Targeting Supply and Demand of Carbon-intensive Materials as a Strategy for Greenhouse Gas Reductions: The Case of Iron and Steel

Abstract

The IPCC Fifth Assessment Report further elucidates the impacts and seriousness of climate change and shows that negative impacts will be even more severe unless immediate actions are taken. Anthropogenic CO₂ emissions are the main cause of climate change. Iron and steel are among the most carbon-intensive materials, produced in a small number of countries, and traded globally. International climate negotiations often focus on country-by-country targets and evaluations. Country-based measures are not a silver bullet, however, because production is often not just for a country's own consumption, but also for other countries; also, scrap steel, which can help reduce CO₂ emissions from steel production, is often in limited supply in countries experiencing rapid growth in the economy, and thus in demand for steel as well. The development of effective climate measures therefore requires integrated consideration of both supply and demand of carbon-intensive materials.