Climate Change: House Urges FG to Implement Carbon Credit Scheme

Udora Orizu in Abuja

The House of Representatives has urged the federal government to direct the National Council on Climate Change in collaboration with relevant ministries to immediately implement to reduce the impact of climate change in the country.

The Carbon Credit is a policy, where industries are encouraged to reduce their carbon footprint to earn calculated carbon credit (per ton of carbon), while industries which exceed emission thresholds are sanctioned with fines.
Therefore, the carbon market becomes a trading platform whereby carbon credits earned by one industry could be purchased by another to make up for their pollution.

This resolution followed the unanimous adoption of a motion moved by Sam Onuigbo from Abia State at yesterday’s plenary.
Moving the motion, Onuigbo said there was devastating impact of climate change in the world, particularly in Nigeria with desertification racing southward at a speed of 0.6km per annum, gully and coastal erosions destroying communities and farmlands, and drying up Lake Chad.

The lawmaker attributed the frequent cases of herders and farmers’ clashes with attendant deaths and flooding across several states to climate change, noting that the the 9th Assembly passed the Climate Change Bill, which was assented to by President Muhammadu Buhari on November 17, 2021 to address the impact of the condition.

He expressed worry that except Nigeria takes necessary measures to reduce the impacts of climate change in the country, the condition’s induced calamities would continue.
“Section 19(i) of the Climate Change Act stipulates that the Federal Ministry of Environment shall, in consultation with the Federal Ministry responsible for National Planning set Carbon Budget for Nigeria to keep average increases in global temperature within 2°C and pursue efforts to limit the temperature increases to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.

“Section 4(i) and (j) mandate the National Council on Climate Change to collaborate with the Federal Inland Revenue Service to develop a mechanism for Carbon Tax in Nigeria and collaborate with the Federal Ministries responsible for Environment and Trade to develop and implement a mechanism for Carbon Emission Trading.

“Section 20(4)(a) of the Climate Change Act states that the Action Plan shall serve as a basis for identifying the activities aimed at ensuring that national emissions profile is consistent with the Carbon Budget goals,” Onuigbo said.
The lawmaker said his colleagues have responsibilities for ensuring that measures were taken to avert the devastating impacts of climate change.

Adopting the motion, the House mandated its relevant committees to liaise with the National Council on Climate Change and Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment to ensure compliance and report back within one week for further Legislative action.