A comparison of the European
Union (EU) and China’s emission trading schemes (ETS) is made and we analyze a field survey
concerning the pilot ETS in China. The comparison shows that EU’s carbon market
is relative mature, given that EU has adopted more flexible and market based
measures for its ETS. In China there are more governmental interventions to
make the ETS work, but there is lack of a legal foundation and market measures
for China’s ETS. The survey yielded information on the attitudes of the
participants towards ETS and the linkages between carbon price and the actions
by ETS participants to diminish carbon emissions. The survey results show that
most participants are willing to participate in ETS and that the ETS does have
positive impact on the reduction of CO2 emission. However China is
not yet well prepared to move from seven small pilot ETS to a nationwide ETS,
since relevant laws and regulations are not well formulated. This also explains
why there are much governmental interventions for the 7 pilot ETS in China. The
survey result shows that the existing carbon price in China is too low to
mobilise industrial investment in abatement technology.
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