EPA plans to replace old scooters

CARBON INVESTMENT:
Under this program, people can earn carbon credits that they can trade on a market system, but an academic said they might not generate high returns.

• By Lo Chi, Yang Mien-chieh and Jonathan Chin / Staff Journalists, with Editor-in-Chief

The Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) is considering a carbon credit program to encourage people to replace aging scooters with electric ones, EPA Deputy Minister Tsai Hung-teh (蔡鴻德) said on Friday.

The program would replace the current vehicle subsidy program next year with a system that rewards people with a carbon credit and NT $ 2,000 for each electric motorcycle purchased to replace a conventional scooter 14 years or older, he said. he declares.

People could redeem their credits on one or more dedicated platforms, Tsai said, adding that a credit’s benchmark value would be determined later.

The program is part of a government goal to be carbon neutral by 2050, an effort that involves creating a regulatory framework for all sources of mobile pollution and rethinking transport as a service, he said. -he declares.

The government’s overall goal is to encourage the use of public transport, electric vehicles and other low-emission transportation options, Tsai added.

The EPA’s announcement received mixed reactions from environmentalists and businesses, with many experts saying the program was not providing enough incentive to buy a new vehicle.

Tsai Chung-yue (蔡中岳), deputy general manager of Citizen of the Earth, Taiwan, said the government deserved praise for creating an innovative program, adding that the program could help Taiwanese keep up with their TV shows. carbon.

However, evidence suggests that carbon markets do not effectively reduce emissions, he said, adding that the government would achieve better results by making public transport cheaper and more efficient.

The price of the EPA carbon offset should initially be set at NT $ 100, which means that a carbon credit would earn only NT $ 29 in one year and less than NT $ 1,000 in 10 years, assuming that Quintuple Carbon Offset Prices and Electric Vehicle The industry is powered entirely by renewable energy, said Chao Chia-wei (趙家 緯), adjunct assistant professor of climate change and sustainability at National Taiwan University.

“Subsidies are greater than credits as an incentive to buy [electric vehicles]”said Chao, adding that the costs and bureaucracy associated with obtaining carbon credit certificates are intimidating for the average consumer.

The motorcycle industry expects to lose 720,000 sales if the EPA makes its vehicle subsidy changes, said Kwang Yang Motor general manager Ko Chun-ping (柯俊斌).

The carbon footprint of an electric motorcycle is roughly the same as that of a gasoline powered scooter due to the emissions associated with the total battery life cycle, a SYM Motors spokesperson said, adding that the EPA should not favor one type of vehicle over another.

Additional reports by Yang Ya-min