EU Should Consider Carbon Offset Limits for 2013, Groups Say - Bloomberg

The European Union should consider controlling the use of some Emission Reduction Units in the third phase of its carbon market, the world’s largest, said research groups including the Stockholm Environment Institute. ERUs stem from the Joint Implementation mechanism of the 1997 Kyoto Protocol and some are governed by nations with weaker rules than those overseen by the United Nations, the groups said in a report published Dec. 16 on the EU’s website. Phase three of the EU market begins in 2013. In a separate report, the four research groups said the EU lawmakers may consider banning or discounting emission credits generated by large hydropower projects in the Clean Development Mechanism because the projects may have proceeded even if they didn’t receive approval to earn the credits. The four groups are the Stockholm institute, AEA Technology Plc, the Centre for European Policy Studies and CO2logic. The EU said Dec. 15 it doesn’t plan to propose “anytime soon” any ban on UN Certified Emission Reduction credits from large coal and hydropower projects or on some offsets from the UN’s Joint Implementation program.