2023/12/04 by Bardinal, Marc, Borde, Cyrielle, Mousset, Jérôme
#Agriculture #Azote #Incentive #Incitation #Innovation #Nitrogen #Plant-protection products #Politique publique #Produits phytosanitaires Agriculture #Public policy
paper · doi:10.17180/4qac-7d18
Energy savings certificates (ESC) are an innovative mechanism devised to reduce energy consumptions in diffuse sectors such as residential (existing building) and agricultural sectors. EEC principles are based on the relationships between suppliers and final energy consumers. Suppliers, also called “the obligated parties” have an obligation with a target of energy savings. They must encourage their customers to carry out investments in energy-efficient equipment, at the risk of paying a penalty if their target is not achieved at the end of a 3-year period. The loads and the risks are thus distributed between the different actors of the sectors. In the agricultural sector, 27 standardised operations can generate certificates. All agricultural activities are concerned but agricultural ESC are mainly used for greenhouses, representing less than 1% of national ESC, all sectors taken together. A better adaptation of this mechanism to the characteristics of agriculture can encourage the reduction of indirect energy consumption and other agricultural inputs affecting the environment such as fertilisers and plant protection chemicals. Despite some difficulties such as the evaluation of the actions for reducing the agricultural inputs, this mechanism offers new prospects for accompanying the agricultural sector toward environmentally-friendly practices. In particular, its flexibility supports innovations and collective approaches.