Experts and scholars discussed how to build a "four-in-one" carbon emission reduction credit system

Source: China News Network

China News Network, November 6, how to build a high-quality, high liquidity, strong additionality and intelligent emission reduction certification and trading system? On November 3, the third day of the United Nations Climate Conference, University College London (UCL), together with the China Resources Environmental Research Institute and domestic and foreign partners, jointly held an international seminar on high-quality emission reduction credit standards, advocating the establishment of a forward-looking carbon credit standard system.

The Carbon Reduction Credit System includes two main markets: Certified Emission Reductions (CERs) and Voluntary Emission Reductions (VER). The participants had pragmatic and in-depth exchanges on the topics.

Dr. Li Gao, director of the Department of Climate Change of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, said in his opening speech that China has proposed to strive for carbon peaking by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060, and it is not easy to achieve this goal. Experts who pay attention to the study of China's situation will understand that China's industrial structure is relatively heavy, and coal accounts for a large proportion from the perspective of energy structure. Over the past many years, China has made great efforts. From 2005 to 2020, coal's share of the energy mix is declining at almost one percentage point per year. In terms of China's energy volume, this is a very difficult achievement. The total installed capacity of coal-fired power plants that we have phased out in the past 10 years is larger than the national electricity installed capacity in the UK in a year.

Li Gao said that China's goal of carbon neutrality will have a profound impact on China's economic and social development in the next few decades, and it is necessary to systematically promote social change. In this process, we also very much hope to better play the role of the market economy, so in July this year, we launched the national carbon trading rights trading market online trading. Carbon markets are used as important policy tools for achieving carbon peaking and carbon neutrality. Since its launch in July, the entire market has been running relatively smoothly, and carbon prices are also in a reasonable space. In the future, the management of the carbon market will be further strengthened.

Li Gao also pointed out that some forward-looking research around the standard mechanism of the CER and Ver markets can meet the needs of enterprises and individuals to reduce emissions, and the initiative of proposing high-quality standards and efficient issuance processes is very meaningful, and can promote more enterprises and individuals to participate in emission reduction actions to jointly contribute to climate goals.

Dr. Xi Liang, Professor at University College London's School of Sustainable Architecture, Leader of the ADB Climate Finance Accelerator Program Expert Group, and Advisor to the China Resources Environmental Research Institute, proposed an initiative to reform CER and Ver. He believes that in the future, it is necessary to improve transparency, traceability and avoid double computing through intelligent and digital technologies, while exploring high-quality CER and Ver varieties with strong subdivision environmental and social synergies.

Dr Matthew Brander, Associate Professor of Carbon Accounting at the University of Edinburgh, has long been involved in the "greenwashing" of climate change activities. In his keynote address, he said that there was a need to focus on the issue of additionality. Dr. Brand first elaborated on the definition of additionality: additionality means that these carbon reduction activities will not occur if the project is not included in these offset mechanisms. He believes that high-quality offsets should be carbon removal, so as to help achieve the 2050 carbon neutrality target. However, all the offsetting mechanisms now basically belong to the method of temporary storage and release.

During the discussion session, Professor d'Maris Coffman, Dean of the School of Sustainable Architecture at University College London, suggested exploring the use of digital technologies to facilitate high-quality carbon credit systems. The quality of emission reduction projects is fundamentally guaranteed through the empowerment of digital technology and the introduction of incentive mechanisms such as contract credit systems. At the same time, it is necessary to establish foundations dedicated to supporting and paying attention to this work, and to make this work more fair and reliable.

Gilles dufrasne of Carbon Market Watch, a non-profit organization focused on the carbon market, said that under the Kyoto Protocol, there has been a systematic view of the problems with carbon credit standards, especially in terms of additionality. To consider how to improve the system in different contexts, it is necessary to consider how to account for additionality, and how to make additionality go beyond commercial constraints to meet its due climate mitigation goals. The solution considered is to use existing technology, pay more attention to the technical aspects, and encourage more regulation and higher standards. The second consideration is the social and environmental synergies of emission reduction projects, and the strengthening of information disclosure of carbon reduction projects. If you want to achieve the net zero emissions target, you must communicate clearly in a timely manner, use the funds to the local projects where there is a real need, benefit the local area, and ensure that the process is very transparent.

Dr. Jackson ewing, a senior researcher at Duke University in the United States, said that blockchain technology may play a role in this field, but it is necessary to base itself on facts and recognize the dimensions of real-world challenges. Now there are many influencing factors in dual accounting that need to be analyzed and studied, and technology itself is directly connected with the demand side.

Jan-willem van de ven from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) shows how multilateral financial institutions are working to improve the quality of carbon credits. The Paris Agreement is a very important climate response action, each country has done a good NDC report, and we will monitor the implementation of NDC in each country. One of ebrd's goals now is to promote net-zero emissions targets, so it will take a lot of investment to actually remove carbon emissions.

Dr. Mei Dewen, General Manager of Beijing Green Exchange, pointed out in his speech that there are many issues that need to be agreed on on the policy factors of the international voluntary carbon emission reduction market. Carbon credits can circulate in internationally harmonized markets, including mutual recognition, so as to ensure that relevant carbon credits can be recognized and used in both transnational carbon trading mechanisms and in the carbon markets of various countries and regions, and relevant unified standards need to be established.

Xi Chunling, executive vice president and secretary general of the China Association for the Promotion of International Cooperation in Agriculture, made suggestions on how to build high-quality carbon credits in agriculture. Xi Chunling believes that the establishment of a methodology and standard system for China's agricultural carbon reduction projects is the key to this work, and it is necessary to promote four tasks: First, find out the family background and distinguish the levels. More research and studies are needed to guide the next step of work; second, to design carbon reduction pathways and screen out innovative technologies and methods to mitigate climate change in order to put forward constructive suggestions and paths. Based on these recommendations, the feasibility of reducing emissions pathways is analysed; In particular, there is a need to improve greenhouse gas accounting methods, formulate carbon emission calculation methods for various types of projects, explore monitoring technologies and digital means to provide higher efficiency and more accurate accuracy; fourth, establish high-quality standards and standardize emission reduction work.

Michael Grubb, honorary chair of the climatestrategies, professor of energy and climate change at University College London and author of Planetary Economics, suggested considering how this mechanism could be better refined underpinning the Kyoto Protocol system, arguing that liquidity and institutional engagement are important, and that the more institutional investment, the better it can drive its implementation at the international level. (End)