California in the United States has added Australia to its growing network of carbon market friends, even as US national climate policies stagnate during the current election period. Australian climate change secretary Mark Dreyfus announced yesterday a new cooperative relationship with California, which will begin selling its first carbon allowances in November in time for the opening of its cap-and-trade system that starts 1 January.
A California representative said that the relationship would primarily be for sharing experience and knowledge as both regions develop their new carbon programmes. Australia, which plans to link to the European Union Emissions Trading System in 2015 when it begins its own cap-and-trade system, has been charging its largest polluters for their carbon emissions since 1 July. It has also discussed linking carbon markets with New Zealand, which began its cap-and-trade system in 2010.
Elsewhere in the Asia Pacific region, South Korea has announced a cap-and-trade programme to much opposition from its large polluters, and China is in the process of establishing regional pilot emissions trading systems in seven cities.
The US’s largest state, which has historically led the country in anti-pollution policies, also has a cooperation agreement with the Mexican state of Chiapas and may link its carbon market to that of the Canadian province of Quebec.
Click here to read the story.
