London, Sheffield – LAWFUEL – The Law News Network – Teresa Hitcock, one of DLA Piper Rudnick Gray Cary’s (“DLA Piper”) environmental law experts, has addressed a major seminar in Singapore looking at how Asian companies can and should respond to global climate change.
Teresa was invited to speak at the high-profile event organised by the UK Presidency of the European Union and the Singapore Association of Environment, Occupational Health and Safety Companies.
The seminar focused on climate change issues including green house gas emissions, renewable energy and carbon emissions trading.
Teresa is a partner in the Sheffield office of DLA Piper and national head of safety, health and environment within the Regulatory Group. She is also head of DLA Piper’s climate change and emissions trading group, a multidisciplinary group of practitioners throughout Europe with experience of providing legal advice on climate change and emissions trading issues.
The seminar formed part of the UK Presidency’s drive to encourage Singapore to become the hub of emissions trading in South East Asia, as London is for Europe. It was attended by business leaders, legal, financial and project developers from both the UK and Singapore.
Teresa spoke about regulatory and compliance issues around climate change which provide opportunities and challenges for the development of Asian clean development mechanisms (CDM).
These mechanisms are designed to make it easier and cheaper for industrialised countries to meet the greenhouse gas emission reduction targets agreed to under the Kyoto Protocol. The CDM is also geared to help developing countries achieve sustainable development.
Teresa explained: “Industrialised countries pay for projects that cut or avoid emissions in developing countries and are awarded credits that can be applied to meeting their own emissions targets.
“The recipient countries benefit from the transfer of advanced technology that allows their factories or electrical generating plants to operate more efficiently, and hence at lower costs and higher profits. And the atmosphere benefits because future emissions are lower than they would have been otherwise.
“Future investment in clean development projects in Asia and any related transfer of climate change technology will be affected by the regulatory regime in Europe and any major changes to that regime.”
