GENERALLY, a carbon abatement scheme focuses only on global warming potential as a measurement. Such a scheme, part of a global push to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050 or slightly later, is to solve climate change only.
In the tabling of Budget 2022 last month, it was announced that Malaysia will allow establishment of a voluntary carbon market.
The question is: why trade a criterion or an achievement of a place, forest or part of a country? If two private companies want to do that, that is their own arrangement. The investments, allocations and taxpayers’ monies put into our governance and operative systems should be used to benefit our country, its people and the businesses that are willing to operate here.
Let’s assume an operative system that is regulated by government and it is connected to domestic, commercial and industries. This operative system invests in more environmentally friendly initiatives via a tender system that is approved by government. The cost to the operative system is aggregated and a rate is approved by government. Thus, it is imperative that the environmental benefit is shared among all its users.
Now, why would the government impose a “levy” and allow some richer businesses to take away this environmental benefit from others?
Historically, people were traded against their will and it was seen as a business proper. After more than a century, it is seen as a heinous act. How will the world view businesses that use money to “steal” environmental benefits from a nation in the next few decades?
Industries that are resource intensive in their operations will find it difficult to abate environmental risks. Thus, the government must develop a proper plan to assist Water, Energy and Resources Intensive Industries (Werii) to be more environmentally friendly and the abatement achievements will be absorbed into the goods and services that are involved in their supply chain towards the downstream. If we improve the inputs and the operations of Werii, the whole supply chain will benefit and it is part of the improvements that will be recorded as a national achievement. This is a better pragmatic approach compared to inane and risky “institutionalised” processes that increase our forests’ ability to sequestrate carbon by four times against similar type of forests in neighbouring countries.
In view of this, the government must identify and categorise sectors that fall into Werii and their impact intensity to the nation. This is followed by preparation and development of proper transition solutions as well as important infrastructure upgrading and development to meet the net zero targets. The usage of proper data and science that is recognised worldwide is vital. Such a targeted approach will be a real game changer for Werii sectors to remain competitive and environmentally friendly.
The government must stop using globally acclaimed cosmetic solutions like carbon market and carbon pricing for environmental abatement even if it propagated by major economies. The main issue here is not creating a so called level playing field that becomes a profiteering tool for a few. We as a country must solve the intermittency problems of the transition and net zero solutions while swimming through a “bottleneck” resource supply situation induced by global net zero move.
“A good decision is based on knowledge and not on numbers”. – Plato
This article was contributed by Piarapakaran S, president of the Association of Water and Energy Research Malaysia (Awer), a non-government organisation involved in research and development in the fields of water, energy and environment.
Source: The Sun Daily
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