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The risks of carbon leakage associated with climate policies in the agricultural sector remains under-researched. Studies to date suggest that carbon pricing policies implemented by a single country, or small group of countries, reduce global emissions but also affect the international competitiveness of these countries’ agricultural sectors and induce carbon leakage. While carbon leakage can be prevented with trade-related measures that adjust emissions prices at the border, such measures applied in developed countries could potentially lead to significant welfare losses for developing countries that heavily rely on agricultural exports. That said, important caveats apply to the reviewed studies: i) from an environmental perspective, estimations of carbon leakage rates alone do not offer a comprehensive assessment of how optimally agricultural activities are allocated across countries; ii) most of the studies estimate the effects of additional environmental policies, such as carbon taxes, and ignore the effects of existing policies, including market distorting and potentially environmentally harmful support for agricultural production.

Understanding consumption-based emissions from Agriculture, Forestry and Land-use (AFOLU) activities is important in developing climate policy for the sector. This paper proposes a new methodology to construct indicators – CBAFOLU indicators ‒ to provide estimates of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions arising from AFOLU activities (including fisheries) in the global supply chain of finished products. The CBAFOLU indicators identify the countries where emissions are generated and the countries where the goods that 'embody' these emissions are eventually consumed. CBAFOLU indicators are provided for bilateral flows of emissions for 65 countries over 2005-15. The indicators also break down emissions by types of GHG: carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O) and CO2 emissions from land use, land-use change, and forestry (LULUCF). Given their preliminary nature, the CBAFOLU indicators should be seen as a first building block in a series of steps to explore the allocation of AFOLU activities across countries through the lens of sustainability; priorities for further work to refine the indicators are also proposed.

Carbon leakage arises when emission reductions in countries applying a carbon tax are offset, partially or completely, by emission increases in countries that do not apply the tax or any other greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation policies. Analysis using the MAGNET computable general equilibrium model indicates that a carbon tax always lowers global GHG emissions from agriculture, even when it is applied in a small group of countries, provided that producers facing the tax can make use of GHG abatement technologies. This suggests that mitigation policies should be considered in conjunction with investments in research and development on abatement practices and technologies. When a small number of countries adopt a carbon tax, about half of the direct reduction in emissions in adopting counties is offset by higher emissions in non-adopting countries; the rate of carbon leakage declines as the group of countries implementing a carbon tax expands. Higher tax rates stimulate larger global emissions reductions, but also induce higher rates of emissions leakage, thus limiting the mitigation benefits from setting higher tax rates in contexts where few countries adopt the policy.

Reporting and review requirements under the Paris Agreement include provisions under Article 13 relating to the implementation and achievement of Parties’ Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). Draft texts relating to Article 6.2 relating to Parties’ use of cooperative approaches also include provisions on reporting and review. This document identifies and analyses issues related to the interplay of relevant reporting and review requirements under both Article 13 and Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, as it is important to improve complementarity and ensure consistency between the two sets of reporting and review provisions, as well as to meet the already-agreed principles governing transparency. Regarding reporting, the document highlights options for improving the clarity of the provisions concerning the timing, content, and frequency of the three required types of information under Article 6.2 guidance (i.e., the initial report, annual information, and regular information). Regarding Internationally Transferred Mitigation Outcomes (ITMOs), this document highlights several issues relating to timing and vintages that would need to be addressed to facilitate ITMO reporting and review implementation. Regarding review provisions, this document finds that draft A6.2 guidance could usefully provide further detail on some substantive aspects of the Article 6 review process, such as, e.g., clarifying roles of the Party, the TER team, and the secretariat in the review process.

This paper analyses net-zero emissions targets adopted in law, proposed in legislation, or reflected in policy documents in 51 countries and the EU to better understand their characteristics, similarities and differences. It examines countries’ experiences with translating net-zero targets into near-term plans and analyses four case studies to show how countries develop and implement different pathways to net-zero. This paper also explores the potential role and associated risks, both for individual countries and globally, of using international carbon markets to help achieve countries’ net-zero targets. The paper concludes that countries are adopting diverse approaches to their net-zero targets and many details are currently unclear, including the balance between emission reductions, removals and the use of international carbon markets in reaching countries’ net-zero targets, and how this may change over the next few decades. The paper concludes that greater clarity on the scope, coverage and detail, in particular how countries plan to meet their net-zero commitments, is important to improve understanding of countries’ net-zero targets, how they interact with each other, and their overall implications for achieving the global temperature goal of the Paris Agreement.

Cette note technique présente deux scénarios prospectifs pour le financement climatique fourni et mobilisé par les pays développés dans le cadre de l'objectif de 100 milliards de dollars établi dans le cadre de la CCNUCC. L'analyse du financement climatique public fourni est basée sur les intentions déclarés, les promesses et les objectifs des différents pays développés et banques multilatérales de développement, tels que soumis dans le contexte spécifique de cet exercice. Elle s'appuie également sur des étapes analytiques et des hypothèses méthodologiques pour rendre ces informations compatibles avec le cadre comptable et le périmètre de l'objectif. Les deux scénarios comprennent des hypothèses complémentaires sur le niveau de financement privé mobilisé par ce financement public et sur les crédits à l'exportation liés au climat. Le Canada et l'Allemagne ont demandé à l'OCDE de réaliser cette analyse afin d’informer le Plan de Mise en Œuvre de l'objectif de 100 milliards USD préparé par les pays développés en amont de la COP26.

Single-use plastics constitute approximately half of global plastic waste generation. Their use in consumer goods and packaging has been the focus of recent waste prevention policy due to the importance of the volumes of waste generated and the frequency with which these materials are littered. To address several externalities that emerge across the life-cycle of single-use plastics, multiple policies can be combined to constitute an effective policy mix. In several markets, market-based policy instruments and policy bans have helped to curb waste generation and littering of single-use plastics. However, the effectiveness of these interventions depends to an important extent on whether environmentally preferable substitute materials or products are available, and on whether the measures are effectively enforced. Effective policy intervention requires a policy mix that covers single-use plastics, as well as their substitutes, and that includes an emphasis on monitoring and enforcement, in order to help minimise burden-shifting of environmental impacts.