The EU Parliament has voted in favour of extending its carbon market to shipping and road transport.
The Parliament has voted in favour of including all ships above 400 gross tonnage and offshore vessels in the EU’s carbon market. Polluters will have to pay for all greenhouse gases they pollute when sailing within the EU and 50% of voyages outside of the bloc until 2027.
After 2027, the scope of the carbon market will be automatically extended to 100% of ships entering and leaving European ports. Lawmakers did however bow to pressure by including exemptions for ice-going ships and ships traveling to outermost regions, delaying the decarbonisation of these vessels.
Transport & Environment (T&E) welcomed this expansion and calls on national governments to adopt an equally ambitious position in the European Council later this month.
This marks a historic day for European climate policy. Expanding the EU’s flagship cap and trade scheme ensures that more of Europe’s polluters are made to pay
Sofie Defour, climate manager at T&E, said.
She also added that “if this provision from the Parliament becomes law, it will finally make oil majors pay back to society and allow the EU to start shaving off part of their huge profit margins.”
T&E also published its views in response to the questions posed in the Developing the UK Emissions Trading Scheme (UK ETS) consultation. As it said, UK’s announcements and subsequent consultation on how to make the UK ETS net zero compliant are welcome.
“However, since then no actual regulations have been introduced to achieve this, and so the proposals outlined in the consultation are good first steps. Unfortunately though, they don’t go far enough,” it mentioned.
