Linking the European Union Emissions Trading System

Political Drivers and Barriers

Charlotte Unger

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2021
• ISBN:
  9781000372472
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Ciencias biológicas
• Subtopic: Calentamiento global y cambio climático

This book focuses on the linking of the European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) with other independent regional ETS.

While rich practical and academic research has evolved on the economic and technical side of ETS linking, political drivers and barriers have so far been underrepresented in this debate. Filling this lacuna and based on international relations theory, existing research and qualitative fieldwork, this book introduces the range of political conditions that influence linking, such as political leadership and stakeholder activity. Specifically, it analyzes which of these aspects have played a role in three different linking activities of the EU: (1) a failed linking attempt: EU ETS–California Cap-and-Trade Program; (2) a successful linking treaty: EU ETS–Switzerland Emissions Trading System; and (3) an agreed-upon but not realized link: EU ETS–Australia Carbon Pricing Mechanism. Through an interrogation of these examples, Dr. Unger concludes that it is not only the technical challenges or the overall economic benefit but rather domestic interests, structural aspects, and external international political developments that have jointly dominated linking activities, especially those in which the EU takes part.

This book will be of great interest to scholars and policy-makers working in climate policy and EU environmental politics.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Series Information
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• List of illustrations
• Acknowledgments
• List of acronyms
• 1 Introduction
• 2 The fundamentals of linking
• 3 EU climate policy and the design and development of the EU Emissions Trading System: Setting the scene
• 4 The EU Emissions Trading System and the California Cap-and-Trade Program: A failed linking attempt
• 5 A successful linking process between the EU Emissions Trading System and the Switzerland Emissions Trading System
• 6 The EU Emissions Trading System and the Australia Carbon Pricing Mechanism: An agreed-upon, but unrealized link
• 7 Linking is dominated by domestic political interests, domestic structures, and international developments
• 8 Linking in the climate policy debate and future prospects
• Appendix
• Index