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Abstract

2050 is the target year to reduce carbon footprints to the zero level, and countries contributing the major share of carbon emissions are committing to reduce their emissions. The domestic household sector in developed countries contributes almost 20% of the total emissions. The United Kingdom developed personal carbon trading policy framework to reduce household carbon emissions. In this policy, each individual household would be allocated a personal carbon trade quota each year and the allocated quota will reduce year after year to achieve emissions reduction target set for 2050. An individual household can buy and sell total or part of their allocated quota in personal carbon trade market depending upon their requirements. The assumption is that the declining size of the allocated quota of personal carbon trade to each individual household year after year will encourage them to get educated and find ways to save and sell surplus personal carbon allowance at a price acceptable to them. Therefore, the market will help reduce carbon emissions through efficient distribution of personal carbon allowances based on demand and supply. In this paper, the nature of personal carbon trade (PCT) and its implications for its market operations is evaluated. The findings of this paper could be useful to researchers, educators, students, individual households, community and business leaders in planning for efficient personal carbon trade markets.

Keywords

Personal carbon trading, Personal carbon trade market, Carbon footprints, Carbon emissions

1.Introduction

The Paris agreement signed in 2015, has set a goal to limit global warming to well below 2°C, preferably1.5°C above pre-industrial levels by 2050 [1]. To achieve this end, a large majority of countries and their leaders decided to take a collective action to cut a very high percentage of their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2030 in various sectors of economies. The European union set its goal of 40% reduction (relative to 1990 level), Canada 30% (relative to 2005 level), Australia about 28 % (relative to 2005 level), and Japan 26 % reduction (relative to 2013) by 2030 [2]. China fixed its target of reducing its emissions by 60-65% (relative to its 2005 levels) on per unit of its gross domestic product (GDP) basis by 2030 [2].

Increasing income of people and improvements in their lifestyle, over...

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