cabon footprint

8/4/2019 Cabon Footprint

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Carbon Footprints

Amount of Green House Gasses /CO2 emissions by an

individual,an industry, a country or a particular producte.g. fossil fuels.

Assessed by the respective government EnvironmentalAgencies in terms of metric tonnes per year.

Once the footprint size is assessed respective strategiesto reduce the emissions are undertaken , namely:


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Process and product management.

Green public or private procurement.

Carbon capture methods

( Capturing CO2 from large point sources,

storing it to prevent resurfacing in

atmosphere ).

As carbon footprint of fossil fuels is much larger, use of alternativeenergy sources like solar, wind, nuclear energy is promoted.


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Carbon Credits

A carbon credit is a generic term for any tradable certificate orpermit representing the right to emit one tonne of carbon dioxide orthe mass of another greenhouse gas with a carbon dioxideequivalent to one tonne of carbon dioxide.

This concept was introduced and maintained internationally by theUnited Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

Carbon credits create a market for reducing greenhouse emissionsby giving a monetary value to the cost of polluting the air.

This approach can be used to finance carbon reduction schemes

between trading partners and around the world.


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Emissions trading

Emissions trading is a market-based approach used to controlpollution by providing economic incentives for achieving reductionsin the emissions of pollutants.

Firms are required to hold a number of permits (or carbon credits)

equivalent to their emissions. The total number of permits cannotexceed the set standards, limiting total emissions to that level. Firmsthat need to increase their emission permits must buy permits fromthose who require fewer permits.

Carbon trading systems :

Kyoto Protocol:

1997 international treaty which came into force in 2005.


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Emission quotas (known as "Assigned amounts") were agreed byeach participating 'Annex 1' country, with the intention of reducingthe overall emissions by 5.2% from their 1990 levels by the end of

2012 .

37 countries ratified it, except USA and have been categorizedunder 3 annexures-I,II and III depending on carbon emissions.

Annex. 1 countries have to reduce carbon emissions usingafforestation, reforestation , increase their carbon credits bylaunching carbon projects to meet their emission reductioncommitments or can buy credits from other member nations usingthe International Emissions Trading.

Annex. 3 countries (which need not reduce emissions) and otherswhich show compliance with the treaty for 5 years can sell their Ccredits.


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Criticisms on carbon trading

Although backed by several emission trading schemes throughoutthe globe e.g.EUETS (European union Emissions Trading Scheme),

Australian Carbon Trading Scheme, Intergovernmental Panel onClimate Change, New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme (section3, climate changes responses act 2002), Tokyo MetropolitanGovernment, many environmental justice nongovernmentalorganizations, economists and labor organizations believe that this

system has more demerits than merits.

Offsetting methods adopted by Japan, China and UK had lowefficiency so, the desired and projected level of emission reductionby the government actually not achieved.

Annex. I countries under the prevalent habit of repeatedly buyingcarbon credits from non polluting member nations to maintain theiremission standards and steady pace of industrial growth, negatingthe basic motive of the kyoto protocol i.e. reduction of GHG

emissions in turn of monetary incentives .


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In todays global scenario the amount of carbon credits retained by a

country are not merely a representative of the permitted level of

carbon emissions through industrial and domestic use but alsoindicate the prospective industrial growth of an economy. Tradepacts between developed and developing countries under the nameof carbon trading may involve monetary benefits for the latter, butplaces undue pressure on them to slacken their growth by reductionof C credits may lead to loss in domestic market in terms ofreduction of jobs and incomes in the long run .


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cabon footprint

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