The General Office of the State Council recently issued the "Work Plan for Accelerating the Construction of a Dual Carbon Emission Control System"(hereinafter referred to as the "Work Plan"), requiring "incorporating carbon emission indicators and related requirements into national planning, establishing and improving local carbon assessment, industry carbon control, and corporate carbon management, and other policies, systems and management mechanisms such as carbon management, project carbon evaluation, and product carbon footprint", and "accelerating the establishment of a product carbon footprint management system" is listed separately as a task. This shows that carbon footprint management is an important starting point for establishing a new mechanism for comprehensive transformation from dual control of energy consumption to dual control of carbon emissions. It is an important part of accelerating the construction of an institutional system for dual control of total carbon emissions and intensity (hereinafter referred to as dual control of carbon emissions). It is of great significance and role in actively and steadily promoting carbon peak and carbon neutrality and accelerating the green and low-carbon transformation of development methods.
Carrying out product carbon footprint management is an important part of building a dual carbon emission control system
The product carbon footprint is an important carrier for promoting dual control of carbon emissions at the product level. It is an important part of the six aspects of dual control of carbon emissions: countries, localities, industries, enterprises, projects, and products. The construction of a product carbon footprint management system is listed separately in the goals and tasks of the "Work Plan". It is a higher-level promotion of the "Implementation Plan on Establishing a Carbon Footprint Management System" jointly issued by 15 departments, reflecting the product carbon footprint The important position of the management system in the dual carbon emission control system.
In terms of goals, the "Work Plan" proposes various work task goals in three stages, and each stage involves product carbon footprint management. The "Work Plan" clarifies that by 2025, a number of product carbon footprint standards will be introduced and implemented, and the national greenhouse gas emission factor database will be basically completed and regularly updated; during the "15th Five-Year Plan" period, a product carbon footprint management system and product carbon that are in line with China's national conditions will be built. Identification system; After the carbon peak, improve the product carbon footprint management system and implement the product carbon labeling certification system. The establishment of the above tasks and objectives reflects that the product carbon footprint management system is an indispensable part of the dual carbon emission control system.
In terms of tasks,"accelerating the establishment of a product carbon footprint management system" was proposed as a separate task in the "Work Plan", proposing work requirements from three aspects: accounting rules and standards, database construction and product carbon labeling certification system. In terms of accounting rules and standards, the "Work Plan" proposes to formulate and publish general standards for product carbon footprint accounting and carbon footprint accounting standards for key products. Key products cover basic energy, bulk commodities and key foreign trade products; in terms of database construction, the "Work Plan" puts forward relevant requirements for database construction from aspects such as national key industries and sub-fields; In terms of the product carbon labeling certification system, the "Work Plan" puts forward specific requirements for the formulation of management measures, carbon labeling standards and pilot trials.
Carrying out product carbon footprint work is of great significance for dual control of carbon emissions
The product carbon footprint is the sum of greenhouse gas emissions and removals throughout the life cycle of the product system expressed in units of carbon dioxide equivalent, reflecting the carbon emissions of the entire chain within the boundaries of a specific product system. Taking the carbon footprint as the starting point, using products to connect the production and consumption ends, and promoting carbon reduction throughout the chain and throughout the life cycle is of great significance for promoting dual control of carbon emissions.
Carrying out product carbon footprint management is a powerful starting point to promote carbon reduction at the production end. By carrying out product carbon footprint management, it can help companies find out the "carbon base" and find the focus of carbon reduction. Under the transmission and driving effect of the industrial chain, it can promote upstream and downstream enterprises to reduce carbon, which will help from the product life cycle and supply. Chain perspective drives carbon emission reduction in the entire industry and the entire chain. For example, based on the carbon footprint of products, Ningde Times proposed a segmented carbon reduction theory to guide the use of low-carbon raw materials and technologies, optimize the production methods of the entire supply chain, and achieve a year-on-year reduction in the carbon footprint of unit product by 8.5% in 2022.
Carrying out product carbon footprint management is an effective way to promote low-carbon consumption. By displaying the carbon footprint calculation results to consumers in the form of carbon labeling, it can enhance the value of green and low-carbon brands and enhance the competitiveness of corporate products. A 2018 survey showed that consumers are willing to pay 20% more for carbon-labeled products. A 2020 survey conducted by the British Carbon Trust found that 64% of respondents preferred to buy products with a lower carbon footprint.
Carrying out product carbon footprint management is a strong guarantee for promoting the realization of the "double carbon" goal. Products are both the result of production and the beginning of consumption. Taking the carbon footprint of the product as the starting point, on the one hand, it can promote producers to provide more high-quality products that produce and use low-carbon, and on the other hand, it can also cultivate consumers to be green and low-carbon. consumptionXiIt is customary to achieve simultaneous efforts from the production and consumer ends to promote the formation of a society-wide carbon reduction model that "goes from point to chain and then to network", which will help promote and implement the "double carbon" goal.
Taking the product carbon footprint as the starting point, lay a solid foundation for dual control of carbon emissions
Product carbon footprint management started relatively late, but it is progressing rapidly. There is a certain working foundation for promoting dual control of carbon emissions based on product carbon footprint.
Product carbon footprint management has been coordinated and deployed in the top-level design. The "Opinions of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council on Completely, Accurately and Comprehensively Implementing New Development Concepts and Doing a Good Job in Carbon Peak and Carbon Neutralization" proposes to formulate greenhouse gas emission standards for key industries and products, and improve the standard labeling system for low-carbon products. The "Carbon Peak Action Plan before 2030" requires exploring the establishment of carbon footprint standards for key products throughout the life cycle. The "Opinions of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council on Comprehensively Promoting the Construction of a Beautiful China" proposes to build a standard, certification, and labeling system for green and low-carbon products. The "Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Further Comprehensively Deepening Reforms and Promoting Chinese-style Modernization" clearly proposes to build a product carbon footprint management system. The issuance of this series of policy documents has made systematic arrangements for product carbon footprint management from the top-level design level.
Product carbon footprint management has detailed tasks arranged in the policy document. The "Implementation Plan on Accelerating the Establishment of a Unified and Standardized Carbon Emissions Statistical Accounting System" jointly issued by the National Development and Reform Commission, the National Bureau of Statistics, and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment further clarifies that "the Ministry of Ecology and Environment will work with industry authorities to study and formulate raw materials and semi-finished products for key industry products. Carbon emission accounting methods for finished products and finished products." The "Implementation Plan on Establishing a Carbon Footprint Management System" jointly issued by 15 departments including the Ministry of Ecology and Environment clarifies the goals and realization paths of carbon footprint management, strengthens the division of tasks and policy coordination, and puts forward 22 key tasks in four aspects: strengthening capacity building, and formulating a "task statement" and "construction drawings" for the construction of a carbon footprint management system. The "Action Plan on Further Strengthening the Construction of Carbon Peak and Carbon Neutralization Standard Measurement System (2024 - 2025)" issued by the National Development and Reform Commission, the State Administration for Market Regulation, and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment proposes to strengthen the construction of product carbon footprint carbon identification standards. The "Work Plan" issued this time also makes specific arrangements for product carbon footprint work from aspects such as the formulation of accounting rules, database construction, and the establishment of carbon labeling certification systems. Overall, product carbon footprint management tasks have been further refined and arranged, and relevant work priorities have been clarified and highlighted.
Preliminary and useful explorations have been carried out in product carbon footprint management. All localities and industries have carried out active attempts and useful explorations in the field of carbon footprint management based on existing foundations and needs. For example, Shandong has launched the construction of a carbon footprint accounting and evaluation system and a methodological accounting system, and Shenzhen has promoted the construction of a carbon footprint label certification system in the Greater Bay Area. Relevant associations have promoted the formulation of carbon footprint group standards for key products. Relevant enterprises and third-party certification bodies have carried out full-life cycle carbon footprint accounting under systems including Type III environmental label certification based on needs.
Implement the policy of dual carbon emission control and actively promote the implementation of various tasks of product carbon footprint management
The "Work Plan" puts forward clear task requirements for product carbon footprint management from the perspective of building dual carbon emission control levels. In the next step, all localities and departments should actively promote the implementation of various tasks of product carbon footprint management in accordance with relevant task requirements, and accelerate the development of methods. Green and low-carbon transformation will help carbon peak and carbon neutrality.
The first is to improve rules and standards so that carbon footprint management has rules to follow. Based on the recently released "Requirements and Guidelines for Quantifying Carbon Footprint of Greenhouse Gas Products", carbon footprint accounting standards will be developed around key areas such as basic energy, bulk raw materials, key foreign trade products in urgent need, and transportation, and the carbon footprint accounting boundaries of related products., accounting methods, etc., strengthen the construction of the accounting standard system, and systematically build a carbon footprint standard system for my country's products.
The second is to strengthen database construction to make carbon footprint management work available. Relying on the national greenhouse gas emission factor database, we will accelerate the construction of the national product carbon footprint factor database, first study and release carbon footprint factors in basic energy such as electricity, raw materials such as aluminum and steel, semi-finished products, and transportation and other key areas, and actively coordinate with all parties to jointly build the product carbon footprint factor database, forming a government-guided and market-led normalized update mechanism for the product carbon footprint factor database, providing a data basis for product carbon footprint accounting.
The third is to strengthen institutional supply and make carbon footprint management synergistic. Accelerate the construction of the product carbon labeling certification system, product carbon footprint hierarchical management system, and carbon footprint information disclosure system, provide institutional supply for carbon footprint management, further strengthen policy support and coordination, and promote product carbon footprint and carbon emission trading, and greenhouse gas voluntary Organic connection of emission reduction trading, environmental impact assessment and other mechanisms to synergize carbon emission reduction.
Author's units: Zhang Bin and Li Liping, Center for Environmental and Economic Policy Research, Ministry of Ecology and Environment; Xing Baiying, Department of Climate Change Response, Ministry of Ecology and Environment