Measure for measure? Commensuration, commodification, and metrology in emissions markets and beyond

Abstract

The proliferation of markets and market-based policy instruments in environmental governance is premised on the establishment of metrological regimes and the practices of measurement, commensuration, and commodification that underlie these regimes. This paper develops the concept of metrology and examines its role in the function and dysfunction of emissions trading markets. The concept invites us to question the social, political, and scientific conditions under which agreements about measurement and commensuration do or do not occur, and the consequences or effects of particular metrological systems. The paper provides three examples of how measurement, commensuration, and commodification have framed the design and function of emissions markets in order to illustrate the effects of particular metrologies on market rule. Contrary to claims that measurement serves as a means to ‘cool’ political disputes, this paper argues that because markets inevitably have distributional effects, the metrological systems which frame market design are frequently a site of focused political contestation. Seeing measurement and commensuration as inherently political can also provide insight into ongoing disagreements about the appropriate metrics and responsibilities for mitigating climate change and the form and function of markets more generally.