Cheating with Emission Rights

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Carbon Markets are efficient processes for cost-effective climate mitigation. They allow the private sector to earn tradable Emission Reduction Credits from projects. But it depends on the ethics of the actors whether this program can work: the mechanisms of the Kyoto Protocol is subject to controversial debate and extensive research.

The journal “Nature Climate Exchange” reports that companies in Russia and Ukraine use the Kyoto Protocol to gain enormous profits. (http://www.nature.com/nclimate/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/nclimate2772.html). The practice of these companies are simple: their plants operate deliberately inefficiently to generate massive amounts of (toxic) gas emissions. Then they apply the Kyoto Protocol for their selfish benefit reducing the own emissions produced dishonestly receiving in exchange certificates which they sell on the carbon markets with a profit. That’s cheating! The environmentalists are trusting that this blemish has an impact on the upcoming Climate Change Conference in Paris at the end of this year 2015, and finally stricter rules shall be adopted. (Source: Doris Vettermann, Betrug mit dem Klimaschutz, Kronenzeitung, Politik, Seite 4, Mittwoch 26. August 2015).

Roland Leithenmayr VfV

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