The European Union (EU) countries decided to impose the world’s first CO2 emissions tariff on imports of polluting goods. Starting from 2020, the EU had introduced greenhouse gas emissions costs on imports of steel, cement, fertilizers, aluminium and electricity.
The finer details of the plan aren’t yet finalized, which can be figured out in future negotiations.
The aim of imposing this tariff is to shield the EU industry because the European market is flooded by cheaper goods made in countries with weak environmental rules.
According to the EU, this carbon border tariff is a trial to make a grade playing field by imposing the identical carbonic acid gas costs on EU companies and people abroad.
EU held that this move will avoid any carbon leakage and can also encourage partner countries to ascertain strong environmental rules and carbon-pricing policies.
This may also help EEC (EU) countries in their fight against temperature change. This carbon tariff proposal is an element of EU temperature change policies geared toward reducing EU’s carbon emissions by 55% by 2030 from the 1990 levels.
The EU countries and therefore the European Parliament increased the pace of negotiations, as from 2023 three-year transition phase for the imposition of carbon tariff will begin.