World Center for Certification & Quality attended the third ADBI-OCED Symposium Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI) and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). The theme for this year is "responsible and sustainable investment", which not only focuses on trends and outlook for investment in Asia, but also the role of international investment for green growth, and the carbon market today and tomorrow.
Robin Wang, CDM Product Manager for Climate Change of World Center for Certification & Quality delivered a speech on the symposium, shared his understandings and suggestions on the MRV (Measurable, reportable and verifiable) in CDM market in China for the future. As a third-party certification agency authorized by the UN under the framework of Kyoto Protocol, our Chinese team wishes to leverage our CDM project review experience accumulated in the past years to participate in the Chinese market of carbon emission trading and voluntary emission reduction (VER) trading. Currently, however, the Chinese market is in the stage of research, development and exploration in carbon pilot regions. Since China lacks experience in operating carbon market, this market is currently faced with many challenges in legislation and mechanism as financial operation and MRV technology. Based on predefined schedule, i.e., to start carbon trading market operation in carbon pilot regions in early 2013, there is some difficulty in accomplishing this program. As a core element in the carbon market, we think MRV should comply with internationally recognized standards and practices to ensure eventual result is accurate, transparent, impartial and credible such that eventual data can be accepted in international climate negotiation and interface with international carbon market. Based on domestic progress, we find the following points should be taken into our consideration:
First, as for the construction of the domestic carbon market, including policy formulation and participant entry, the Chinese government has not started and may remain unready for some time in the future to cooperate with foreign research and consultative institutions, including international third-party verification agencies, to probe into this sector.
Secondly, China has not formulated MRV standards for the domestic carbon market. Currently, this market is in the stage of learning international greenhouse gas measuring, reporting and verification standards. China may formulate domestic standards in the near future.
As a result of the above two factors, the data in China's carbon emission trading market tends to lack transparency and credibility. Subsequently, domestic participants may lose enthusiasm.
Besides, carbon pilot scheme for 2 cities and 5 provinces splits the carbon market into separate segments without taking the integrity of carbon emission reduction into account. As a result, different regions tend to have different standards and data sources. To meet carbon emission target, high energy consuming and high pollution enterprises in developed regions may transfer emission sources to non-carbon pilot regions or resort to other approaches to transfer them to other enterprises. As a result, this may become a number game in controlling total greenhouse gas emission.
From technical perspective of MRV, if the above bottlenecks are not effectively eliminated, it is difficult to effectively operate the domestic carbon trading market. Carbon trade is not the ends but the means. Only effective MRV can help promote economic growth and ensure total carbon emission control, making it a core element to reflect the responsibility and reputation of a big country.
Since 2010, the Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI) and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) have co-organized annual policy round tables on international investment policies in Asia. The first edition in Tokyo focused on prospects of Asia's policy framework for investment, followed by the 2011 event examining how the G20 Seoul Development Consensus for Shared Growth can promote private sector involvement and innovation. |
