In order to enforce the Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC), which was recently renamed the CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme, the Environment Agency has created a new unit to regulate companies with high CO2 emissions . The new team, which will comprise approximately 50 inspectors and auditors, will have warrant cards to enable them to search company premises. They will have the power to examine gas and electricity bills and carbon-trading records and to monitor power meters in a bid to bring excessive CO2 emissions under control. They will also be able to demand utility bills from providers without the knowledge of the company concerned.
The CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme will commence with a reporting year from April 2010. It is estimated that approximately 6,000 businesses in Britain will be affected, with around 1,200 businesses being audited every year. The scheme has been introduced to ensure that medium and large companies address the impact that their activities have on the environment.
One element of the scheme is that companies will have to buy a carbon allowance (initially £12) for each tonne of CO2 they emit. The first sales of allowances will be held in April 2011. The money will be paid into a central fund, with those whose energy efficiency is poor obtaining only some of their money back, whilst well-performing companies will get a surplus. From 2013, each tonne will be sold by auction, so it seems the price is inevitably going to rise.
The unit will also publish an annual report ranking companies according to how effectively they have cut their emissions, which could be potentially damaging to companies which fail to improve energy efficiency standards.
Click here for more details of the scheme.