The Western Climate Initiative (WCI) Cap-and-trade program, that covers economy-wide emissions in California and Quebec, is undergoing substantial change. This is being driven by revisions by California to align with the ambitious targets set by its 2022 Scoping Plan, which recommends a 48% reduction in GHG emissions from 1990 levels by 2030. These adjustments are crucial for California to achieve its goal of carbon neutrality by the designated deadline (2045).
Significant to this year’s modeling is the inclusion of a linkage-specific scenario where California, Quebec, and Washington potentially unite to form a cohesive Cap-and-trade system by 2027. The analysis also incorporates multiple cap scenarios that visualize exponential declines in caps post-2030 and a split of removals from Reserves and future budgets.