Green Credit Program

Latest Context

On 13 October, 2023 Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) notifies two green initiatives ahead of COP28 of United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

 Key Points

Green Credit Program (GCP) and Ecomark Scheme were notified under Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 and reflect the ideas of LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) mission to promote sustainable lifestyle and environmental conservation.

Green Credit Program (GCP): Incentivizing Environmental Actions

1. GCP aims to incentivise environmental positive actions across diverse sectors by various stakeholders like communities through market-based mechanism and generate Green Credit (GC).

2. GC is tradable and made available for trading on a domestic market platform.

3. In its initial phase, GCP focuses on water conservation and afforestation.

4. Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE) serves as GCP Administrator, responsible for program implementation, management, monitoring, and operation.

5. GCP is independent of carbon credit programme under Carbon Credit Trading Scheme, 2023 made under Energy Conservation Act, 2001.

Ecomark Scheme: Promoting Eco-Friendly Products

1. It replaces the previous Notification of 1991.

2. It provides accreditation and labelling for household and consumer products that meet specific environmental criteria while maintaining quality standards as per Indian norms.

3. It is administered by Central Pollution Control Board in partnership with Bureau of Indian Standards (national body for standards and certification).

4. Ecomark Portal and Knowledge and Database Platform shall be developed to promote adoption of eco-labelling.

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