ECO was sat for seven long days patiently listening to questions and comments by Parties. But then, it appears the light appeared and ECO was delighted to see progress on article 6 with a revised note (though still just draft elements) presented yesterday morning by the SBSTA co-chairs. ECO would like to draw the attention of negotiators to three key aspects coming out of SB48:
- While it is great to see additional references to human rights in the revised draft notes, the call from several Parties to delete the “Principles” sections of these notes is concerning. Rather than eliminating them, more Parties should stand up to defend these Principles, including references to human rights, sustainable development, and the achievement of overall mitigation of GHG emissions. ECO is certain that Parties will want to take this opportunity to learn from the mistakes of the CDM, which failed to uphold human rights and sustainable development.
- Several new options were added to the informal notes on ways to achieve overall mitigation through Article 6. A constructive way to reach this goal would be a percentage cancellation of credits, contrary to assuming that the mere existence of the mechanism leads to this overall mitigation objective.
- Although the issue was raised during the session, more work is required to design strong rules on avoiding double counting, including the need for corresponding adjustments. As Parties move to content discussions at the next session, they will need to do their homework on the risks of double counting, especially when it comes to regulating the use of A6 units under non-UNFCCC mechanisms such as CORSIA.
ECO supports the continuation of Article 6 discussions in Bangkok and at pre-sessional events. As Parties appear to want more clarity on outstanding issues and concepts. And you know what, ECO knows non-party stakeholders would happily contribute to this process by being allowed to speak during the next session and to participate in any pre-sessional events.
While article 6 still needs a lot of work, ECO would like to echo the views of several Parties on the need to ensure balanced progress in all PAWP items. This means Parties and facilitators will need to be flexible when it comes to agenda setting for Bangkok; giving priority to those items which have not made sufficient progress during the SB48.