Report on Europe's carbon emissions trading: It works

Published October 18, 2012 in Climate

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While federal legislation allowing the U.S. to join the growing international carbon cap-and-trade market may not be in sight, a new EDF report states that the world's first and largest program – the European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) – is effective and worth the notice of other countries with active or planned emissions trading systems.

The EU ETS has not only reduced emissions, but sparked key low-carbon innovation, explains Alex Hanafi, an EDF international climate attorney, in a EDF Talks Global Climate blog post. The post follows the release of a new report, The EU Emissions Trading System: Results and Lessons Learned.

The report examines the experience of the EU ETS so far, and highlights both what works and what needs improving as the EU system expands to cover more sources of emissions and additional greenhouse gases in 2013. It offers beneficial lessons to other governments participating in emissions trading – including California, Hanafi said. 

"The world’s first global warming cap-and-trade program is doing exactly what the EU designed it to do – cut dangerous emissions, spur the deployment of low-carbon innovation, and do so at low cost," he said.