YorkSpace has migrated to a new version of its software. Access our Help Resources to learn how to use the refreshed site. Contact diginit@yorku.ca if you have any questions about the migration.
 

Developments in climate change policy: Is trade regulation the next step?

Loading...
Thumbnail Image

Date

2018-04-30

Authors

Evola, Jennifer

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

Abstract

The focus of this paper is to understand the multiplicity of policy tools used to promote climate change mitigation. Specifically, this paper is interested in the trade aspect of climate change policy, now becoming a more prevalent topic of discussion with the heightened adoption of carbon prices. This interest extends to both the already established practices to mitigate emissions and investment leakage, such as free allocation and systems linking, as well as border carbon adjustments, which remain only theoretical at this time. To ensure a thorough discussion of climate change policy, this paper takes several steps to establish the policy web where theoretical discussions on trade mechanisms are situated. As such the goal of this paper is to demonstrate evolution in policy complexity responding to the climate change crisis. This evolution will describe the current policy landscape with ties to subnational, national and international legal systems. Concluding remarks will emphasize the importance of continued, prudent, environmental policy development. Section1 will outline the rise of direct regulations in combating air pollution issues and the limitations of these mechanisms. These limitations will be shown to be caused by increased globalization, which is a weakness of direct regulation, as it is confined by borders. These weaknesses give rise to multilateral agreements outlined in Section 2. These policy tools are also limited by their non-binding nature and by the lack of meaningful-penalties for failures of sovereign states to achieve their environmental commitments. Thus, this paper turns to a more recent development, the use of market mechanisms in combating climate change in Section 3. Within this section, time will be spent detailing the various forms of carbon prices, their pros and cons and their implementation throughout Canada and its major trading partners. Due to the comparative differences of price attached to greenhouse gas emissions and comprehensiveness of system, calls for trade mechanisms to be utilized as a balancing tool have surfaced. Embodied in section 4, the effectiveness of these measures is, for the most part, only theoretical. There is thought; however, that these measures will be the next frontier in carbon policy development. While already used to some extent by way of free allocation of allowances and by linking carbon pricing systems, there are calls for greater development of trade mechanisms within climate change policy. Significant attention towards border carbon adjustments will be paid, which have yet to be implemented but show potential for reducing emissions and investment leakage caused by market mechanisms. By developing such an overview this paper assesses the demonstrated implementation urgency of trade measures as a means of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. This paper also seeks to show the international and domestic Canadian legal complexities associated with utilizing border carbon adjustments.

Description

Keywords

Climate change, Cap-and-trade, Carbon tax, Trade international governance

Citation

Major Paper, Master of Environmental Studies, Faculty of Environmental Studies, York University

Collections