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A note on Carbon Pricing

 A number of delegates have proposed some sort of carbon price as a means to raise funding for different climate policies. This is definitely an interesting proposal but there are several things delegates should either clarify or consider before going down this pathway.

Carbon Pricing policies are generally administrated by country or sub-national jurisdiction. Carbon prices are administered at this level because these are the levels that have the ability and some infrastructure set up already to administer, collect, and enforce taxes. The UNFCCC does not currently have the infrastructure to administer carbon pricing policies. 

Furthermore, subsidies for clean energy in the past have been met with free trade concerns. The argument is that clean energy subsidies make a country's clean energy industry more competitive and could unfairly outperform the international market for the technology. Here is a link to the case China has leveled against EU environmental subsidies.

Delegates who want to pursue carbon pricing should include in their resolutions: (1) explicit recommendation for countries to implement the carbon pricing domestically or (2) clear plans on how to internationalize this process in a way that doesn't infringe on international trade regulation.



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