scholarly journals Stakeholders’ Perceptions of the EU ETS Revision and Development

2021 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 18-23
Author(s):  
Maciej Cygler
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Markets ◽  
Eu Ets ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Self Assessment ◽  
Trading System ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Policy Measures ◽  
Individual Self ◽  
Available Information ◽  
The Eu

Abstract The European Green Deal (EGD) communication supports strengthening and expansion of the European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS). Possible linkages with other carbon markets worldwide are also subject to both experts’ and policy-makers’ discussions. Results of the survey on the state and expectations concerning the development of the EU climate policy measures, in particular, the EU ETS, are presented in this article. The survey was done online. There is a group of questions dealing with the EU ETS performance and future development, and another concerning available information assessment and individual self-assessment in terms of relevant knowledge.

scholarly journals The European Union Emissions Trading System reduced CO2 emissions despite low prices

2020 ◽  
Vol 117 (16) ◽  
pp. 8804-8812 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick Bayer ◽  
Michaël Aklin
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Carbon Emissions ◽  
Emissions Trading ◽  
Carbon Markets ◽  
Eu Ets ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Trading System ◽  
Market Prices ◽  
Emissions Trading System ◽  
The Eu

International carbon markets are an appealing and increasingly popular tool to regulate carbon emissions. By putting a price on carbon, carbon markets reshape incentives faced by firms and reduce the value of emissions. How effective are carbon markets? Observers have tended to infer their effectiveness from market prices. The general belief is that a carbon market needs a high price in order to reduce emissions. As a result, many observers remain skeptical of initiatives such as the European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS), whose price remained low (compared to the social cost of carbon). In this paper, we assess whether the EU ETS reduced CO2 emissions despite low prices. We motivate our study by documenting that a carbon market can be effective if it is a credible institution that can plausibly become more stringent in the future. In such a case, firms might cut emissions even though market prices are low. In fact, low prices can be a signal that the demand for carbon permits weakens. Thus, low prices are compatible with successful carbon markets. To assess whether the EU ETS reduced carbon emissions even as permits were cheap, we estimate counterfactual carbon emissions using an original sectoral emissions dataset. We find that the EU ETS saved about 1.2 billion tons of CO2 between 2008 and 2016 (3.8%) relative to a world without carbon markets, or almost half of what EU governments promised to reduce under their Kyoto Protocol commitments. Emission reductions in sectors covered under the EU ETS were higher.

scholarly journals European union emissions trading system with regard to climate change mitigation in Latvia

2012 ◽  
Vol 8 (-1) ◽  
pp. 29-35 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ilze Pruse
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Climate Change Mitigation ◽  
Emissions Trading ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Eu Ets ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Ghg Emission ◽  
Trading System ◽  
Change Mitigation ◽  
The Eu

Abstract The goal of this paper is to analyse the volumes of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the European Union Emissions Trading System’s (EU ETS) participants in Latvia in relation to their participation therein. After describing and discussing the EU ETS mechanism and its operation in Latvia in the period 2005-2010, the interconnectedness between the GHG emissions and the EU ETS participants’ operation is analysed. The analysis concludes that, although the EU ETS has contributed towards GHG emission reduction, due to the growth of the economy, overall GHG emissions from the EU ETS participants in Latvia are increasing.

scholarly journals Emissions Trading Hybrids: The Case of the EU ETS

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Edwin Woerdman ◽  
Andries Nentjes
Keyword(s):  
Emissions Trading ◽  
Production Capacity ◽  
Performance Standard ◽  
Eu Ets ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Cap And Trade ◽  
Trading System ◽  
Standard Rate ◽  
High Level ◽  
The Eu

Abstract We argue that the European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) has evolved into a hybrid of two design variants, allowance trading (cap-and-trade) and credit trading (performance standard rate trading), with an added feature of industry support to minimize carbon leakage. In particular the current rules tying free allowances to production capacity expansion, plant closure and capacity use have transformed the efficient cap-and-trade program that stood at the origins of the EU ETS into a system that even surpasses credit trading in paying hidden product subsidies to firms. This combination of rules encourages an inefficiently high level of investment in production capacity and an inefficiently high output in industries exposed to international competition. The result is a sub-optimal EU Emissions Trading ‘Hybrid’ (which we therefore label as ‘EU ETH’).

scholarly journals Absolute vs. Intensity-based Caps for Carbon Emissions Target Setting

2016 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 764-781 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yingying Zeng ◽  
Stefan E. Weishaar ◽  
Oscar Couwenberg
Keyword(s):  
Policy Design ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Eu Ets ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Trading System ◽  
Target Setting ◽  
Better Regulation ◽  
Environmental Effectiveness ◽  
Legal Barriers ◽  
The Eu

AbstractLinking the European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) to the Chinese national ETS promises considerable economic and political benefits. However, different policy choices regarding cap setting between the systems are likely to impede a potential linking. A striking distinction is that the EU ETS relies upon an absolute cap, while the Chinese national ETS appears to apply an ‘intensity-based cap’ during the early stages. The current linking literature focuses on mapping legal barriers in general and has not yet focused on EU and China, let alone the intricacies of policy design. This article seeks to fill this gap by concentrating on (static and dynamic) efficiency and environmental effectiveness implications of linking and cap design. From the analysis of the cap we derive policy implications for a hypothetical ETS linking between the EU and China. In response, comprehensive and predictable regulation is needed to ensure the attainment of ETS targets and thus facilitate better regulation.

scholarly journals Impact of Eu Ets on Sustainable Development of its Participants in Latvia

2012 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 165-177
Author(s):  
Ilze Prūse
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Emissions Trading ◽  
Greenhouse Gas Emission ◽  
Eu Ets ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Gas Emission ◽  
Trading System ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Eu

Abstract Latvia is covered by the European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) and therein 80 participants from Latvia have participated. The goal of the paper is to analyse the impact of the EU ETS on the sustainable development of its participants in Latvia. The concept of sustainable development is explored with respect to both macro and micro scale and in the context of sustainable development the EU ETS is described. The impact of the EU ETS on its participants in Latvia is considered by means of methods of quantitative and qualitative analysis. It has been established that in past the participants of the EU ETS from Latvia had generally beneficial positions in the EU ETS; hence although the EU ETS did not directly promote greenhouse gas emission reductions, it provided opportunities to gain additional profits and many of the EU ETS participants in Latvia made use of them. In addition, certain interrelationships have been identified between the data on the EU ETS participants performing EUA trading and the data on the EU ETS participants not performing EUA trading. It has been concluded that the EU ETS might have contributed towards the sustainable development of its participants in Latvia within its certain dimensions.

The EU Emissions Trading System in Crisis-Ridden Greece: Climate under Neoliberalism

2020 ◽  
pp. 048661342091054
Author(s):  
Andriana Vlachou ◽  
Georgios Pantelias
Keyword(s):  
Emissions Trading ◽  
Eu Ets ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Trading System ◽  
Distributional Effects ◽  
Low Carbon Economy ◽  
Environmental Effectiveness ◽  
Emissions Trading System ◽  
The Eu

Neoliberal capitalism has extended the use of markets to address climate and energy issues. Carbon trading characteristically exemplifies the neoliberalization of climate policy. This paper discusses the workings of the European Union’s Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) in the European Union (EU) with a focus on its application in crisis-ridden Greece. Beyond environmental effectiveness and distributional effects, the paper explores the interactions of the EU ETS with crisis, austerity programs, energy poverty, and uneven development. Despite adjustments and changes, the EU ETS continues to indicate limited environmental effectiveness and unjust distributional effects. Moreover, by forging a centralized neoliberal transition to a low-carbon economy without consideration of the issues faced by unevenly developed and crisis-stricken EU members such as Greece, the EU ETS leads to additional disturbances and problems for the Greek economy as a whole, its pauperized working people, and its energy and climate options to reduce emissions on its own potential, needs, and priorities.

scholarly journals A European Emissions Trading System Powered by Distributed Ledger Technology: An Evaluation Framework

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 2106
Author(s):  
Rahel Mandaroux ◽  
Chuanwen Dong ◽  
Guodong Li
Keyword(s):  
Emissions Trading ◽  
Evaluation Framework ◽  
Eu Ets ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Trading System ◽  
Trading Systems ◽  
Distributed Ledger ◽  
Distributed Ledger Technology ◽  
Emissions Trading System ◽  
The Eu

The European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) is a major pillar of the European energy policy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. However, the reportedly pervasive frauds in this market are constraining the beneficial role of the EU ETS. In this conceptual paper, we propose to digitalize the EU ETS by distributed ledger technology (DLT), enabling the verification of authenticity and provenance, proof of ownership, and lifecycle traceability of carbon certificates and assets. Our platform allows verifiable credentials to validate emission allowances, real-time tracking of trading participants’ emissions, and the audit trail reporting of the decentralized trading records. Furthermore, we complement the DLT application concept with a structured interdisciplinary evaluation framework. Our framework and analysis aim to stimulate further interdisciplinary research in this area to support regulators, such as the European Commission, in designing effective digital emissions trading systems.

scholarly journals Linking the EU ETS with California’s Cap-and-Trade Program

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 9-45
Author(s):  
Edwin Woerdman ◽  
Manolis Kotzampasakis
Keyword(s):  
Emissions Trading ◽  
Law And Economics ◽  
The United States ◽  
Carbon Markets ◽  
Eu Ets ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Economic Literature ◽  
Cap And Trade ◽  
Trading Systems ◽  
The Eu

Aim: This paper aims to evaluate the legal barriers and policy obstacles to linking the European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) with California’s Cap-and-Trade Program in the United States, and to identify potential legal solutions to overcome them, by taking a law and economics perspective.   Design / research methods: A qualitative law and economics analysis is performed by combining the legal-dogmatic method with insights from economic theory. Primary sources are the respective legal frameworks, ETS regulations, past linking agreements and relevant case law. Secondary sources include the relevant legal and economic literature, as well as policy documents, reports and press releases.   Conclusions / findings: An EU-California linkage of emissions trading systems (ETSs) is legally feasible on the basis of an informal agreement, through reciprocal amendments to the respective ETS-regulations. Potential barriers could emerge, in particular from misaligned provisions regarding price containment measures and offsets. A gradual implementation of certain mutually beneficial ETS reforms, possibly in conjunction with initially restricted linkage, can provide momentum for transcending these barriers.   Originality / value of the article: To date, no linking has taken place between emissions trading systems from different continents. This paper contributes to the legal-economic literature on linking the EU ETS with California’s Cap-and-Trade Program by performing an up-to-date analysis of its associated barriers and by providing concrete legal suggestions to possibly overcome them. Such a transatlantic linkage could enhance the cost-effectiveness of climate policy and contribute to the bottom-up expansion of carbon markets worldwide.

scholarly journals Price Relationships in the EU Emissions Trading System

2011 ◽  
pp. 212-220 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julien Chevallier
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Emissions Trading ◽  
Eu Ets ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Trading System ◽  
Trading Scheme ◽  
Price Relationships ◽  
Eu Emissions Trading System ◽  
Emissions Trading System ◽  
The Eu

The European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) constrains industrial polluters to buy/sell CO2 allowances depending on a regional depolluting objective of -8% of CO2 emissions by 2012 compared to 1990 levels. Companies may also buy carbon offsets from developing countries, funding emissions cuts there instead, under a Kyoto Protocol Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). This chapter critically analyzes the price relationships in the EU emissions trading system. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) delivers credits that may be used by European companies for their compliance needs. Certified Emissions Reductions (CERs) from CDM projects are credits flowing into the global compliance market generated through emission reductions. EUAs (European Union Allowances) are the tradable unit under the EU ETS. Besides, the EU Linking Directive allows the import for compliance into the EU ETS up to 13.4% of CERs on average. This chapter details the idiosyncratic risks affecting each emissions market, be it in terms of regulatory uncertainty, economic activity, industrial structure, or the impact of other energy markets. Besides, based on a careful analysis of the EUA and CER price paths, this chapter assesses common risk factors by focusing more particularly on the role played by the CER import limit within the ETS.

scholarly journals New Plant Breeding Technologies: An Assessment of the Political Economy of the Regulatory Environment and Implications for Sustainability

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (7) ◽  
pp. 3687
Author(s):  
Vincent Smith ◽  
Justus H. H. Wesseler ◽  
David Zilberman
Keyword(s):  
Political Economy ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Development Policy ◽  
Regulatory Environment ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
International Policies ◽  
Modern Biotechnology ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Eu

This perspective discusses the impact of political economy on the regulation of modern biotechnology. Modern biotechnology has contributed to sustainable development, but its potential has been underexplored and underutilized. We highlight the importance of the impacts of regulations for investments in modern biotechnology and argue that improvements are possible via international harmonization of approval processes. This development is urgently needed for improving sustainable development. Policy makers in the European Union (EU) in particular are challenged to rethink their approach to regulating modern biotechnology as their decisions have far ranging consequences beyond the boundaries of the EU and they have the power to influence international policies.

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