Veränderung des CO2-Zertifikatehandels

Da es sich um eine Petition an das Europäische Parlament handelt, ist der Originaltext in Englisch verfasst. Diesen könnt ihr im Folgenden hier lesen. Eine Übersetzung des Briefes ins Deutsche findet ihr unter thecompensators.org/wp-content/uploads/petition_de.pdf . Weitere Ausführungen und Erklärungen in deutscher Sprache gibt es auch in der Petitionsbegründung weiter unten.

Dear Mr./ Mrs.,

The European Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) is in principle a great tool to reduce CO2 emissions. However, one problem remains: emissions allowances are currently far too cheap. The current price for emitting CO2 is by no means encouraging companies to invest in emission saving technologies.

That is why we decided to delete one CO2 certificate for you and every one of your 750 colleagues in the European Parliament. Feel free to see this gift as your personal contribution to curb climate change. If you want the EU ETS to have a noticeably mitigating effect on climate change, the current system needs to be drastically improved. You and your colleagues in the European parliament are the ones who can arrange for these improvements.

After the publication of the fifth IPCC report there is no doubt that man-made climate change is a global dilemma with the potential to lead to enormous economic, ecological and humanitarian damage. Investments in the mitigation of climate change and the preservation of ecosystems are therefore very likely to be profitable investments in the long term. They can amortize in the future by preventing economically harmful climate change. It is the obligation of each and every human being - and especially your obligation as a Member of the European Parliament - to preserve the climate we pass on to future generations.

In principle the EU ETS is an economically reasonable instrument with high potential. However, because of flaws in its implementation it has had hardly any impact on emission reductions yet. At the beginning of the first trading period, one emissions allowance, which authorizes the holder to emit one tonne of CO2, cost about 30 euros. Today the price is at less than seven euros. Environmental economists state that most investments in CO2 saving technologies would only be profitable with a price higher than about 30 euros. (1)

The success or failure of the EU ETS will strongly influence the amount of CO2 reductions in Europe and therefore the ability to achieve the objectives set in the Kyoto Protocol and its second commitment period. Also, a well running system in Europe could be a blue-print for the implementation of similar trading systems in other regions and may in the long run even lead to a worldwide emissions trading scheme.

As you can see, there are good reasons why we ask you to seriously think about a drastic reform of the EU ETS and to intensively promote your ideas in the European Parliament.

A reform may include the permanent removal of emission allowances from the system – not just backloading, but deleting them. Furthermore, the certificates should no longer be given to companies free of charge, but should rather be auctioned off at a minimum price. Another idea might be a devaluation of certificates, where one certificate would only authorize to emit for example 0.8 tonnes of CO2 instead of one. Finally it is important that the EU ETS is extended to all areas of industry as well as the aviation and transport sector.

There are plenty of ways to make the ETS a better working system. Now it is your turn to make it happen.

We sincerely hope that you take our symbolic step to increase the price of CO2 certificates as a motivation and an encouragement to take further, more effective, steps.

We are looking forward to your answer,

Yours sincerely,