving accountability, establishing a grievance mechanism and stresses the importance for the CDM to go beyond offsetting. Nevertheless, decision-makers need to be careful with some of the recommendations of the Panel that simply aim at saving the CDM for its own sake because of the impending collapse of carbon markets.
El régimen comunitario de comercio de emisiones (EU-ETS) es un sistema de topes y comercio, que entró en vigor en 2005. El EU-ETS es el mayor sistema obligatorio de topes y comercio hasta la fecha e incluye 30 países europeos. Hasta un 50% de las reducciones en toda la UE durante el período 2008-2020 se …
Study commissioned by the European Parliament DG for external policies (Directorate B – Policy Department) on Human Rights and Climate Change. Section 10.1.3 reports about human rights concerns regarding the acceptance of JI and CDM credits in the EU ETS with CDM project cases Barro Blanco (Panama) and Aguan (Honduras) cited as examples. The study recommends that the EU should be clear on the fact that JI/CDM credits from projects that violate or risk violating human rights may not be used within the EU ETS and that relevant criteria should be set up and imposed on investors located in MS territories. Bilateral agreement with host countries may be appropriate in this respect.
Scroll down for Spanish By Mariel Vilella, Climate Policy Campaigner, Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA) Members of the European Parliament from a wide political spectrum, civil society organizations from 23 countries and international networks have signed a letter to the European Commission and the CDM Executive Board to demand an immediate halt to all …
Read more “Europe Wakes up to the Reality of Carbon Credits from Waste (Watch This! #2)”
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