The divide between countries on key elements of the new UN carbon markets have become apparent at the last UNFCCC session which closed last week in Bangkok. Open questions around the transition of old markets and how to ensure that carbon offsets do not water down climate ambition are set to continue during COP24, when major rules of the Paris Rulebook are expected to be finalised in December in Katowice, Poland.
Market negotiations resumed at full speed in Bangkok, with new text being published after only one day of negotiations. Parties are feeling the pressure now that COP24 is looming. We’ve started the session by hearing lists of priorities for items that could not be postponed to 2019 (assuming that not all issues could be resolved…
The United Nations (UN) climate agency released a video this week mocking lifestyle changes, such as reducing meat consumption and flying, to promote the use of highly controversial credits to offset emissions. The video “Keep calm and offset” has since been removed, but inadvertently points to the main problems with offsetting, a concept that creates the illusion…
For almost a decade, the world’s most powerful economies have been making promises to stop channeling public money for fossil fuels that pollute our air and drive dangerous climate change, with little impact so far. This weekend’s G7 meeting in Canada is an opportunity to move from words to action. Expect intense discussions on a…
Carbon Market Watch is working to advance the carbon-free transformation of Europe’s industry. But what does this actually mean and how does it affect our daily lives? On the occasion of World Environment Day under the theme ‘Beating Plastic Pollution’, we provide a deep-dive into the role of plastics. Plastics have become part of our…
Canada’s new nation-wide carbon pricing strategy is a promising step towards putting a robust price on pollution, but some of the scheme’s technical details such as intensity-based targets cast doubt on its environmental effectiveness. The start of a new year marks the launch of Canada’s nation-wide carbon pricing strategy, which was announced in 2016 as…
This article was first published on Green Air Online on 11 July 2017 Wed 12 July 2017 – Yesterday, the European Parliament’s environment committee (ENVI) voted on how the aviation sector should be treated under the EU’s Emissions Trading System (EU ETS), in response to a decision by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) to set…
A discussion is picking up steam in Europe about ambition in addressing aviation emissions after the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) created a global offsetting scheme last fall. Citing the ICAO measure, airlines have now set about trying to weaken the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS). Though still oversupplied, the EU ETS goes further…
Experience with Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions (NAMAs) should be taken into account when implementing Nationally Determined Contributions. This article provides lessons learned from stakeholder engagement in NAMAs implementation and recommendations on how to ensure all-inclusive stakeholder consultation in the framework of the Paris Agreement. On 4 November 2016 the Paris Agreement, which calls for strong…
Climate action is multiplying outside of the UN climate talks (UNFCCC), from the Kigali Agreement on the highly potent greenhouse gas HFCs to International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) agreeing to offset emissions from international aviation. Nevertheless, they all have connections to the UNFCCC where the bulk of the world’s effort against climate change is managed….
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