EU seeks to force transport CO2 rules on trade partners
Being the world's largest economy, the EU can use its muscles on trade issues and help transform the global economy into a more sustainable one. This transformative power is being demonstrated by the landmark REACH legislation, which forces all manufacturers of chemical products to obey the EU's rules on consumer safety, health and the environment. Since manufacturers from around the globe obviously want to sell their products in the EU, they are forced to creating better, cleaner and safer products that match the Union's criteria. The law is spurring innovation.
A similar mechanism is set to emerge in the sector of green cars and airlines. Now that the EU's Environment Council on 20 February 2007 agreed on an ambitious target to cut greenhouse-gas emissions by 20% by 2020 in order to reduce global warming (earlier post), both these sectors will have to adapt. And the EU's reach will be global once again: any car maker or airline that wants to sell or fly into the EU, will have to obey the rules which are aimed at achieving a low carbon economy for the 21st century (earlier post): only green cars with low emissions will be allowed into the block, whereas foreign airlines will have to conform as all international routes will be included in the European Emissions Trading System (ETS). At least, this is a likely scenario (earlier post).
If the EU's emission reduction target is to be achieved, member states will first have to agree amongst themselves on two controversial plans which target emissions from transport:
Spain even suggested that the CO2 cap should be applied not only to European manufacturers but also to all vehicle manufacturers seeking to sell cars in the EU, regardless of their nationality. This would avoid placing European carmakers at a disadvantage with their competitors. And this would allow Europe to leverage its power on a global scale:
bioenergy :: biofuels :: energy :: sustainability :: car manufacturers :: airlines :: greenhouse gases :: emissions :: ETS :: EU ::
The Commission's plans to integrate aviation into the EU's CO2 emissions cap-and-trade system also received broad support from member states, but a majority of countries insisted that all routes – intra-EU and international – be covered by the scheme as of the same date.
This would effectively force foreign airlines to comply with EU aviation emissions rules. But US carriers are adamant that this would be illegal and that the EU must wait for a global agreement to be reached in the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).
More information and different positions of EU actors on the issue can be found at Euractiv.
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A similar mechanism is set to emerge in the sector of green cars and airlines. Now that the EU's Environment Council on 20 February 2007 agreed on an ambitious target to cut greenhouse-gas emissions by 20% by 2020 in order to reduce global warming (earlier post), both these sectors will have to adapt. And the EU's reach will be global once again: any car maker or airline that wants to sell or fly into the EU, will have to obey the rules which are aimed at achieving a low carbon economy for the 21st century (earlier post): only green cars with low emissions will be allowed into the block, whereas foreign airlines will have to conform as all international routes will be included in the European Emissions Trading System (ETS). At least, this is a likely scenario (earlier post).
If the EU's emission reduction target is to be achieved, member states will first have to agree amongst themselves on two controversial plans which target emissions from transport:
- the introduction of a mandatory CO2 cap for cars, which are responsible for more than 10% of all greenhouse-gas emissions in the EU (earlier post)
- the inclusion of aviation in the EU's Emissions Trading Scheme, in order to reduce airlines' growing contribution to climate change
Spain even suggested that the CO2 cap should be applied not only to European manufacturers but also to all vehicle manufacturers seeking to sell cars in the EU, regardless of their nationality. This would avoid placing European carmakers at a disadvantage with their competitors. And this would allow Europe to leverage its power on a global scale:
bioenergy :: biofuels :: energy :: sustainability :: car manufacturers :: airlines :: greenhouse gases :: emissions :: ETS :: EU ::
The Commission's plans to integrate aviation into the EU's CO2 emissions cap-and-trade system also received broad support from member states, but a majority of countries insisted that all routes – intra-EU and international – be covered by the scheme as of the same date.
This would effectively force foreign airlines to comply with EU aviation emissions rules. But US carriers are adamant that this would be illegal and that the EU must wait for a global agreement to be reached in the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).
More information and different positions of EU actors on the issue can be found at Euractiv.
Article continues
Thursday, February 22, 2007
Message to Euro-Americans: eat local food, buy global biofuels
Euro-American consumers buy large quantities of fresh luxury products, such as orchids, baby corn, tiny tomatoes, palm hearts, mangos or carambola stars. Most of these exotic vegetables, fruits and flowers are grown by small farmers in the tropics, like Peter and Samuel. The products are flown to Euro-America on a daily basis, in jumbo jets. The smallholders depend on the market for their livelihoods - it feeds their families and allows them send their children to school.
Now consumers in the West have decided "to do something" about global warming, as individuals. They read up on things and experiment with concepts such as 'food miles': calculate how much greenhouse gas emissions a locally grown vegetable is worth, compared to one flown in from, say, Kenya. If the Kenyan vegetable - the baby corn or the mango - is "guilty" of more carbon emissions, the wealthy consumer in Europe or America decides to stop buying it. Problem solved. A clear conscience... But the Kenyan farmer falls back into poverty because he just lost his lucrative market.
If the consumer in Europe and America really wants to start buying local food to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, then that is allright, provided he starts buying globally produced biofuels to compensate for the loss of markets faced by the poor farmers in the South. The Kenyan baby corn grower could switch to big corn for ethanol instead. Or better, he would grow woody biomass, sweet potatoes, cassava, sweet sorghum or sugarcane - highly efficient crops to make solid and liquid biofuels from. Contrary to luxury fruits, vegetables or flowers, biofuels do not have to be served 'fresh' and flown in by air. They can be stored and shipped to Europe and America very efficiently, in huge tankers and ships.
The International Energy Agency's Bioenergy Task 40, which studies the feasibility of sustainable trade in biofuels, has thoroughly analysed long-distance transport and found that the greenhouse gas emissions arising from shipping biofuels from the tropics to the ports of Europe and America, are negligeable. After their long trip in huge and efficient tankers, the biofuels from the South still dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions when used by Europeans and Americans in their cars. They mitigate climate change far better than biofuels produced in Europe or the US, simply because they are far more efficient to produce (earlier post). One hectare of sugar cane delivers 8 to 10 times more energy than a hectare of corn grown in the US. If imported by Europe or the US, the sugar cane ethanol is still 7 to 9 times more energy efficient upon arrival (earlier post). Higher energy efficiency ultimately means lower carbon emissions.
In short, our message to wealthy consumers in the West is simple: buy local food if you think this will change global warming (which is not always the case), but please buy globally produced biofuels. You will help millions of farmers in the South, and you will reduce carbon emissions far more radically than if you were to use inefficient biofuels made in Europe or America. You have the money and the power. Spend it wisely.
More information:
IEA Bioenergy Task 40: International bioenergy transport costs and energy balance
IEA Bioenergy Task 40: Life cycle inventrory of existing biomass import chains for green electricity production [*.pdf]
IEA Bioenergy Task 40: Sustainability of brazilian bioethanol [*.pdf], and see earlier post [entry ends here].
ethanol :: biodiesel :: biomass :: bioenergy :: biofuels :: energy :: sustainability :: climate change :: greenhouse gas emissions :: food miles :: Africa ::
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posted by Biopact team at 10:16 PM 0 comments links to this post