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  Straits Times 16 Jan 07
Climate change forum zooms in on pollution
By Daryl Loo

Channel NewsAsia 15 Jan 06
Singapore to tap into multi-billion dollar carbon trading market
By Wong Mun Wai

Singapore aims to be a key player in trading unused greenhouse gas quotas, estimated to be worth at least US$25 billion last year.

The head of the Republic's National Climate Change Committee, Dr Amy Khor, said the idea was discussed at a public consultation exercise last year.

Climate change is widely accepted as one of the biggest threats facing the world. But under the Kyoto international agreement to reduce harmful emissions by 2012, some countries can buy extra greenhouse gas allowances from developing countries under a scheme called Clean Development Mechanism credits, or CDM.

Dr Khor said: "This is really one of the economic opportunities that has resulted from our efforts to mitigate and address climate change. We have talked with industry who are interested in such CDM projects. We have also put the companies together with financial companies and see how they can embark on such projects to take advantage of such opportunities."

And the government plans not just to play a part in the market, but take a central role in carbon trading as well.

Dr Khor said: "Singapore is one of the countries to either work as one of the hubs for the CDM projects or work with the region to embark on such CDM projects and where the carbon credits can be traded."

But not everyone at the forum agrees on focusing on cutting emissions overseas. Wilson Ang, ECO Singapore, said: "They should focus more on a national level where they could make carbon trading internally to help cut the overall carbon emission."

The government is also assessing ways it can adopt in the future to cut carbon emissions.

Dr Khor said: "Some of the short-term measures that we have been looking at would be fuel economy labelling on vehicles. Whether we can expand it, whether we can make this mandatory, as we have received in our feedback. We are also looking at energy labelling. We have said we will make it mandatory for aircon and refrigerators. Actually, feedback has said we should expand this to further appliances. And one of the appliances is clothes drying equipment." The committee wants to extend the labelling to TVs, PCs and lights too.

At the same time, it is studying how businesses can play their part. Dr Khor said: "We are also looking at corporate CO2 (carbon dioxide) reporting, how to put incentives and encourage CO2 reporting in the short term and in the medium term, looking at a carbon intensity index."

The panel will publish the full report on its climate change ideas later this year. - CNA/ch

Straits Times 16 Jan 07
Climate change forum zooms in on pollution
By Daryl Loo

CONCERNS about environmental issues in the region dominated a forum yesterday which was to have focused on local measures to deal with climate change.

Issues raised by participants at the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources forum included how Asean could play a bigger role in reducing the region's air pollution, and if Singapore could offer more help to Indonesia to curb forest fires.

More than 50 academics as well as representatives of non-government organisations, environmental groups, and industry attended the forum on the National Climate Change Strategy, chaired by the ministry's Senior Parliamentary Secretary Amy Khor.

The strategy was launched last April, along with Singapore's signing of the Kyoto Protocol, an international agreement to curb pollution by reducing gas emissions from various sources, including air-conditioners, cars and large coal-fired power plants.

Scientists believe this pollution is a key culprit behind climate change - and the resulting rise in sea levels caused by melting polar ice caps - and regarded as the biggest environmental problem threatening the world today.

The public was consulted on the proposals in the strategy. Some of the 1,300 online responses were unveiled at the forum. The strategy comprises measures to increase energy efficiency on all levels in Singapore, from power generation and industry, to transport, buildings and households.

But Nature Society Singapore president Geh Min wondered if it would be more effective to work at the regional Asean level to curb pollution, considering Singapore's small size.

Ms Melissa Kwee, who chairs non-profit group Halogen Foundation, which promotes youth leaderships, agreed and suggested that Singapore consider 'offering more help to Indonesia to put out the annual forest fires that are responsible for haze'.

Responding, Dr Khor noted that while climate change was 'a global problem and not just a local issue', there is a need for Singapore to first 'get our own house in order'.

'We have to play our part as a signatory to the Kyoto Protocol to mitigate climate change. And hopefully, our actions will also help encourage others who are contemplating this,' she said.

On the haze, Dr Khor said Singapore has taken steps such as offering its help to develop measures in fire prevention among farmers in the Indonesian province of Jambi.

She also pointed out that further headway is being made with Singapore's proposal at the just-concluded Asean Summit, that members sign an Environmental Sustainability Declaration at the November summit to address issues like the haze.

The ministry will compile the public suggestions and work in some of the changes into the national strategy later this year.

Some of the feasible suggestions, added Dr Khor, will also be studied and considered for implementation within the year. These include: Developing government guidelines for companies to report on the levels of their carbon dioxide emissions. Making it mandatory for car sellers to label the fuel economy of their vehicles. Encouraging energy labelling for more household appliances which consume high energy, such as clothes-dryers, in addition to air-conditioners and refrigerators which are already required to do so by mid-year.
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Related articles on Global Issues: Climate Change and Haze
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