CONSEQUENCES OF CLIMATE POLICY FOR THE FLEMISH LABOUR MARKET
Author(s): Valentijn Bilsen, Stephanie Devisscher, Debbie Sanders, Katrien Van Dingenen, Koen Rademaekers, Jeroen Van der Laan and Antoon Soete
1. Abstract Climate policy and its impact on the economy and employment in Flanders were the starting point of this study. This is highly exploratory research, since very little information and data are available about the impact of climate policy on the Flemish economy and employment. It was expected that certain climate policy measures had an important impact on economic sectors, i.e., on traditional activities as well as on new (environment-friendly) activities. The study found that the economic effects of climate policy are rather varied: (1) Positive: it creates economic opportunities and new market niches such as the development of new technologies; (2) Negative: it generates additional costs, such as for resources to increase a process’s energy efficiency or the purchase of CO² certificates. Besides these mixed economic effects a limited neutral impact of climate policy on employment was identified based on various models and scenarios. For some sectors the overall impact is mainly positive, for others it is neutral or even negative. The transformation of sectors as a result of our climate’s impact on policy and social debate has, however, increased the need for an active policy in this frame.
Key words: Climate policy; employment; economy; impact
2. Study objectives The general objective of this study was to map the potential quantitative and qualitative impact of climate policy on the economy and on employment in Flanders. More specifically, the study focused on: (1) the opportunities, threats and challenges of climate policy for the Flemish economy; (2) the quantitative and qualitative employment potential of climate policy for the Flemish labour market; (3) the challenges and opportunities for Flemish policy (and the Flemish social dialogue), especially in terms of employment and social economy.
Clarification of key concepts The Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPB) is a European Directive. The Directive imposes a number of welldefined objectives for the energy performance of buildings and also describes the measurement and certification thereof. The Directive covers four key elements for buildings: a methodology for calculating the integrated energy performance, minimum standards, an energy performance certificate, and a regular inspection of boilers and air conditioning systems. The EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) is an EU-wide system in which emission allowances are traded between companies and emissions are thus reduced where this can be achieved in the most cost-effective way. By internalising the environmental costs associated with greenhouse gas emissions, the economy is encouraged to reduce emissions, among others by using renewable energy and by making production processes more energy-efficient.
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