20 Jul 2021 11:13

Russia to create greenhouse gas monitoring, carbon unit trading systems by 2024

MOSCOW. July 20 (Interfax) - Russia will create a system to monitor and track greenhouse gases, as well as a system for tracking and trading carbon units by 2024, Deputy Prime Minister Viktoria Abramchenko said at a meeting of the Council for Strategic Development and National Projects on Monday.

She said Russia has set a number of objectives as part of its climate agenda, including to create a national system for precise monitoring and recovery of greenhouse gases; ensure the reduction of accumulated net greenhouse gas emissions from 2021 through 2050 to lower levels compared to the European Union; increase the absorption capacity of Russian ecosystems to 2.5 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent per year; and work out measures to adapt to climate change.

In the initial stage, in 2021-2022, there are plans to ensure the approval of plans for 10 sectors of the economy and all 85 constituent members of the Russian Federation for how to adapt to the negative consequences of climate change. In order to reduce the carbon-intensity of the Russian economy, a system will be created for the implementation and verification of climate projects, along with a registry of greenhouse gas emissions. There are also plans to launch "green" financing.

In the second stage, to 2024, Russia will create a system for monitoring and tracking greenhouse gas based on at least 16 carbon testing ranges in all climatic zones of the country, as well as a system for tracking and trading carbon units. A program of priority climate research studies will also be completed by this time.