MacDonald, Karen; Makuch, Zen --- "Emissions Trading and the Aarhus Convention: A Proportionate Symbiosis?" [2006] ELECD 431; in Peeters, Marjan; Deketelaere, Kurt (eds), "EU Climate Change Policy" (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2006)

Book Title: EU Climate Change Policy

Editor(s): Peeters, Marjan; Deketelaere, Kurt

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

ISBN (hard cover): 9781845426057

Section: Chapter 7

Section Title: Emissions Trading and the Aarhus Convention: A Proportionate Symbiosis?

Author(s): MacDonald, Karen; Makuch, Zen

Number of pages: 28

Extract:

7. Emissions trading and the aarhus
Convention: a proportionate
symbiosis?
Karen MacDonald and Zen Makuch1

1. iNtroDUCtioN
1.1 Aim of this Chapter

the aim of this chapter is to examine the extent to which some central elements
of the European Union Emissions trading scheme (EU Ets) comply with the
objectives of the aarhus Convention. the aarhus Convention represents a re-
gional revolution in environmental democracy and this chapter determines
whether or not the EU Emissions trading Directive (hereinafter, the Et Direc-
tive), is equal to the legal demands of this groundbreaking Convention.
the EU Ets is arguably an innovative attempt to balance the goals of the
sustainable development nexus ­ frequently understood to comprise environ-
mental, economic and social concerns. However, the fact that the Ets concerns
the emissions of pollutants and provides an incentive for the relocation of in-
dustries or changes in industrial practice which may positively or adversely
affect the environment of a particular locale raises issues of accountability.
these issues of accountability should be dealt with under the Ets itself, but if
they are not, the provisions of the aarhus Convention may provide a `fallback'
position.
Calls for accountability in climate change-related matters emanate from art.
4(1)(i) of the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
(UNFCCC) `Commitments' section. this provides that all Parties shall: `Pro-
mote and cooperate in education, training and public awareness related to
climate change and encourage the widest participation in this process, including
that of non-governmental ...