scholarly journals The Environmental Justice Dimension of the Mexican Emissions Trading System

Author(s):  
Danae Hernandez-Cortes ◽  
Erick Rosas-López

AbstractEmissions trading systems have the potential of increasing air quality given that GHG emissions are often co-produced with local pollutants such as NOx, SOx, and Particulate Matter (PM). Can emissions trading systems exacerbate or alleviate environmental justice concerns in emerging economies? According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Environmental Justice is achieved when no group is disproportionately affected by an environmental policy or phenomenon. The main objective of this chapter is to estimate the pollution burden faced by marginalized neighbourhoods in Mexico. This is relevant for Mexico given the beginning of the pilot program of the Mexican Emissions Trading System (ETS) and the country’s history of income inequality and poverty. Using linear regression and two-way fixed effects methods, we found that the highest emitters regulated under the ETS are located near poor populations. We estimated a 5$$\%$$ % CO2 emissions-reduction scenario corresponding to national targets and associated NO2 emissions to that scenario. We find that this scenario is consistent with a decrease in the exposure of NO2 pollution for the most marginalized neighbourhoods. This chapter also discusses other potential sources of environmental injustice that could result after the beginning of the ETS and the potential to address them.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elisabeth DeMarco ◽  
Robert Routliffe ◽  
Heather Landymore

On 17 December 2002, Canada ratified the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (Kyoto Protocol), taking on binding targets to reduce Canadian emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs). Canada's ratification decision and the proposed domestic emissions trading system forming part of Canada's Kyoto implementation plan continue to be the source of considerable disagreement and conflict between the provinces and thefederal government regarding: the practical challenges associated with multiple Canadian jurisdictions implementing emissions trading systems: the current status and legal issues associated with covenants between industry and government(s) to enforce GHG reduction targets; the legal jurisdiction over domestic emissions trading system(s); and the impact on interprovincial and international trade. Each ofthese issues is examined in the unique Canadian legal context. The authors conclude that many ofthe most significant challenges may be mitigated through harmonization and coordination byfederal and provincial governments in a manner that allows for local concerns to be addressed without fragmenting the Canadian emissions markets.


Author(s):  
Alicia Gutierrez González

AbstractThis article aims to give an overview of the international influence of the Emissions Trading System (ETS) in Mexico. It is divided into three parts. First, it briefly examines both the international Climate Change regime through the description of such instruments as the 1997 Kyoto Protocol and the 2015 Paris Agreement, and the national regime by reviewing as the 2012 General Law on Climate Change (LGCC), the National Emissions Registry (RENE) and its Regulations, as well as other instruments regarding mitigation from carbon tax and clean energy. Second, it analyzes the legal framework of the pilot phase of the ETS in Mexico (under the cap and trade principle) which seeks to reduce carbon dioxide emissions (CO2) only in the energy and industry sectors whose emissions are greater than 100 thousand direct tonnes of CO2. In doing so, it also explains the relevance of implementing an ETS as a cost-effective mitigation measure to achieve the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) in order to reduce 22% greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2030 (increasing to 36% if there is international support and financing) and 50% by 2050 as a developing country. Third, it focuses on the European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) experience and shows that all its phases must be done gradually by adopting the learning-by-doing approach.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 2541
Author(s):  
Bao-Jun Tang ◽  
Yu-Jie Hu

In order to combat climate change and control emissions in the aviation industry, it is necessary to research the aviation industry’s potential application of China’s Emissions Trading System (ETS), especially the carbon allowance allocation (CAA). On the basis of historical and benchmarking CAA schemes, considering the responsibility, capacity, and potential of firms, this study proposes the indicators CAA (ICAA) scheme. Moreover, considering firms’ costs, this study also proposes a multi-objective CAA (MCAA) scheme. Finally, the most effective scheme is reported. Results show that under ICAA and MCAA, caps are lower and basically consistent with the emissions reduction target of the “13th Five-Year Plan Work Program for Controlling GHG Emissions of Civil Aviation in China” and international goals. Different types of airlines gain different quotas according to their income and the number and age of their aircraft. The cost of reducing emissions in each scheme is less than 0.35% of their total costs. Under the ICAA-S, ICAA-P, and MCAA schemes, airlines can achieve a reduction in emissions of 19.7%, 20.9%, and 19.6%, respectively. Moreover, under MCAA, the difference in quotas between airlines is smaller. Therefore, of the schemes evaluated, MCAA is the most effective.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (04) ◽  
pp. 46-59
Author(s):  
Erik BAARK

China recognises the need to reduce carbon emissions in order to avoid negative consequences from climate change in the future. Therefore, the Chinese government initiated seven emissions trading system (ETS) pilots in 2013 and began to develop China’s national ETS in 2017. However, Chinese efforts to implement ETS have encountered legal, institutional and political issues that must be solved so that a national ETS could help to mitigate emissions in China.


Author(s):  
Dean Anderson ◽  
Kjell Roland ◽  
Per Schreiner ◽  
John M. Skjelvik

Author(s):  
Paul Mohai ◽  
Bunyan Bryant ◽  
Craig Slatin

On 13 February 2020, the University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability held the Michigan Environmental Justice Summit 2020: Commemorating the Thirtieth Anniversary of Michigan’s 1990 Conference on Race and the Environment and Looking Toward the Future. The Summit hosted a dynamic panel of national leaders, individuals who became game changers in the Environmental Justice movement. The panel featured Dr. Robert Bullard, known as the “Father of Environmental Justice”; Rhiana Gunn-Wright, Policy Director of New Consensus; Charles Lee, Senior Policy Advisor at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; Regina Strong, Environmental Justice Public Advocate for the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy; and Dr. Beverly Wright, Founder and Executive Director of the Deep South Center for Environmental Justice. This article includes an edited transcript of the panel discussion. The panelists detail the history of the U.S. environmental justice movement and directions for its future.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 2106
Author(s):  
Rahel Mandaroux ◽  
Chuanwen Dong ◽  
Guodong Li

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.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amir Rajabian

This thesis presents the development of a model for parallel replacement and improvement for a fleet of assets to minimize both the economic costs and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions where the emissions are limited by cap-and-trade. The firm which owns the assets has the options of using the assets, putting them in inventory, improving them, or salvaging them. Different technological types and their performances have been considered for assets. The firm has the option of purchasing new assets from varying technologies and/or improving its existing assets to a higher-performance type. Moreover, the model considers the possibility of both banking the emission allowances and trading them in the market. The model was later used with data of a fleet of excavators in Ontario, Canada. The use of this model could help emitter firms to simultaneously manage the emissions and costs of their fleet of assets in a jurisdiction regulated by cap-and-trade.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document