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What will be the cost of including transport and buildings in the EU ETS? – online event


On June 25, the Secretariat attended the online event “What will be the cost of including transport and building in the EU ETS?” organised by Eura​ctiv.

The EU Emission Trading System (ETS) is a cornerstone of the EU's policy to combat climate change and its key tool for reducing greenhouse gas emissions cost-effectively. This tool has proved to be effective in driving emissions reductions (-35% between 2005 and 2019). To achieve climate neutrality by 2050, the Commission is now proposing to revise and possibly expand the scope of the EU ETS, by including buildings and transport in this system. The Eura​ctiv event discussed the impact of such a decision, especially considering the concerns that have been raised recently by several stakeholders. Indeed, according to a recent study by Cambridge Econometrics, extending the ETS to include transport and buildings would have little additional impact on emissions, but would increase living costs for poorer households. A similar study conducted by the Polish Economic Institute confirmed that the social costs of including transports and buildings in the ETS system would largely exceed its possible advantages.

Speakers of the event included: MEP Pascal Canfin, Chair of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety of the European Parliament; Mr Adam Guibourgé-Czetwertynski, Undersecretary of State of Poland; Mr Andrei Marcu, Founder and Executive Director of the European Roundtable on Climate Change and Sustainable Transition (ERCST); Ms Sofie Defour, Climate Manager of Transport & Environment; and Mr Piotr Arak, Director of the Polish Economic Institute.

To watch the recording of the live event, please visit: https://bit.ly/3xT2q7S