Development Aspects of Climate Change Policies of OECD Countries
Development Aspects of Climate Change Policies of OECD Countries
May 5, 2009
Co-Sponsored by: International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD) and the Environment and Trade in a World of Interdependence (ENTWINED) Program
Hosted by: Resources for the Future
OECD countries are in the process of legislating responses to the challenges posed by climate change. The prospect of rising carbon prices raises concerns in these nations of the impacts on the competitiveness of their own energy intensive industries and the potential for carbon leakage, particularly to emerging economies that lack comparable regulation. As a response, OECD countries are considering incorporating trade-related measures into their climate policies. Some of these have been perceived as potentially harming industries in developing countries while arguably achieving limited results in mitigating total global carbon emissions. Others have been more acute in stating that these trade policy measures are more inclined to protect the competitiveness of domestic industries in OECD countries and, as such, partake the nature of disguised restrictions to trade.
With the assumption into office of the Obama Administration and its renewed prioritization of climate change issues, the United States Congress has ratcheted up deliberations on various bills, such as the Boxer-Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act (S. 3036) and the Waxman-Markey American Clean Energy and Security Act (draft text). Regulations at the sub-federal or state level are likewise increasingly relevant vis-à-vis federal policies. In the European Union, member economies are preparing the next phase of the 'Emissions Trading System' and considering options in the absence of a major international agreement to cap greenhouse gas emissions. Japan, Australia and Canada are also deep into consideration of analogous measures.
Despite the obvious ramifications on their countries' trade competitiveness and sustainable development aspirations, many developing country trade policy-makers and negotiators remain at the fringe of the climate change debate. An enhanced level of understanding of the different approaches evolving among the key OECD countries is crucial if the various stakeholders are to have an enlightened dialogue on the development implications of OECD countries' domestic policies to address climate change.
In an effort to bridge the different spheres of knowledge and provide opportunity for an exchange of perspectives, particularly among those who are not often included in similar consultative processes, the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD) and the Environment and Trade in a World of Interdependence (ENTWINED) Program have organized a dialogue among select representatives from developing country trade and/or economic ministries, think-tanks and universities, Geneva-based developing country ambassadors and OECD member country government representatives. The activity was hosted by Resources for the Future (RFF) in Washington DC on May 5, 2009.
Thru this initiative, ICTSD and ENTWINED hope to:
(i) explore the development aspects of selected OECD countries’ domestic trade policies intended to address climate change, and
(ii) provide a platform for interaction and exchange amongst trade negotiators/policy-makers, private sector representatives, academia and civil society from both OECD as well as developing countries.
Agenda
Morning Agenda
09:00 – 09:15 Opening remarks
Welcome by Phil SHARP, President, RFF
Introduction and Objectives Setting by ICTSD and ENTWINED 09:15– 9:30
Setting the context:
Steve CHARNOVITZ, George Washington University
9:30 - 12:30
Selected developed country trade policies to address climate change
Off-the-record presentations by representatives from selected OECD countries of their respective policies on these issues, with comments from developing country representatives
Moderator: Ricardo MELENDEZ-ORTIZ, ICTSD
A. Tariffs, Import charges, Export rebate of emission allowance, Trade
sanctions
- Jason E. BORDOFF, Associate Director for Climate Change, WHITE HOUSE
COUNCIL ON ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY - Ms Ditte JUUL-JOERGENSEN, Head of Unit, Directorate General for Trade, EUROPEAN COMMISSION
- Thomas GILLMORE, Senior Policy Advisor, Trade and Environment,
FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND INTERNATIONAL TRADE CANADA - Cathy RAPER, Assistant Secretary, Trade Commitments Branch, Office of
Trade Negotiations, DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE OF
AUSTRALIA
Discussants:
- Dr. Debapriya BHATTACHARYA, Former Bangaldesh Amb to WTO
- H.E. Amb. Mario MATUS, Chile
- H.E. Amb. Hisham M. BADR, Egypt
- Georges LANDAU, Prismax Consulting, Sao Paulo and Editor, Brazil Focus
B. Internal carbon pricing, Allowance allocation, Subsidies to affected
industries, Transport emission charges
- Dallas BURTRAW, Senior Fellow, RFF
- Ned HELME, President, CENTER FOR CLEAN AIR POLICY
- Ms Ditte JUUL-JOERGENSEN, EUROPEAN COMMISSION
- Thomas GILLMORE, CANADA
- Cathy RAPER, AUSTRALIA
Discussants:
- H.E. Amb. Guillermo VALLES GALMES, Uruguay
- H.E. Amb. Carlos MBAYE, Senegal
- H.E. Amb. Fernando de MATEO, Mexico
- Paulo SOTERO, Director, Brazil Institute, Woodrow Wilson Center
12:30 - 13:45 Lunch Break
Afternoon Agenda
13:45 – 14:45
Trade and development impacts of policies to combat emissions
leakage
Interactive Panel
Comparing policies to combat carbon emissions leakage
Carolyn FISCHER, RFF and ENTWINED
The Effects of border adjustment policies on developing countries Knut-Einar ROSENDAHL, Statistics Norway and RFF
OECD domestic policies and their impact on UNFCCC negotiations
Jennifer HAVERKAMP, Environmental Defense Fund
Trade ministers debates in the context of UNFCCC
Sjamsu RAHARDJA, World Bank Group / Ministry of Trade of Indonesia
Development and the climate change challenge: What can WTO contribute?
Peter GOVINDASAMY, Ministry of Trade and Industry of Singapore
14:45 – 15:45
Bio-fuels sector policies: trade and development implications
Interactive Panel
U.S. bio-fuels strategies at the federal and state Levels
Doug NEWMAN, U.S. International Trade Commission
On EU biofuels policy and trade: Tariffs, standards or import subsidies?
Mads GREAKER, Statistics Norway and ENTWINED
Bio-fuels, land use, and poverty Farzad TAHERIPOUR, Purdue University
The developing country experience with bio-fuels
Jose MOREIRA, CENBIO Brazil
Bioenergy, trade, and development in Africa
Moustapha Kamal GUEYE, Senior Associate, ICTSD
15:45 – 16:00 Coffee Break 16:00 – 17:30
Climate-related standards and labels:
A. Carbon standards and labels
Interactive Panel
The logic of climate change governance: Boundaries and leakage
Mark COHEN, RFF
The GHG Protocol Product and Supply ChainInitiative Cynthia CUMMIS, World Resources Institute
China’s approach
LIU Yingling, China Program Manager, Worldwatch Institute
B. Energy-efficiency standards and labels
Interactive Panel
Standards on energy efficiency and sustainability, climate change relevance and trade policy aspects
Chris Nelson, Underwriters Laboratories
The ENERGY STAR Label: Advancing the market for energy efficient products
Ann Bailey, U.S. EPA ENERGY STAR Program
Energy efficiency standards, codes, and programs as a way to limit or reverse the effect of capping greenhouse gases on energy prices David Goldstein, Natural Resources Defense Council
About the Organizers
ENTWINED
The Environment and Trade in a World of Interdependence (ENTWINED) program examines the interplay between the global trade regime and environmental policies promulgated by governments and private entities as well, with a particular focus on the treatment of trans-boundary problems. Taking both a positive and a normative point of view, the program aims first to identify when these regimes act in concert or at cross purposes and second to suggest alternatives to allow for simultaneous achievement of environmental and trade objectives.
The ENTWINED program is funded by the Swedish Foundation for Strategic Environmental Research, Mistra, which seeks to promote sustainable development by investing in collaboration between researchers and practitioners – with the aim of solving important environmental problems.
More information on ENTWINED and Mistra is available online at www.entwined.se
ICTSD
The International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD) was established in Geneva in September 1996 to contribute to a better understanding of development and environment concerns in the context of international trade. As an independent non-profit and non-governmental organisation, accredited by the United Nations, ICTSD engages a broad range of actors in ongoing dialogue about trade and sustainable development. With a wide network of governmental, non-governmental and inter-governmental partners, ICTSD plays a unique systemic role as a provider of original, non-partisan reporting and facilitation services at the intersection of international trade and sustainable development.
This Washington dialogue is conducted under ICTSD’s Global Platform on Climate Change, Trade Policies and Sustainable En