NewsRack: newstrust/Global-Warming/Solutions/Emissions-Trading

Bombshell: China May Be Close To Implementing A Cap On Carbon Pollution - Think Progres

Katie Valentine — Wed, 22 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Bombshell: China May Be Close To Implementing A Cap On Carbon Pollution

Drumbeat: May 20, 2013 - The Oil Drum

Leanan — Sun, 19 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Wells Dry, Fertile Plains Turn to Dust Vast stretches of Texas farmland lying over the aquifer no longer support irrigation. In west-central Kansas, up to a fifth of the irrigated farmland along a 100-mile swath of the aquifer has already gone dry. In many other places, there no longer is enough water to supply farmers’ peak needs during Kansas’ scorching summers. And when the groundwater runs out, it is gone for good. Refilling the aquifer would require hundreds, if not thousands, of years of rains. This is in many ways a slow-motion crisis — decades in the making, imminent for some, years or decades away for others, hitting one farm but leaving an adjacent one untouched. But across the rolling plains and tarmac-flat farmland near the Kansas-Colorado border, the effects of depletion are evident everywhere. Highway bridges span arid stream beds. Most of the creeks and rivers that once veined the land have dried up as 60 years of pumping have pulled groundwater levels down by scores and even ...

Letter: Cutting Carbon Emissions - NY Times: Editorials

Sun, 19 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Letter: Cutting Carbon Emissions

Analysis-Airline Emissions Deal May Not Come Before EU Deadline - International Herald Tribune: Americas

By REUTERS — Sat, 18 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Analysis-Airline Emissions Deal May Not Come Before EU Deadline

Ramez Naam: 7 reasons China might lead the world in fighting climate change - Twincities.com: Opinion

Fri, 10 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

China is an environmental mess. Smog in Beijing is so bad it's literally broken the air-quality index. In Shanghai, it's at times turned the city into a scene from "Blade Runner." (It almost matches the infamous Cleveland smog of the 1970s.) Meanwhile, thousands of dead pigs -- cause of death not yet known -- have been floating down a river that cuts through Shanghai and provides part of the region's drinking water. More than half of China's water is so polluted, in fact, that even treatment plants can't make it safe to drink. And China is now responsible for almost half the world's coal consumption. That coal burning not only contributes to climate change -- it's also saddled China with severe cases of acid rain, something the United States dealt with a generation ago.

Drumbeat: May 10, 2013 - The Oil Drum

Leanan — Thu, 09 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

At Least 9 More Decades for North Sea Oil Oil and gas production in the UK North Sea can continue until the end of this century provided the right government policy decisions are made, according to Scottish Energy Minister Fergus Ewing. ..."In domestic terms, the [Scottish] industry is having a second major opportunity with a huge number major new developments going ahead, some of which are extensions of existing developments. For example, the Clair Ridge field has the potential to produce oil until 2055 according to BP." ..."The Clair field was actually discovered in 1977, and that's ironic because we were told by London that the oil would run out in the 90s, and then in the 90s that it was going to run out in the Noughties," Ewing said. "I think it's a theme that's losing credibility because if BP comes along and says the Clair Ridge field will continue to produce until 2055 it's a bit liberal to say the oil is going to run out because it ain't." Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest crude ...

Editorial: A Carbon Trading System Worth Saving - NY Times: Editorials

By THE EDITORIAL BOARD — Mon, 06 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Editorial: A Carbon Trading System Worth Saving

May 6 News: The EU’s Carbon Trading System Not Dead Yet - Think Progres

Ryan Koronowski — Sun, 05 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

May 6 News: The EU’s Carbon Trading System Not Dead Yet

European carbon market in trouble - Washington Post: World

Anthony Faiola — Sun, 05 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

LONDON — As the centerpiece of Europe’s pledge to lead the global battle against climate change, the region’s market for carbon emissions effectively turned pollution into a commodity that could be traded like gold or oil. But the once-thriving pollution trade here has turned into a carbon bust. ...

China leads in climate change's 'critical decade' - New Scientist: GM Organisms

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 18:30:00 GMT

China leads in climate change's 'critical decade'

Carbon Market Crossroads: New Ideas for Harnessing Global Markets to Confront Climate Change - Think Progres

Climate Guest Blogger — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Carbon Market Crossroads: New Ideas for Harnessing Global Markets to Confront Climate Change

Drumbeat: April 29, 2013 - The Oil Drum

Leanan — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Ready (or Not?) for a Great Coming Shale Boom The Cline Shale, thousands of feet underground in a roughly 10-county swath, is just one of many little-tapped shale formations in Texas and across the nation, geologists say. That means the potential for oil and gas discoveries is theoretically huge, and the reason is technology. The rock-breaking process known as hydraulic fracturing, coupled with the ability to drill horizontally underground, has allowed drillers to retrieve oil and gas from previously inaccessible areas. Many shales will be too expensive or too small to develop, especially if oil prices fall or environmental regulations tighten. But in Texas, which is already the top oil-producing state, bullishness about a new era is pervasive. “We’re back into another phase of wildcatting, like the old-timers,” said Jamie Small, the president of Icon Petroleum, a Midland-based company that has worked in areas including the Cline Shale and another early-stage formation, the Tuscaloosa ...

Pretty bubbles of disaster - The Earth Times Online Newspaper - Environment News

Sat, 20 Apr 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Will the financial world let us down again, or could a switch to low carbon economies be encouraged by their actions?

EU climate chief vows to save scheme - Guardian: Environment

Fiona Harvey, Connie Hedegaard — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Connie Hedegaard's attempts to introduce longer-term reforms will face fierce opposition from a powerful business lobby Europe's climate chief vowed on Wednesday to fight on to save the EU's flagship environmental policy, the emissions trading system (ETS), after a serious blow on Tuesday when MEPs rejected reforms aimed at repairing the ailing system . MEPs voted 334 against to 315 in favour of "backloading" the market – a proposal aimed to reverse the plummeting price of carbon that has resulted from a surplus of permits in the ETS market – leading the price of carbon to fall by almost half to under €3 on Tuesday. Connie Hedegaard, EU commissioner for climate action, said: "We are preparing structural [longer-term reforms]. We will have new meetings for stakeholders, in parallel with an impact assessment. We are preparing an initiative." The proposals include measures to restrict rights to carbon permits under the system, and to allow for reviews of the number of permits companies ...

Green Column: Europe Faces a Crisis in Energy Costs - International Herald Tribune: Business

By STANLEY REED — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Green Column: Europe Faces a Crisis in Energy Costs

Europe Rejects Carbon Plan - NY Times: Europe

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Europe Rejects Carbon Plan

The crowded chasm: the place of science in the Australian government | Paul Harris - Guardian: Science

Paul Harris — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Policymakers in Australia are developing more sophisticated approaches to science and evidence, says Paul Harris in his contribution to our series on science advice The lead-up to the last federal election was a time of unusually high drama for the Australian government. Just two months ahead of the poll, prime minister Kevin Rudd stood down after losing the support of his party, and was replaced by his deputy Julia Gillard . Bitter debate raged about the science and politics of climate change, with Rudd having retreated from a planned emissions trading scheme. And an ambitious public service reform agenda, driven by Rudd and the secretary of his department, Terry Moran, was parked while the focus shifted to campaigning and voting. In this context, the Australian Academy of Science issued a science policy election statement in August 2010. Among its priorities was an emphasis on the importance of science in government policy. According to the academy: "Relatively few Australian ...

Drumbeat: April 10, 2013 - The Oil Drum

Leanan — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Stuart Staniford: Should The Last Few Years Have Updated Your Idea of Peak Oil? For oil production to halve over the next twenty years, it would have to decline on average by 3.5%/yr throughout that time (possibly some years by more, some years by less). Above I have posted the average annual change in oil production 1965-2012 (with data from BP except for 2012 from EIA). I have also added a linear trend line out to 2040. Obviously, this is a rather rough time series and the linear fit is not particularly strong and the extrapolation not particularly stable. But it's not clear that anything else will work much better - global oil production is a very complex process that we understand poorly. In that situation, we are probably best sticking to very simple models and acknowledging their severe limitations. At any rate, the straight line implies that peak oil (in the sense of "average growth is zero") was in about 2009. The straight line also implies that we would not reach average growth being ...

Failure to put climate on G8 agenda will cast a shadow on 'greenest government' | Will Straw - Guardian: Environment

Will Straw — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 18:30:00 GMT

The move may undermine our last hope for an international agreement that could avert catastrophic climate change On Wednesday, William Hague will host a meeting of foreign ministers from the G8 group of rich countries paving the way for a gathering of the countries' leaders in June. The existential threat presented by Iran and North Korea is on the agenda for both. But the real and present danger of climate change will not be discussed at the leaders' summit. It was recently revealed that David Cameron's adviser for Europe and global issues, Ivan Rogers, blocked moves from Germany and France to make climate change a G8 agenda item. This is short-sighted and risks undermining the last hope for an international agreement that could avert catastrophic climate change. According to Faith Birol, chief economist at the International Energy Agency, the world has just four years to implement the changes necessary to avoid a temperature increase above 2C. If we wait any longer, we will lock ...

A carbon market takes root in California - San Jose Mercury News: News

Thu, 28 Feb 2013 18:30:00 GMT

The concept of using a market-based approach to reduce greenhouse gases is here to stay.

Green Column: Emissions Trade in E.U. Is Sputtering - International Herald Tribune: Business

By STANLEY REED — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 18:30:00 GMT

President Obama hopes to introduce an emissions trading system in the U.S., but a similar scheme in Europe has not encouraged companies to cut their levels of pollutants.

'Green News Report' - February 19, 2013 - BradBlog

Tue, 19 Feb 2013 18:30:00 GMT

IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: All hands on deck (if not the corporate media!) for the largest climate rally in U.S. history... but is President Obama all talk and no action?; Secret memo reveals tar sands are poisoning Alberta, Canada; PLUS: Mayor Bloomberg's big plans to greenify NYC ... All that ...

Drumbeat: February 15, 2013 - The Oil Drum

Leanan — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 18:30:00 GMT

Shale LPG Poised to Make U.S. Net Exporter for First Year The U.S. is poised to become a net exporter of liquefied petroleum gases for the first year ever as shale-based energy production jumps, prompting new orders for specialized ships to haul propane and butane. Daily LPG shipments equated to a record 194,000 barrels in last year’s first 11 months, outpacing imports at 169,700 barrels, U.S. Energy Information Administration figures show. That’s the first time the country was a net exporter in records going back to 1973, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. West Texas Intermediate oil fell, trimming its ninth weekly gain in 10 weeks. Open interest for the U.S. benchmark grade rose to a record while a report signaled OPEC will cut crude shipments this month. WTI fell as much 0.7 percent in New York, paring its advance this week to 1.2 percent. Prices gained 0.3 percent yesterday as the number of contracts outstanding rose to the highest level since the futures began trading on the New ...

EU urged to revive flagging emissions trading scheme - The Guardian -- World Latest

Fiona Harvey — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 18:30:00 GMT

More than 30 large companies sign up to call for reforms ahead of key vote in European parliament next week Investors and a group of large businesses have urged the EU to revive its flagging emissions trading scheme (ETS), ahead of a key vote in the European parliament next week. Shell, General Electric, Kingfisher, Unilever and EDF were among more than 30 large companies signing up to call for reforms that would raise carbon prices and restore confidence in the scheme, which is meant to cut the EU's carbon output. The Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change (IIGCC), which represents investors and asset managers worth €7.5 trillion, also joined the call for reform. But the suggested way of improving the scheme – a short-term fix of holding back some carbon permits from sale – is complex and it is uncertain whether MEPs will pass the proposal when it comes before the environment committee next Tuesday. The emissions trading scheme has been on life support for months, as prices ...

Australian politics cools off on climate change – even as the temperature rises - The Guardian -- World Latest

Oliver Milman — Sun, 03 Feb 2013 18:30:00 GMT

The 2013 poll will pit rampant denialism against grudging action based on political expediency In 2007, a tyro Australian opposition leader called Kevin Rudd held a summit in which he labelled climate change the "great moral challenge of our generation" and, rather optimistically, added "we should be at a stage in this country where climate change is beyond politics". Within months, Rudd swept to power in a landmark election that deposed John Howard, the long-term conservative prime minister and climate-change curmudgeon. Australia, one of the world's leading per capita emitters and the foremost coal exporter on the planet , swiftly signed up to the Kyoto protocol , with the government promising its own cap-and-trade bill. But in 2013, Rudd's idealism on the issue of climate change now appears naive or even archaic.His emissions trading plan was abandoned in 2010, with Rudd himself ousted as prime minister after a $20m industry campaign against a proposed tax on mining . If 2007 was ...