Environmental Policy

List Of The Committee Members Of Research Panel_List of the committee members_Reference 2

Reference 2: Examples of tradable or marketable discharge permits in the US

3. Emission right dealing on water pollution (based on States Laws)

Outline
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As for Water Purification Law, national water standard regulated by EPA (first step) and stricter emission standard regulated from the independent point of each state (second step) are regulated.
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Water Purification
Law have not regulated non-spotted source, such as urban surface water or agricultural water, therefore they are regulated by states independently.
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A part of states have introduced tradable or marketable emission permit system to attain the second step standard.
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Initial distribution method and others
  • [1] Wisconsin
    It is distributed to spotted source (factories and others) based on water improvement target by the state.
  • [2] Colorado
    Emission permit of phosphorus was distributed to spotted source and non-spotted source. Future growth perspective was taken into consideration.
  • [3] North Carolina
    Drainage basin association organized by managing bodies of sewage treatment plant distributed the emission permit to each city, town or village based on total reducing target.
Material to be treaded
  • [1] Wisconsin
    Drainage which heightens BOD
    - Permit allowable for five years
  • [2] Colorado
    Emission of phosphorus
    - Permit allowable for one year
  • [3] North Carolina
    Emission of polluting load which will cause eutrophication
Subject for control
  • [1] Wisconsin
    Twenty-one spotted sources (five paper factories and twelve town sewage treatment plants)
  • [2] Colorado
    Spotted source (four sewage treatment plants of cities, towns or villages and one factory)
    Non-spotted source
Actual state trading
  • [1] Wisconsin
    - Material to be treaded: Emission amount of sewage
    - Dealing method: the parties concerned (Agreement of the authorities is required)
    - Dealing case: One case (The paper factory which stopped treatment sold its emission permit to the sewage treatment plant.)
  • [2] Colorado
    - Material to be treaded: Emission amount of phosphorus
    - Dealing method: Relative dealings among the parties concerned
    > It must be conducted by two units of non-spotted emission permit against one unit of spotted emission right.
    - Dealing case: one case (Town sewage treatment plant bought emission permit of phosphorus from individual purifying facility in 1988.)
  • [3] North Carolina
    - Material to be treaded: Emission amount of pollution load which will cause eutrophication.
    - Dealing method: the parties concerned
    - Dealing case: conducted.
Pointed out problems, etc.
  • [1] Wisconsin
    > A lot limitations in dealings
  • [2] Colorado
    > The growth to 1990 were overestimated, and the emission permit which does not meet the actual situation was issued.
    - Geographical inclination of pollution source by dealings

[1] Winsconsin
Companies on the drainage basin are divided into to three clusters depending on their sitting points, and dealings are allowed within the same cluster. Since emission sources were originally only ten paper factories and four sewage treatment plants, the number of emission source in each clustuer has decreased and it became difficult to conclude the dealings.