Abstract
Many local governments have introduced “reporting systems” which oblige the larger scale of factories and offices to submit their plans and reports on mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions. As effectiveness of climate policy is enhanced by nationwide/worldwide implementation, examining the relationship between effectiveness and diffusion of local climate policies is essential. This paper clarifies a relationship between potential effectiveness and diffusion of the system, and derives and barriers for the policy diffusion. Interviews and questionnaire to the officials in local governments which have introduced the system indicates the followings.
1) There are three major factors which affect to the system design and operation; the reference point (TMG [Tokyo Metropolitan Government] system or not), the actors who affect to the introduction process, and industrial sector′s component ratio of CO2 emission.
2) The local governments who introduce the possible system in the status quo for the first time and upgrade the effectiveness in a stepwise fashion like TMG is limited, because they have enough resource to input for mere notification system. Consequently, many local governments do not have a prospect on introducing a reduction obligation and are in a wait-and-see attitude to wide-range unity and similar local governments.
