ABSTRACT

This chapter provides a summary of the historical development patterns observed in newly organized markets, and an assessment of the status of the emerging greenhouse-gas (GHG) markets in the context of the inventive process. It discusses the logical extension of new market mechanisms for environmental services and presents the rationale and objectives for pilot GHG-trading markets. It goes on to explain the importance of generating price information indicative of the cost of mitigating GHGs and provides a summary of the steps being taken to define and launch pilot carbon markets in North America and Europe. It ends with a review of key issues related to incorporating environmental services associated with carbon sequestration into a carbon-trading market.