Tokyo mulls Japan's first binding emissions targets

Officials in Tokyo are to propose amendments to an upcoming climate change bill that would set binding emissions targets for factories and large offices in the city from 2010.

According to Reuters' reports, the bill would enable the capital to introduce a cap-and-trade scheme covering up to 1,300 firms.

Satoshi Yamashita, director at Tokyo's environmental policy planning section, told the news agency that the pioneering scheme was necessary if Tokyo is to meet its target of cutting emissions by 25 per cent on 2000/01 levels by 2020/21.

He added that the Metropolitan Government was confident the proposals would be approved. "We understand that assembly members in general agree with a plan to cap emissions of major polluters and also with a trading scheme of emissions... We're hoping the bill will be passed in the next regular session starting in June," he said.

The move comes as the federal government is continuing work to assess the feasibility of introducing a nationwide cap-and-trade scheme. Announced earlier this year, the viability study has been broadly welcomed with Japan's influential Business Federation dropping its opposition to the proposed scheme.

Meanwhile, the Japanese Ministry of the Environment has released data underlining the success of the country's voluntary cap-and-trade scheme. The Ministry claims that the 73 companies signed up to the scheme are on track to cut emissions by 330,000 tonnes in 2009 as a result of the trading mechanism.