環保署為汲取國際間溫室氣體自願減量及排放交易之推動經驗，本次特別與英國貿易文化辦事處合作，於96年11月1日舉辦「溫室氣體自願減量及交易制度」國際研討會，並在歐洲經貿辦事處協助下，邀請到歐盟、英國排放交易制度之智庫，以及具有溫室氣體自願減量執行經驗之專家學者進行專題演講，透過經驗交流與分享，共同為台灣溫室氣體管理制度尋找最佳可行策略與接軌模式。環保署陳署長重信、英國貿易文化辦事處麥瑞禮代表(Michael Reilly)、歐洲經貿辦事處李篤處長(Guy Ledoux)均將蒞臨會場致詞，為台灣、英國及歐盟間開啟良好合作夥伴關係之第一步。
環保署於本次研討會邀請到之專家，分別來自澳洲之PricewaterhouseCoopers及BP、英國劍橋大學，其中PricewaterhouseCoopers為歐盟環境總署推薦曾參與建構歐盟排放交易制度之智庫，而澳洲雖未簽署京都議定書，亦積極推動溫室氣體自願減量及登錄制度，相信能帶給我國產官學研各界許多新的啟發。
目前聯合國氣候變化綱要公約已開始探討開發中國家第一承諾期後(2012年後)之減量責任，聯合國秘書長亦多次呼籲儘速將後京都協議定調以確保2013年後制度之銜接，此外，2007年APEC領袖會議之雪梨宣言，提出將2030年降低能源密集度25%(以2005年作為基準年)之目標，此為整合不同開發程度之經濟體，且首次包含美國、中國及俄羅斯等排放大國之溫室氣體減量共識。環保署表示，今年世界各地熱烈異常的氣候變遷相關峰會，已使即將於12月召開之第13次締約國大會受到格外關注，面對氣候變遷議題持續發酵，台灣身為新興工業化國家，不排除可能成為下一波受規範之對象，確實須為溫室氣體減量做好萬全準備。
目前各國普遍將自願減量視為基礎能力建構及達成減量之優先實行途徑，英國、日本及芝加哥交易所均推動自願性減量交易制度，澳洲亦推動溫室友善標章推行方案(Greenhouse FriendlyTM)提供產品或服務之碳中和，世界排放交易協會(IETA)預計於今年底開放依據自願減碳標準(VCS)之計畫型減量登錄平台，均可提供我國作為非京都機制之參考。我國在溫室氣體減量法(草案)生效前，可參考國際實例規劃台灣之自願減量推動制度，鼓勵產業及早減量，為政府及業者未來執行相關制度預做準備。
本次研討會邀請國內專家學者、相關產業公會代表、配合環保署推動溫室氣體盤查業者及具溫室氣體查證經驗的查驗機構等，期待透過技術性之研討互動，使我國在建構溫室氣體減量之實務能力，向國際接軌更邁進一步。
Taiwan-UK-EU International Seminar on Voluntary Greenhouse Gas Reduction and Emissions Trading
In order to learn from international experiences in promoting voluntary greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction and emissions trading, the EPA and the British Trade and Cultural Office will jointly hold the International Seminar on Voluntary GHG Reduction and Emissions Trading on November 1, 2007. With the assistance of the European Economic and Trade Office, the EPA invited emissions trading consultants from the EU and the UK, as well as experts in voluntary GHG reduction, in order to help Taiwan develop the most feasible strategies for GHG management schemes through exchange and sharing of experiences. Minister Winston Dang of the EPA, Mr. Michael Reilly, Director of the British Trade and Cultural Office, and Mr. Guy Ledoux, head of the European Economic and Trade Office, will give opening remarks at the seminar as the first step toward a sound partnership among Taiwan, the UK, and the EU.
The speakers invited by EPA consist of experts from the PricewaterhouseCoopers and BP of Australia, and Cambridge University of the UK, of which the expert from the PricewaterhouseCoopers is EU ETS consultant recommended by the EC Environment Directorate. Although Australia has not ratified the Kyoto Protocol, its experiences in voluntary GHG reduction and registry scheme can provide our domestic industries, officials, and experts with many new insights.
The UNFCCC has begun to discuss reduction responsibilities of developed countries after the first commitment (post-2012), and the UN Secretary General has called for prompt negotiation of a post-Kyoto agreement to ensure continuation of the scheme after 2012. In addition, the Sydney Declaration from the 2007 APEC leaders meeting has proposed a target of reducing the energy intensity by 25% by 2030 (using 2005 as the base year). This was a consensus among economies at various stages of development and the first to include the United States, China, Russia and other major emitters. The EPA points out that after several high-level meetings on climate change this year, most attention will be focused on COP-13, to be held in December.
With continuing concerns on climate change issues, Taiwan as a newly industrialized country could possibly be subjected to the next round of commitments, and therefore we need to be well prepared for greenhouse gas reduction.
Voluntary reduction is widely considered as the first step of capacity building and emissions reduction. The UK, Japan, and the Chicago Climate Exchange all are implementing voluntary reduction schemes, and Australia is promoting the Greenhouse FriendlyTM program to provide carbon neutral products and services. The International Emissions Trading Association is expected to open a registry for project-based reductions in accordance with the Voluntary Carbon Standard, which can be a reference for us as a non-Kyoto scheme. Before the enactment of the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Bill in Taiwan, we can use international examples to develop a voluntary reduction scheme in Taiwan, in order to encourage early action by industries and prepare to implement a related scheme in the future.
For this seminar, we have invited domestic experts, industry associations and organizations to assist the EPA with promoting GHG inventories, and verification organizations that have experiences in GHG verification. We hope that through technical discussions and exchanges, we can build practical capacity for GHG reduction and move a step closer toward linking up with the international community.