Lesson your impact on the environment
| The CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme (formerly known as the Carbon Reduction Commitment) is the UK's mandatory climate change and energy saving scheme, due to come into force in April 2010. Around 20,000 large public and private sector organisations will be involved in the CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme (CRC) in some way. |  |
If you qualify for the CRC scheme, non-compliance is not an option. Penalties start at £5,000 (plus £500 per day) for failure to register, with additional charges for failure to report, record or surrender sufficient allowances. Fines could easily exceed £50,000!
CRC is a UK-wide emissions trading scheme which will reduce greenhouse gas emissions from large commercial and public sector organisations, such as supermarkets, hotel chains, banks, government departments and local authorities. If your organisation, including any subsidiaries, has one or more electricity meters settled on the half-hourly market, the CRC will place legal obligations on you from April 2010.
 | Organisations will qualify as full participants if their electricity use from all half-hourly meters exceeded 6,000 MWh over the calendar year 2008. Usage information was included in a registration pack sent to all UK billing addresses for half-hourly meters in Summer 2009 (approx £500k spend per annum). |
At the start of each year participants will need to forecast their annual CO2 emissions and buy allowances from the Government to cover those emissions. At the end of the relevant year the participant will relinquish sufficient allowances to cover their actual emissions. If a participant has excess allowances these may be sold; however, if not enough allowances are held additional allowances will need to be purchased or else a fine will be due. To drive down annual emissions the Government will reduce the number of allowances released to market each year.