[pp.61-68]
Masahiko IGUCHI (Tokyo Institute of Technology)
Abstract:
The road transport sector accounts for about 16% of the total amount of global carbon dioxide (CO2), which is increasing rapidly. Due to its considerable economic growth, the Asia-Pacific region is among the most important areas when it comes to addressing greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation in terms of the road transport sector. This paper sheds light on Japan‘s proposal for a road transport task force in the Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate (APP). This paper asks why the proposal failed despite its importance, and identifies the lessons and implications that this proposal has in terms of the shape of future institutional frameworks in the road transport sector that will address GHG emissions. As a result of the examination, this paper points out that the proposal had resulted in failure due to limitations that are rooted in a shift of the Japanese government‘s preferences from APP to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) when it comes to pursuing its international climate policy in the road transport sector. Lessons from the failure of Japan‘s proposal to be adopted by the APP lead us to anticipate that climate policy in the road transport sector should be addressed at various levels and gradually facilitate a network between these efforts.
Key Word:
Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate, climate change, road transport sector, institutiona framework, Japan