Making Polluters Pay: What European Citizens Expect from the EU Emissions Trading System

The briefing reports that a majority of citizens in several EU member states support requiring heavy industry to pay for CO2 emissions and favor investing carbon revenues into industrial decarbonisation over the continuation of free allowances. It highlights a contrast between public opinion and lobbying efforts by industry giants and certain member states to weaken EU ETS rules.

• A majority of 59% of European citizens support measures that require heavy industry to pay for CO2 emissions, while only 23% oppose such measures. This support transcends traditional green political affiliations.
• There is strong public consensus (72%) that the highest emitters or those failing to reduce emissions should face higher payments, with only 8% believing companies should not be required to pay at all.
• Half of the surveyed citizens prefer investing carbon revenues into industrial decarbonisation over extending free allowances, with only 18% supporting continued free allocation.
• A majority of citizens believe that companies receiving exemptions from carbon pricing should be required to reinvest the value of those exemptions into reducing future emissions (62%) and supporting a just industrial transition through workforce reskilling and high-quality working conditions (63%).
• 50% of citizens believe that companies benefiting from exemptions should include local communities in decisions regarding industrial transformation and its associated impacts.

APA

Carbon Market Watch (2026). Making Polluters Pay: What European Citizens Expect from the EU Emissions Trading System. https://carbonmarketwatch.org/publications/making-polluters-pay-what-european-citizens-expect-from-the-eu-emissions-trading-system/

Chicago

Carbon Market Watch. Making Polluters Pay: What European Citizens Expect from the EU Emissions Trading System. 2026. https://carbonmarketwatch.org/publications/making-polluters-pay-what-european-citizens-expect-from-the-eu-emissions-trading-system/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Carbon Market Watch |title=Making Polluters Pay: What European Citizens Expect from the EU Emissions Trading System |date=1 July 2026 |url=https://carbonmarketwatch.org/publications/making-polluters-pay-what-european-citizens-expect-from-the-eu-emissions-trading-system/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{carbonmarketwatch2026making, author = {{Carbon Market Watch}}, title = {{Making Polluters Pay: What European Citizens Expect from the EU Emissions Trading System}}, institution = {Carbon Market Watch}, year = {2026}, month = jul, url = {https://carbonmarketwatch.org/publications/making-polluters-pay-what-european-citizens-expect-from-the-eu-emissions-trading-system/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }