Japan Adopts Carbon Action Plan, Will Start Emissions Trading in October

摘要

The Cabinet of Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda July 29 said it plans to start an experimental domestic emissions trading program as early as October, followed in 2009 by the launch of a carbon capture and storage pilot program and the establishment of a specific, countrywide target for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The programs announced largely follow the Low Carbon Society Action Plan Fukuda laid out in early June, just prior to the July 7-9 Group of Eight leaders' summit in Toyako. At the time, Fukuda pledged that the Japanese government would start experimenting with a domestic cap-and-trade market by this fall (31 INER 549, 6/11/08). Fukuda's Cabinet said it plans to start experimenting with domestic emissions trading in October to determine the best method for setting targets, types of emissions quotas and credits that should be used in a trading program, as well as emissions monitoring and verification methods.