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In a recent press release, Mexico announced a year-long cap-and-trade program to begin in November. In the program, the Mexican government will provide economic incentives to those who reduce their pollution emissions.
The program is a test run, involving voluntary participation of up to 60 companies, before the national campaign launches in 2018. These companies will have a chance to adapt to, comply with, and then eventually endorse a carbon credit system that encourages the reduction of pollutants.
The cap-and-trade program will put a limit on the amount of greenhouse gas emissions that companies are able to produce. If you produce emissions below your quota, you can sell that excess allowance to other businesses who pollute more than their allowance. “When we have mechanisms that facilitate the reduction of greenhouse gases, we’re implicitly reducing pollution,” says Mexico’s deputy minister for environmental policy and planning, Rodolfo Lacy.
The announcement comes after nearly two decades since Mexico City was known as the most polluted city on Earth. Since then, the Mexican government has taken steps to reduce its emissions, but this cap-and-trade pilot is by far the biggest commitment they’ve made towards a cleaner energy and transportation sector.
“There’s a lot of pressure on Mexico internationally and from within to start delivering real results,” said Roberto Frau, a senior sustainability specialist at Cocoa Services, a public policy and social development advisory group. Indeed, the program is certainly related to Mexico’s declarations made at the Paris Climate Agreement, but many wonder if the country will be able to fulfill their promise to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by 22 percent by 2030 and generate 50 percent of their energy from clean energy sources by 2025.
Currently, Mexico produces less than 20 percent of electricity from renewable sources (the United States generates around a third of its power from clean energy). Without a doubt, they have their work cut out for them, but the Mexican government is excited to get the program started and begin reducing pollution emissions.
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