Manual on the Development of Cleaner Production Policies ... - Unido

DEVELOPMENT OF CP POLICY
MODULE 4: POLICY TOOLS AND INSTRUMENTS
In the purchasing conditions specified in public tender announcements, the Government (or,
alternatively, local authorities) may indicate a preference for cleaner technologies or products (e.g.
non-chlorine paper, Energy Star computers and monitors, etc.) In the Netherlands, for example,
several governmental organizations incorporated preventive environmental management plans into
public tender announcements, including the purchase of energy-efficient equipment, non-chlorine
paper, “green” public transport and electric cars.
EXAMPLE
Energy Star Office Equipment Programme. This volunteer initiative promotes energy efficiency
through the investment in, and development of, energy-efficient and energy-saving office equipment.
The programme distinguishes office equipment that meets specifications set by the EPA with the
Energy Star label. This label enables customers to easily identify those products that provide the most
efficient systems.
http://www.unepie.org/pc/sustain/design/green-proc.htm
http://www.buygreen.com
SLIDE: Economic instruments—taxes
• Argentina: reduction of waste generation taxes for companies with a
recycling programme;
• Mexico: environmental taxes on gasoline depending on the lead content;
• Argentina: favourable taxes to promote the use of natural gas instead of
gasoline;
• Lithuania: accelerated depreciation;
• Belgium: eco-tax on beer if the producer does not use to 95 per cent
recycled bottles/packaging.
This slide offers concrete examples of the most commonly used economic
instruments, i.e., environmental taxes.
Background
Tax exemptions and allowances are the most widely used economic instruments. There are a number
of different environmental charges and taxes, some of which have been discussed above in the section
on emission fees and non-compliance fines. Systems based on fees and tariffs are widely used,
although it should be noted that many instruments of this kind were conceived to support overall
economic policies and collect resources, rather than for the purpose of environmental management.
A useful distinction between different kinds of environmental taxes is whether they are applied to
emissions or products. Taxes on emissions are payments that are directly related to the real or
estimated pollution caused, whether emitted into air, water or on the soil, or even as a result of the
generation of noise. Taxes on products are applied to raw materials and intermediate inputs, such as
fertilizers, pesticides, natural gravel and ground water, and on final consumer products such as
batteries, disposable packaging and car tyres. Interestingly, the largest share of income from
environment-related taxes tends to come from taxation on energy, followed by taxes related to
transport.
PAGE 102