Japan's climate plan under fire
2008-06-10 13:27
Tokyo - Japan's new plan to force industry to slash carbon emissions came under fire on Tuesday both from business leaders fearing it was too costly and environmentalists who said it did not go far enough.
Defying parts of the business community, Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda on Monday announced a "cap-and-trade" system that restricts emissions blamed for global warming while providing an economic incentive through credit trading.
Fukuda said the system will go into experimental use this autumn as part of a long-term goal for Japan to slash carbon emissions by 60% to 80% by 2050 from current levels.
The Japan Business Federation, the country's powerful lobby that represents major companies, was cautious on Fukuda's plan.
"Regarding a carbon trading market, we hope that discussions take place incorporating opinions from the business community," said the federation's chairperson Fujio Mitarai, who is also president of Canon Inc.
Emissions caps made tougher
If emissions caps are made tougher, Japanese businesses will have no choice but to buy carbon credits overseas, Shoji Muneoka, chairperson of the steelmakers' federation, said in a statement.
"At the same time, it would prompt off-shoring of production plants to developing countries, leading to an increase in emissions at the global level and reversing efforts to tackle global warming," said Muneoka, president of Japan's largest steelmaker Nippon Steel Corp.
Some environmentalists, in turn, have accused Fukuda of not going far enough in the plan, which was launched weeks before Japan hosts the summit of the Group of Eight rich nations.
Fukuda did not mention what the level of cuts would be under the cap-and-trade system and did not specify mid-term targets for emissions reductions - a hotly debated point in ongoing international negotiations.
"Mr Fukuda's plan is far from taking a leadership role for the success of the G8 summit," Yurika Ayukawa, vice chair of a coalition of non-governmental organisations attending the G8 summit.
"Announcing the long-term target of 60-80 percent emission itself is great, but without a clear mid-term target, how can we achieve the long-term goal?" she told AFP.
Fukuda in a news conference suggested a mid-term figure, citing a recent government report which says Japan can cut emissions 14% by 2020 from the level in 2005, but he did not commit to it.
UN scientists have warned that unless human-made climate change is halted, the world risks more natural disasters and droughts, putting millions of people at risk.