Paris Agreement Article 6.2 in action

A brief and significant update on global climate action under the Paris Agreement. Yesterday, Switzerland and Peru jointly announced the signing of the first agreement for coop-er-ative imple-men-tation of climate projects under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement.

While parties await rules, procedures and modalities to enable the operation of Article 6.4 of the Paris Agreement, as signalled by Swiss negotiators at the conclusion of the COP25 negotiations in Madrid, Article 6.2 is open for use as it stands. The Katowice Climate Package, concluded in Poland at COP24, establishes requirements for parties to report on use of Article 6 measures as part of the enhanced transparency framework. Further guidance on Article 6.2 is welcomed and contemplated under the recently signed agreement. Also in a joint statement released yesterday, Peru and Switzerland confirmed their commitment to deliver a full Paris Agreement Rule Book at COP26. However as the Swiss-Peru agreement demonstrates, parties are prepared to move forward with bilateral arrangements in the meantime.

The recently concluded bilateral agreement notes Switzerland and Peru's intention to amend the agreement so that it is consistent with further guidance once it is adopted by the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting to the Parties of the Paris Agreement (CMA). In this way it provides flexibility, while also addressing some of the more heavily negotiated issues at the international level, including defining internationally transferred mitigation outcomes (ITMOs), establishing criteria for environmental integrity, protecting against double counting and establishing a process for corresponding adjustments in relation to transferred mitigation outcomes. The agreement also includes provisions to ensure investments are additional to international climate finance.

The bilateral agreement also reaffirms the parties commitment to human rights and the parties endorsement of the San Jose Principles for High Ambition and Integrity in International Markets - a set of principles circulated to the Chilean COP25 Presidency in Madrid and endorsed by 32 country parties, including Switzerland and Peru. Commitments in the bilateral agreement, including to the San Jose Principles, push forward on contentious issues at COP25, including prohibiting the use of pre-2020 units, Kyoto units and allowances toward Paris Agreement and other international goals (use of 'carry over' units). 

The cooperative implementation agreement under Article 6.2 is an important and significant step alongside other emerging measures piloting the use of Article 6 mechanisms. It is also a further indication of commitments by countries to a different kind of economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. A copy of the Agreement can be found here.

~ Emily