The European Commission is considering accounting for international carbon credits in the upcoming climate target, a measure that could weaken CO2 reduction efforts required by national industries, they told Reuters sources familiar with the issue.
The idea is among the options being discussed by EU’s climate commissioner, Wopke Hoekstra, with the bloc member and parliamentary countries, some of which oppose the European Union’s climate target to 2040 to reduce emissions by 90%, which the commission had planned initially proposed.
The commission lost the deadline to publish the goal last month and is facing political resistance against the EU green agenda, as climate change compete with other political priorities, including the defense.
Some governments and parliamentarians also argue that EU green rules are damaging national industries that already deal with US tariffs and cheap imports.
Five sources familiar with discussions said the commission is evaluating options, including defining a 2040 emission reduction goal for home industries that is less than 90%, and allows countries to buy international carbon credits to compensate for the rest.
This would mean that European Union countries could buy project credits that reduce CO2 emissions abroad – for example, forest restoration in Brazil – and accounting for these emissions reductions for the goal.
The options that the committee is exploring were previously reported by the politician.
A Commission spokesman declined to comment if she is considering adding international carbon credits to the EU goal.
The measure would be a turnaround for the group, whose other climate goals are achieved only by domestic efforts.
Hoekstra said last week that a 90% cut in emissions is still the committee’s “starting point” in the 2040’s goal negotiations – which he said he plans to propose before summer in the northern hemisphere.
“We are sensitive to the requests for a little pragmatism,” Hoekstra told reporters. He refused to comment if he was exploring flexibilities for the goal.
The climate target for 2040 needs approval of EU countries and the European Parliament.
Concerns about credibility
Countries are developing a UN global market to market carbon credits – seen by proponents as a way to fund CO2 reduction projects in developing countries.
However, CO2 credits have faced several scandals, which were found that credit generation projects were not providing the climatic benefits they alleged.
Linda Kalcher, executive director of the Strategic Perspectives Institute, called for caution to deal with this risk.
“The list of scandals linked to international credits is long: fraud, lack of environmental integrity and the drastic collapse of the price of CO2 (EU),” said Kalcher.
The group banned international carbon market credits in 2013, after a flood of cheap credits contributed to the drop in the price of carbon in the EU.
This content was originally published in European Union considers using carbon credits to meet the CNN Brazil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
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