Japan's environment minister on carbon pricing

(18 Jan 2022) Japan's environment minister said his government is preparing to introduce carbon tax as part of an effort to speed up emissions cut to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 as Japan promised. While Japan is seen to be dragging its feet in eliminating coal-fired plants, Environment Minister Tsuyoshi Yamaguchi says the country should take credit for contributing to an agreement on market mechanisms _ a deal that supports the transfer of emission cuts between countries while also giving incentives to the private sector to invest in climate-friendly solutions. To further promote emissions reduction, Yamaguchi said, the government is considering introducing a carbon tax based on emissions in a bid to raise incentives for further cuts. That would also help Japan to contribute to other countries under the "Asia zero-emissions community" vision, unveiled Monday by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, he said. Currently, Japan is working to establish technology to burn ammonia at conventional coal fired power plants and gradually increase its proportion until it becomes coal-free during the 2040s, while also pushing to speed up development of carbon capture use and storage (CCUS) technology. Environmental groups and critics say such measures are only prolonging use of coal and carbon emissions, and that Japan should focus more on promoting renewables. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...