China needs to fix carbon market’s data credibility problem to reach climate goals, analysts say
- China needs to improve the quality of emissions data submitted by companies to preserve the integrity and effectiveness of its carbon trading market
- China’s emissions trading system, which debuted last July, covers 2,225 power generators that contributed 40 per cent of the country’s greenhouse emissions
Such measures are essential to preserve the integrity and effectiveness of the ETS, the main market-based tool for realising the nation’s goals to peak carbon emissions before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060, they added.
Success in China, the world’s largest emitter accounting for around 30 per cent of global carbon dioxide emissions, is key to achieving the 2016 Paris Agreement’s ambition to keep global warming at well below 2 degrees Celsius by 2100. Historical temperature rise had already reached 1.1 degrees last year.
“Bridging the gap between China’s net-zero [emissions] pledge and implementation is absolutely critical for the country and the world to meet [commitments] to the Paris Agreement,” said Jacqueline Tao, an analyst at non-profit climate risk data provider TransitionZero. “However, China is seeing significant challenges currently due to its data integrity problem.”
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China launches world’s largest carbon-trading scheme as part of 2060 carbon neutrality goal
The scheme, which debuted last July, only covers 2,225 power generators that contributed some 40 per cent of national carbon emissions. Seven other industries are expected be included in the next few years.