The EU promises new tariffs on CO ₂ emissions in three years

The United States and the European Union are committed to leading the COP26 in Glasgow with two international commitments: new tariffs on CO ₂ emissions and the reduction of methane emissions.

The president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, assured this Tuesday that the block will apply a tariff to CO₂ that emit products such as cement, iron, steel, aluminum, fertilizers and electricity at their borders from 2023; a promise that was already included in the European Green Deal, updated in July this year. The measure, which will be gradually expanded, seeks to pressure the international community to also tax greenhouse gas emissions.

The President of the Community Executive has defended the tariff as a measure to prevent European efforts in caring for the environment from being undermined. In theory, if factories around the world that sell these materials have to pay an additional charge for the pollution they emit, they would have an incentive to limit their operations. Furthermore, if other countries were to adopt similar rules, it could put pressure on nations reluctant to curb their use of fossil fuels, such as China or Russia.

Von der Leyen recalled that the EU has had an emissions trading market since 2005 in which 11,000 industrial plants and 500 airlines must pay for each ton of CO₂ issued, although now the Commission wants to extend the list to the air conditioning of buildings and road transport.

The price evolution of emission rights has changed significantly in these 16 years. In particular, in recent months there has been an increase in the European market, which has shot up to around 60 euros per ton; twice as much as a year earlier. The CO emission rights trading system₂ is one of the cornerstones developed by the European Union to fight against climate change and in its eagerness to strengthen it, the Commission has proposed the creation of a system to also tax CO₂ of certain products entering the European market. In this regard, the President of the Commission stressed the bloc’s interest in maintaining a dialogue with its trading partners. “We see this carbon frontier adjustment as a climate policy tool,” he exclaimed yesterday in Glasgow.

The United States has spearheaded the other big announcement, with new national rules to control methane emissions from drilling the Earth for oil and gas. The plan comes to reinforce the international initiative announced in September by President Joe Biden and the EU to reduce emissions of this gas by 30% by 2030. Although initially the commitment had only been supported by 31 nations, now there are more than 100 signatory countries, with the exception of China, India and Russia, as explained by the US president in Glasgow. Together they account for 70% of the world economy and half of the emissions of this gas.

The American nation has gone further and now wants its country’s emissions to fall by 75%; an ambitious plan considering that methane is responsible for 25% of the increase in global temperature. Also, while carbon dioxide is the culprit for the other 80%, methane traps 28 times as much heat.

As part of its program, Washington wants to impose a new tariff on oil and gas companies that emit methane above a stipulated threshold. The Government will invest 775 million dollars (almost 668 million euros) in subsidies to help companies stay below that cap. In addition to expanding existing regulations, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will ask the country’s states to develop a plan to reduce emissions of this gas and will implement new techniques to manage livestock manure, which generates 10% of all the methane in the US, according to their report.

Livestock, agriculture and fossil fuels are the main responsible for the acceleration in methane emissions which, according to the World Methane Balance 2020, have not stopped growing in the last decade, which is causing its highest atmospheric concentration.

stop deforestation

A hundred countries, which are home to 85% of the world’s forests, have committed to reversing deforestation and land degradation by 2030. The proposal has been launched by the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Boris Johnson and will have 19,200 million euros of public and private financing throughout the world. Specifically, 12,000 million dollars (103,000 million euros) of public funds will be allocated from 12 countries and 7,200 million (6,210 million euros) in private financing, according to British estimates, until 2025.

Forests absorb about a third of global CO ₂ emissions from burning fossil fuels each year, but the current rate of deforestation is worrying; Every minute an area equivalent to 27 football fields is lost, according to the British Government. As part of the initiative, Johnson has promised 1,500 million pounds sterling (just over 1,764 million euros) in financing.

Source: Five Days