EU ETS struggles - but other schemes show promise

When the European Union (EU) set up its Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) in 2001, the world’s first carbon trading market, advocates heralded a new dawn - carbon pollution could be brought under control in a way that benefited the environment while not damaging industrial interests. The ETS would impose a market price on carbon, forcing huge industrial polluters to factor in emissions into their business plans. However, a low carbon price, the economic downturn and loopholes in the system have led the ETS into choppy waters. There is success on the horizon for other schemes, though, writes Mark Rowe