ENVIRONMENTAL MARKETS ASSOCIATION Resources

EMA Market Policy Priorities

On March 4, 2024, the Board of the Environmental Markets Association (EMA) unanimously voted to approve the following Market Policy Priorities. EMA's position and mission is to promote open, competitive, and tradable market-based solutions and these policy priorities aim to address barriers and threats to the continued use and expansion of Environmental Commodity Instruments.

Members and supporters of EMA are invited to download and use the following resources for education, promotion and advocacy purposes. In the event that the content is changed, EMA requests the opportunity to review the modified documents. Please submit your requested changes to [email protected]

Environmental Market Design Principles

EMA’s mission is to promote open, competitive, and tradable market-based solutions that utilize environmental attribute certificates (EACs) to solve environmental challenges and foster investment into sustainable development.
Open

Non-discriminatory market access to production-based incentives

Competitive

Producer and consumer procurement/compliance choice

Tradeable

Floating, market-determined pricing and investment signals via environmental commodity instruments

Environmental Market Design Principles

1. Tradeable Environmental Instruments
2. Market-Determined Pricing
3. Market Design that Fosters Transparency, Competition, Liquidity and Innovation
4. Market Oversight
5. Market Integrity and Stability

Advantages of Well-Designed Market-Based Solutions

  • Accountable Environmental Policy Objectives
  • Cost-Effective Sustainability Target Achievement
Environmental Target Achievement

Effective market-based mechanism design facilitates the achievement of targets required in timeframes.

Cost-Effectiveness

Well-designed markets deliver results through the efficient deployment of low-cost solutions.

Economic Development

Highly compatible, growth-oriented policies that legerage private investment at private risk into real physical assets, infrastructure, and technology.

Features of Well-Designed Market-Based Mechanisms

  • Private Investment at Private Risk
  • Pricing & Program Transparency
  • Risk Mitigation/Transference
  • Compliance/Procurement Flexibility
  • Consumer & Ratepayer Protection
  • Buyer Preference Accommodation (e.g. Technology, Location, Granularity, Vintage, etc)
  • Diverse Participant Bases
  • Information Feedback Signals
  • Investor Confidence
  • Market Efficiency & Liquidity
  • Lower Costs of Capital
  • Financial & Technological Innovation
Join the Market Principles Committee

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

Download the EMA's Market Policy Priorities