International credits in EU CC policy

Author(s): Andrei Marcu, Michael Mehling, Natalie Kushko

The objective of this new initiative is to explore the technical criteria, barriers and potential solutions for the establishment of a regulatory framework that permits the use of high-quality international carbon credits within the EU climate change policy toolbox.

This paper, which will be developed through an iterative process with a limited number of stakeholders, is intended to serve as an intellectual backstop for a discussion that will continue past its May 12 launch.

Specifically, it examines the technical criteria that could be used to permit the use of high-quality international carbon credits within the EU climate policy framework. To this end, it develops a strict set of criteria to ensure that only credits from projects with robust climate, social, and environmental benefits are included. The initiative also especially seeks to ensure that the integration of international credits does not undermine the stability or environmental integrity of the ETS.

This paper is not intended as an in-depth study of the Why, Where of How international credits can play a role in the EU climate change policy framework, but rather as an attempt to capture the headlines and options that would underpin the logic and the arguments, and provide an initial idea on how such an approach could be tested.