A government-appointed committee on Thursday proposed Japan cut its GHG emissions to 26% below 2013 levels by 2030, expecting the Joint Crediting Mechanism (JCM) to generate cuts of 50-100 million tonnes of CO2.

The proposal by the committee, which consisted of experts and industry representatives appointed by the Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, was in line with numbers leaked to local media last weekend.

It said Japan would meet the target by increasing the share of renewable energy in electricity supply in 2030 to 22-24%, and nuclear power to 20-22%.

About 56% of supply would come from fossil fuels, primarily coal and LNG.

The committee said it expected accumulated government-funded emission cuts through the JCM to reach 50-100 million tonnes of CO2e between now and 2030, but was vague on whether those cuts should be part of Japan’s INDC for Paris.

The JCM has currently only registered four projects, with a total capacity to cut emissions by around 500 tonnes of CO2e each year.

The proposed target is intended to be similar to the United States pledge to cut its emissions 26-28% below 2005 levels by 2025, but drew criticism from green groups.

“This proposal completely lacks determination to transform Japan into a low-carbon society,” Naoyuki Yamagushi with WWF Japan told Carbon Pulse.

“It shows no ambition in expanding renewables. It lacks leadership in energy efficiency. It doesn’t learn lessons from the past, by keeping nuclear and coal high. This won’t be recognised as a ‘fair and ambitious’ contribution by the international society for achieving the 2 degree target,” he said.

The cabinet is expected to make a final decision on the 2030 target in mid-May and announce it in June, although most observers expect it to be quite similar to Thursday’s proposal.

By Stian Reklev – stian@carbon-pulse.com