The project is continuation of last year’s results of carbon Neutral, to focus on international development and analysis on carbon Neutral, to discuss about the feasibility of a country to conduct carbon Neutral, to promote practice cases of carbon Neutral and related propaganda, and to update the related guidelines and tools of low-carbon workings. The preliminary results of the project before November 30th, 2012 are listed as follow:
I. Research and analysis of trends and cases in UN, Britain, Australia, New Zealand, USA, Norway etc.
i. In the light of promoting strategies and methods of carbon Neutral in different levels, this project concluded some foreign ways which can be referred, such as:
1. Carbon neutral in state level
The development status of international carbon neutral policies, which is that many countries had been proposed a goal it should achieve, and the other goal of decreasing of carbon neutral often combined with cutting down the greenhouse gas currently. The information which was collected in the project showed that Britain and Australia had speedy and integral carbon neutral development. There was central government pushing forward first in Britain, and the Britain Standard Association handed over the first PAS2060 in the world. Besides, Australia took products as promotion objects. Both cases are useful references.
2. Carbon neutral in city level
Looking to the cases and strategies of promoting carbon neutral currently, we can find the points are enhancing the awareness of people about climate changing, integrating green concepts into public engineering, and reducing the carbon emission from government to civil society. Only people identify themselves to environmental issues, there is promotion space for government to conduct their policies.
3. Carbon neutral in nongovernmental level
Analyzed the promotion status of nongovernmental groups out of Taiwan, mainly through investigated the user’s emission amount, controlled every type of carbon consumption and applied reduction measures, especially made enterprises’ carbon using as low as possible, and the part that couldn’t be abated could go to international carbon trading market to trade the identified right.
4. The points can be used in Taiwan
The project analyzed the cases and found the advantages and disadvantages that Taiwan can take as examples. On state side, Taiwan can introduce new skills from foreign countries, such as desalination can resolve water shortage problem, building charging stations can resolve the needs of electric cars. On city side, Taiwan can learn ways from other countries on carbon reduction, for examples, change street lights into saving light bulbs, replace official cars and public transportation with saving energy cars, increasing bicycle measures, etc. On nongovernmental side, the project introduced many products, organizations, campaigns and service. On enterprise side, Microsoft built new factories and buildings and integrated green concepts and works, improved products supporting lines, through vertical integration could achieve the goal, call sustainable development. On school side, can learn from Tongji University, it organized a team “school saving energy inspectors”, gave courses about environmental protection, exhibitions or any cam help to reduce carbon consumption study project. On product side, enhance the usage of recycle material, use renewable energy and recycle water, improve the process to examine the carbon using. On service side, can use more recycle energy, lessen unnecessary personnel transport, and increase energy efficiency, etc.
ii. At present, most emission trading systems in Taiwan don’t have direct connection with Kyoto system, but the Australian Emission Trading Scheme which produces ACCUs can connect with Kyoto system directly after international consultations and will be seriously affected by international market price.
iii. In Taiwan, there are 80% energy industry and electric power industry are state-owned enterprises, and make Taiwan has difficulties on implement when pushed credit trading. If we can use bilateral mechanisms or cooperate with other countries for system connecting to expand carbon trading market, so that will have more developmental space. Britain have had being agree to be a platform for Taiwan to conduct carbon trading with other countries. In this way, it can help Taiwanese enterprises to gain carbon right from international society, which is an important milestone.
II. Build the promotive mechanism of carbon Neutral in Taiwan
i. The project collected carbon neutral cases from other countries that we aimed at it, and classified the specific status and the goal of reduction as references for Taiwan to take action on carbon neutral.
ii. Britain distinguished the ways of carbon neutral by agencies, and made different goals every year.
iii. Environmental Protection Administration wanted to promote a carbon neutral rating mechanism, so that could encourage government to take care about carbon reduction, and accelerated the implementation of carbon reduction policies in every agency to complete the goal of carbon neutral. The project had been finished the preliminary draft of “Project of Carbon Neutral in Public Sector”, and had been held 2 expert advisory meetings. Besides, aimed at 4 low-carbon cities to discuss the ideas and directions of carbon neutral in the future.
iv. Compare related regulations of public engineering in Taiwan with related cases in foreign countries, due to different climates and customs, the project suggested to use high efficiency machines, choose biofuel, and lessen idle of machines, also could lay solar panels on the roof to offer indoor electricity to lower dependence on non-renewable energy. In the meantime, we could stimulate the natural lighting and ventilation of buildings in foreign countries, so that could not to use too much lighting equipments in the day, and choose natural, local or renewable elements as building materials as possible as it can.
III. Plan and conduct related policies to carbon Neutral and supporting measures in Taiwan
i. The project took “Sustainable Energy Policy Guideline”, “Grand Project of National Energy Conservation & Carbon Reduction”, “National Climate Change Adaptation Policy Guideline” as references to drafted “Project of Carbon Neutral in Public Sector”. Hope it can achieve the points that Sustainable Energy Policy Guideline mentioned every public sector should push carbon neutral in every program.
ii. The project had been held a meeting of Green Electricity Price Mechanism and Carbon Right with EPA, Bureau of Energy and Taiwan Research Institute to discuss supplying and demanding of green power. The conclusions are as follow: on supplying side, Bureau of Energy announced 2 electricity emission factors, they are (1) only non-green power as factor and (2) non-green power and green power are both included. On demanding side, consumers could depend on their needs to choose traditional power or green power which has green power identification as actions of carbon reduction.
iii. The resources of carbon quota always was a persecution when promoted carbon neutral. Government should have perfect mechanisms and give enterprises incentives and encouragement. In Britain, for example, although carbon trading had scale and system, its quality regulative system was cancelled by government in June, 2011. The main reason was bad financial situation and lack of government promotion caused the enterprises which did the carbon neutral cannot get the praise, so they didn’t have motivations to do it.
IV. Coach various government agencies and civil groups within the country for carbon Neutral on products, service, organizations and campaigns.
i. EPA planned promoting “low-carbon school strategy” to enhance the image of environmental education and spread it at the same time, then made whole society following. Consequently, EPA established a draft named “Project of Carbon Neutral in school” and held 2 counsel meetings for experts to expect to gradually achieve carbon neutral from low-carbon school.
ii. The purpose of this project is to popularize carbon regulation in schools, though related measures and policies could make carbon neutral in schools, the ultimate goal. In this way, we put forward different terms to reach the goals:
iii. 1. Short-term goal: to set up a carbon neutral promotive panel to investigate the whole emission in schools, 1year have arranged.
iv. 2. Middle-term goal: to conduct green gas reduction, improve the facilities efficiency is the main way. On the other hand, to cooperate with related management systems, 3 years have arranged.
v. 3. Long-term goal: to expect can get effects from the aforementioned terms to make no additional carbon emission in schools, and makes local schools become education centers for carbon neutral, and spreads the concepts and achievements to local society, 5 years have arranged.
vi. In 2012, we gave guidance and assistance for 4 new cases of promoting carbon neutral. According to case selecting principles and approval consequents by EPA, the main types of guidance and assistance this year are organizations, service and products. Further, cooperates with these counseling objects to combine their willing with policies and reach conclusions: “organization” stands for Jiantan unit, Zhongshan District and Feitsui Reservoir. “Service” represent by Fullon Hotel in Fisherman Wharf, Tanshui. “Product” can be delegated by electronic passive components of TXC cooperation.
vii. For constructing a vision of low-carbon sustainable home, making enterprises, people and local government agency understand that the strategies and actions of carbon reduction now in Taiwan. This project held “Surpassing 2012, Low-carbon will have New Opportunity” illustration meetings in December 25th and 26th, 2012. From the points of climate changing and global warming to take actions to response to it.
V. Develop and update related supporting tools of carbon Neutral
i. The project calculated from Low Carbon Activities Platform since August 16th, 2010 to November 12th, 2012, the platform has 1355 memberships and 4546 registered campaigns. In order to move further in this project to spread the concepts of carbon neutral, we not only offered calculation tools for the process during carbon neutral, but also built areas for linking with Low Carbon Activities Platform, hoped it can upgrade these actions to a simple version identification campaign of carbon neutral.
ii. For revising carbon footprint calculation in Taiwan, the project controlled the differences between PAS2050:2008 and PAS2050:2011 to be determined by removing the product category rule in PAS2050:2011 instead of supplementary requirement. Besides, removed “enterprises to enterprises” and “enterprises to consumers” instead of “cradle to entrance” or “cradle to grave”. It means can expand PAS2050to every kind of products and departments, also encourage the accuracy and relativity in specific products and departments.
iii. The version of ISO 14067 DIS 2 had been forecasted huge changes, including the concepts of Site Specific Activity Data should be included in data quality. Site Specific Activity Data and Primary Activity Data are the same thing. Both are using directly calculation record. The difference is the former one only aim at specific production process of products, there is no need to get through allocation and can use Primary Activity Data directly.
iv. The carbon footprint calculation guidance in Taiwan, the revising contents mostly applied to words and meanings only. However, the calculation guidance didn’t include the final management level. We suggested that stimulated the sphere and requests of PAS2050:2011 and ISO/DIS 14067.2, brought into product category rules to unify the calculation way of carbon footprints.
v. For wider propaganda, not only carbon neutral platform and Low Carbon Activities Platform, but also APP software which just developed this year, including: (1) mobile carbon footprint calculator, (2) through the linkage of Low Carbon Activities Platform and “mobile carbon neutral area” can let people and the organizers to use software to have a stimulate calculation before campaign, (3) educative advocacy of personal carbon credit.
