- This article is republished from African Arguments under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
At the COP29 climate talks in Azerbaijan this November, governments approved a new package of rules that will govern carbon markets. Proponents celebrated the breakthrough, which came after almost a decade of talks, and said they will mobilise billions of dollars for new climate projects.
The new rules, however, risk undermining efforts to rein in emissions rather than advancing them. Despite some countries fighting tooth and nail to bring transparency and quality requirements to the framework, they ended with limited gains to show for their pains.
On the one hand, the final text requires countries to publish information when they formally approve Internationally Traded Mitigation Outcomes (ITMOs), the units used for emissions trading between nations. Importantly, any inconsistencies identified in countries’ cooperative approaches will be made public.
