Lettre ouverte aux ministres de l’environnement et délégués de toutes les parties

The document argues that current market mechanisms under the Kyoto Protocol, specifically the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) and Joint Implementation (JI), are failing due to the issuance of non-additional credits and the accumulation of 'hot air' (excess AAUs). It calls for a strict regulation of emission permits, the prohibition of large-scale fossil fuel energy projects from generating credits, and the establishment of an arbitration mechanism to protect human rights and social impacts in CDM projects.

• The authors argue that the use of non-additional offset credits to meet weak targets undermines climate protection and that market mechanisms must move beyond simple compensation to achieve a net reduction in emissions.
• The letter demands the immediate removal of 'hot air' (excess Assigned Amount Units or AAUs), stating that this surplus threatens the viability of a second commitment period and any future climate agreement. It proposes that such surpluses be strictly limited to national commitments and permanently cancelled at the end of the second commitment period.
• The Joint Implementation (JI) mechanism is criticized for allowing 'hot air' laundering through the issuance of hundreds of millions of non-additional credits by countries with low commitments. The authors suggest that only countries with emission commitments below 2012 levels should host JI projects.
• The Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) is described as failing its goals of emission reduction and sustainable development. Research cited in the letter suggests that approximately 3.6 billion Certified Emission Reductions (CERs) could come from non-additional projects by 2020, which would increase global emissions.
• The document calls for a ban on new large-scale energy projects, particularly fossil fuel projects, from generating CDM credits, as they are unlikely to be additional. Furthermore, it requests the creation of an arbitration mechanism and the enforcement of human rights standards to prevent social and environmental damage caused by CDM projects.

APA

CMW (2012). Lettre ouverte aux ministres de l’environnement et délégués de toutes les parties. Carbon Market Watch. https://carbonmarketwatch.org/2012/11/28/lettre-ouverte-aux-ministres-de-lenvironnement-et-delegues-de-toutes-les-parties-la-cop-18-doit-rehausser-les-ambitions-et-combler-les-lacunes-des-mecanismes-de-la-convention/

Chicago

CMW. Lettre ouverte aux ministres de l’environnement et délégués de toutes les parties. Carbon Market Watch, 2012. https://carbonmarketwatch.org/2012/11/28/lettre-ouverte-aux-ministres-de-lenvironnement-et-delegues-de-toutes-les-parties-la-cop-18-doit-rehausser-les-ambitions-et-combler-les-lacunes-des-mecanismes-de-la-convention/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=CMW |title=Lettre ouverte aux ministres de l’environnement et délégués de toutes les parties |publisher=Carbon Market Watch |date=28 November 2012 |url=https://carbonmarketwatch.org/2012/11/28/lettre-ouverte-aux-ministres-de-lenvironnement-et-delegues-de-toutes-les-parties-la-cop-18-doit-rehausser-les-ambitions-et-combler-les-lacunes-des-mecanismes-de-la-convention/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{cmw2012lettre, author = {CMW}, title = {{Lettre ouverte aux ministres de l’environnement et délégués de toutes les parties}}, publisher = {Carbon Market Watch}, year = {2012}, month = nov, url = {https://carbonmarketwatch.org/2012/11/28/lettre-ouverte-aux-ministres-de-lenvironnement-et-delegues-de-toutes-les-parties-la-cop-18-doit-rehausser-les-ambitions-et-combler-les-lacunes-des-mecanismes-de-la-convention/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }