The Regulation of the voluntary carbon credit market

Theoretical Analysis of the new legal framework under approval in Congress

Resumen

This article aims to examine the emerging regulation of the voluntary carbon credit market in Brazil, represented by Bill No. 2,148 of 2015, recently approved by the Chamber of Deputies. Starting from the key question “why regulate” something that has been operating for many years based on certifications made by private entities, it will show that state regulation has come to meet the desires of those regulated themselves, with a view to the legal security it will provide to the market. In its development, a contextualization of the carbon credit market will first be made, discussing its origin and its main operational characteristics. Next, the article will discuss regulatory concepts, in order to contribute to a better understanding of the theme and the model being proposed. Finally, it will present the main aspects of the new regulatory framework, examining it in light of the regulatory theory presented. In the conclusions, the answer is reaffirmed that the justification for the new legal framework was to provide legal certainty and thereby stimulate the development of this market, contributing to the reduction and control of greenhouse gases in Brazil. It is also worth highlighting the hybridity of regulatory instruments present in the bill and the broad debate that guided its processing, in line with the transparency of the democratic process.