Faure, Michael; Peeters, Marjan --- "Concluding Remarks" [2008] ELECD 426; in Faure, Michael; Peeters, Marjan (eds), "Climate Change and European Emissions Trading" (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2008)

Book Title: Climate Change and European Emissions Trading

Editor(s): Faure, Michael; Peeters, Marjan

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

ISBN (hard cover): 9781847208989

Section: Chapter 14

Section Title: Concluding Remarks

Author(s): Faure, Michael; Peeters, Marjan

Number of pages: 22

Extract:

14. Concluding remarks
Michael Faure and Marjan Peeters

1. THE EU ETS AT THE CORE
Emissions trading is probably the topic best suited for a combination of a legal
and economic analysis. At this time, we have a fascinating opportunity to
review practical applications of the emissions trading instrument. Indeed, after
many environmental economists have already for a long time been advocating
emissions trading as an efficient system for achieving an internalization of
externalities caused by environmental pollution, some interesting large-scale
experiments have finally taken place. These occurred first in the US, notably
to deal with a range of air pollution problems, and later in Europe through the
establishment of an EU-wide greenhouse gas emissions trading scheme. Most
of the contributions to this book are devoted to Directive 2003/87/EC of 13
October 2003 establishing a scheme for greenhouse gas emission allowance
trading, commonly referred to as the EU ETS. However, most of the contri-
butions provide a look to the future by discussing the proposal of the European
Commission delivered on 23 January 2008 for a major revision of this scheme
(COM(2008)16).
Emissions trading seems particularly fit for the climate change problem,
especially for the greenhouse gases that lack local effects as is the case with
carbon dioxide. After some initial experiments or initiatives at the national
level, notably in the UK (see the contribution of MacDonald and Makuch in
chapter 10), Denmark and The Netherlands, Europe decided to implement its
Kyoto obligations via ...