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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Brought to you by the Environmental and Energy Study Institute
Ten States Seek Fraud Protection for Carbon Offset Market On January 25, California Attorney General Edmund Brown Jr., along with nine other state attorneys general, sent a letter to the Federal Trade Commission recommending tighter guidelines for businesses that sell carbon emission offset credits. These credits represent environmental projects that reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions elsewhere in the environment, allowing businesses to purchase these credits to offset their own emissions. Brown and other attorneys general are requesting that the FTC set a clearer definition of what qualifies as a carbon offset, as well as conduct more thorough research into consumers’ understanding of the offset market. “Currently, the market for these offsets is volatile, largely unregulated, and has serious potential for fraud,” Brown said. With the market for carbon offsets expected to reach $100 million annually in the United States within the next four years, the FTC recently requested public comments by January 25. The letter sent in response by Brown and attorneys general from Vermont, Arkansas, Delaware, Maine, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Illinois, Connecticut and New Hampshire outlined potential problems in the market and makes recommendations to protect potential consumers. “The Federal Trade Commission must set clear guidelines for the sale of carbon offset credits,” Brown said. “As more Americans try to offset their carbon emissions, the danger grows that some individuals will attempt to manipulate the system. Consumers must feel confident that they actually get what they pay for—real carbon reduction offsets.” Click on the following links for more information:
Minnesota Panel Approves Proposal to Cut GHGs 30 Percent by 2025 An advisory panel created by Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty approved a mixture of strategies on January 24 that would reduce the state’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by up to 30 percent by 2025. Some of the strategies include greater efficiency standards, requiring one-third of the state’s transportation fuel to come from biofuels, adopting California’s vehicle emissions standards, and participating in a regional cap-and-trade system for carbon GHG emissions. “Some of these actions are not easy to do,” said David Thornton, co-coordinator of the Minnesota Climate Change Advisory Group established by the Minnesota governor. “But these goals are attainable.” The 56-member advisory panel began meeting last spring and has been getting help from the Center for Climate Strategies--a Pennsylvania-based non-profit group that has helped two dozen other states tackle similar strategies. Some critics of the plan, including Mike Robertson, environmental policy consultant for the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce, argue that aspects of the plan lack specifics, and that further analysis of the costs to consumers and businesses is needed. Once the advisory panel approved the measures, they were forwarded to the state legislature, who must now decide which measures will be adopted. Click on the following links for more information:
Major Economies Climate Talks End without Agreement on Emission Cuts The Major Economies Meeting on Energy Security and Climate Change held in Honolulu, Hawaii, ended on January 31 with no agreement on greenhouse gas (GHG) emission targets. The meeting is the second of the “major economies meetings” proposed by US President George Bush aimed at advancing negotiations for a successor to the Kyoto Protocol, set to expire in 2012. Around 160 delegates from 16 nations, the United Nations and the European Union, attended the two-day conference, representing nations that account for 80 percent of the world’s GHG emissions. Although no reduction targets have been agreed upon yet, many delegates described the talks as the most frank and engaging negotiations so far. “We're happy the position of the United States is changing,” said Brice LaLonde, France's climate change ambassador. “Of course, we want more. We hope in the next weeks after these discussions that we'll be able to deliver more. But it's a good start.” Several delegates expressed optimism that nations may agree to a global target this year to reduce emissions by 2050. Click on the following links for more information:
Banks Set Emissions Standards for Coal Lending On February 4, three banks announced they would be setting new standards that factor in environmental risks when lending to power companies seeking to build coal-fired power plants. Citigroup, JP Morgan Chase & Co, and Morgan Stanley plan to release “The Carbon Principles,” a set of guidelines for advisers and lenders to power plants in the United States. The banks have concluded that some form of emissions cap on greenhouse gases is inevitable in the next few years, and those companies that exceed their emissions allowances will have to purchase additional permits. “What is earth-shakingly different between now and two years ago is the focus on CO2,” said Eric Fornell, vice chairman of JP Morgan's natural-resources banking division. The principles developed by the banks are intended to be industry-wide, and several other financial institutions are expected to follow their lead. “I think there will be several other banks that will join in over the next few weeks,” said Jeffrey Holzschuh, vice chairman of institutional securities at Morgan Stanley. Click on the following links for more information:
Scientists Outline Climate Change Tipping Points A study published in the February 5 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences has identified areas of the world most vulnerable to the effects of climate change and warn that they are in grave danger of reaching tipping points, beyond which they will never recover. Some of the areas most at risk include the Arctic sea ice and the Greenland ice sheet, which some scientists believe may already be beyond recovery. Areas such as the Amazon rainforest and the Boreal forest in the north were also included in the list. “There's a perception that global warming is something that will happen smoothly into the future, but some of these ecosystems go into an abrupt decline when warming reaches a certain threshold,” said Tim Lenton, an environmental scientist at the University of East Anglia and lead author of the study. Other scientists in the study represent the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research in Germany and Oxford University's Environmental Change Institute. The scientists polled 52 environmental experts and combined their responses with discussions among 36 leading climate researchers at a recent workshop in Berlin. Click on the following links for more information:
More than $300 Million Cut from EPA Budget for FY 2009 On February 4, Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, commented on President Bush's proposed 2009 budget for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). "The EPA's job is to protect the health of our families, but with this budget the President is once again sending a clear message that cleaning up our environment is not a priority for the Bush Administration," Sen. Boxer said. The President has proposed to reduce EPA's budget by $330 million (a 4.4% cut). The budget request eliminates funding for the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Registry, a $3.4 million cut, which would undermine the government's ability to track global warming pollution. The request also cuts $7 million (38%) from programs that seek to use science and technology to address global warming. Rep. John D. Dingell (D-MI), Chairman of the Committee on Energy and Commerce, said “If nothing else, the President is consistent when it comes to the EPA budget. His assault on important environmental programs continues with the lowest funding request for EPA in eight years." Click on the following links for more information: The President's FY 09 budget request for DOE’s EE/RE programs is $1.26 billion (five percent of the DOE budget)—essentially flat with the FY 08 budget request and 27 percent below FY 08 appropriations. Although there is a significant increase for geothermal and increases for biomass and building technology, the funding for DOE’s energy efficiency and renewable energy technology investments includes significant cuts in hydropower technology and tribal energy activities and zeroes out investments in weatherization assistance program grants and the Renewable Energy Production Incentive (REPI). Carol Werner, Executive Director of the Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) said, "The funding priorities reflected in the President’s FY 09 budget appear in conflict with the goals of expanding renewable energy development and making the economy more energy efficient." Click on the following links for more information:
Climate Change May Spur $7 Trillion in Clean Energy Investment A report by Cambridge Energy Research Associates (CERA) concludes that increasing public concerns about climate change -- and its potential economic and political security consequences -- are driving public policy and private investment to bring clean energy technologies to market. The report, Crossing the Divide: The Future of Clean Energy, finds that cumulative worldwide clean energy investment that could surpass $7 trillion by 2030. "We are seeing a major shift in public opinion," said Daniel Yergin, CERA's chairman. "This is providing a vital impetus that is moving clean technology across the great divide of cost, proven results, scale and maturity that has separated it from markets served by mainstream technologies." Among renewable sources, wind power is poised to make the greatest gains, followed by solar power and biofuels, while nuclear and hydroelectric generation will attract almost half of the $7 trillion, CERA said. The research firm identified a number of new clean energy technologies that show promise. They include geothermal plants, which would generate energy by tapping heat from deep in the earth, ocean generation plants, which would use wave or tidal power to generate electricity, and concentrating solar power, where the sun's rays are focused to create steam-powered electricity. Click on the following links for more information:
China Says Developed Countries Need to Lead on Climate Change On February 5, China's Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said that developed countries need to take the lead on tackling climate change because they are the highest per-capita greenhouse-gas emitters. Mr. Yang said, "In China's view they (climate change problems) are primarily caused by the high level of emissions by the developed countries over a long, long period of time and the high per capita emissions in the developed countries. China produces lots of goods which are not only used in China but all over the world, so this greenhouse-gas emission in China is not just for meeting the needs of the Chinese people.... but meeting the needs of many people in the world, especially the low-income people." Mr. Yang said China's greenhouse gas emissions per capita were only one third the level of developed countries. "As the Chinese people, some of them are still living under the poverty line, need to improve their living conditions, there will be some measured increase in greenhouse-gas emissions in China. But we will do our utmost for combating climate change," Yang said. China has set a target of lowering the per unit GDP (gross domestic product) energy consumption by one fifth between 2005 and 2010. Click on the following links for more information:
India Rejects Binding Commitment to Cut GHG Emissions On February 7, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said India will unveil in June a national plan to deal with the threat of global warming, but it will not commit to any emission targets that risk slowing economic growth. Two days earlier, at an international conference on sustainable development being held in New Delhi, PM Singh said India will ensure that its per capita emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs) never exceed those of developed countries. Since the country's per capita emissions are far below those of richer countries, India will effectively not commit to reducing carbon dioxide emissions. "We cannot continue with a global development model where some countries continue to maintain high carbon emissions while the development of options available for developing countries get constrained," said PM Singh. "We therefore need to ensure an acceptable standard of living for all our people, but would choose a sustainable path for that development." India is the world's fifth largest emitter of greenhouse gases. Click on the following links for more information:
Climate Change May Cause Significant Crop Loss in South Asia and Southern Africa A study in the February 1 issue of Science finds that within 20 years South Asia could experience severe crop loss—up to 10 percent of its regional staples—due to climate change, and by 2030 southern Africa could lose more than 30 percent of its main crop—maize. The study suggests that without effective steps towards adapting to climate change, a disastrous effect could occur in these areas. David Lobell of Stanford University said “understanding where these climate threats will be greatest, for what crops and on what timescales, will be central to our efforts at fighting hunger and poverty over the coming decades.” The studies, performed with the use of computer models, all dictate adverse effects in southern Africa and South-East Asia. However, the studies leave uncertainty in regions where the effects of global climate change on local climate is unclear—such as parts of West Africa. Additionally, the study shows some developing areas, such as the temperate wheat sections of China, could benefit from the change in climate. Switching crops or shifting the planting seasons could cut the losses. However, the researchers say “the biggest benefits will likely result from more costly measures, including the development of the new crop varieties and expansion of irrigation.” Click on the following links for more information:
Controversy over Biofuels and Net GHG Emissions Converting rainforests, peatlands, savannas or grasslands in Southeast Asia and Latin America to produce biofuels will increase global warming pollution for decades, if not centuries, according to a study published online in Science February 7 by the University of Minnesota and the Nature Conservancy. The study claims that such land conversions for corn or sugarcane (ethanol), or palms or soybeans (biodiesel) release 17 to 420 times more carbon than the annual savings from replacing fossil fuels. The study notes that some biofuels do not contribute to global warming because they do not require the conversion of native habitat. These include waste from agriculture and forest lands and native grasses and woody biomass grown on marginal lands unsuitable for crop production. A second study--written by a group of researchers from Princeton University, Woods Hole Research Center and Iowa State University--concluded that over 30 years, use of traditional corn-based ethanol would produce twice as much greenhouse gas emissions as regular gasoline. Biofuel industry officials--as well as administration and congressional officials--said that it is unfair to judge ethanol in its current form, because the industry continues to make technological advances. James L. Connaughton, chairman of the White House Council on Environmental Quality, said "Like any issue, there are ways to do it right and there are ways to do things wrong, and the same is the case to biofuels. We move as rapidly as we can to second-generation [biofuels] because those offer the best opportunity for a low environmental profile." In February 7 testimony to the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, Carol Werner, Executive Director of the Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) said, "EESI supports the inclusion of indirect land use effects in the definition of ‘lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions.’ A ton of carbon is a ton of carbon, whether it is produced directly as a result of the production process or indirectly as a result of market effects. Fortunately, our nation possesses abundant and readily available feedstocks that satisfy this criterion. These feedstocks include dedicated energy crops, such as algae and some grasses (those that grow on nonagricultural land), as well as an abundant supply of wastes and residues from agriculture, forestry, livestock production, urban wood debris, and clean construction debris. Forests cover approximately one third of the nation’s land area and much of that acreage is in need of thinning... Fuels produced from sustainable woody biomass could actually reduce the amount of indirect emissions of greenhouse gases from deforestation." Click on the following links for more information:
Events February 20, 2008 Teleconference on Carbon Trading Markets
March 4-6, 2008 Washington International Renewable Energy Conference
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Fredric Beck This EESI publication is a free, weekly electronic newsletter intended to inform interested parties, particularly the policymaker community, of the latest climate change-related news. Permission for reproduction of this newsletter is granted provided that EESI is properly acknowledged as the source. The Environmental and Energy Study Institute is a non-profit organization established in 1984 by a bipartisan, bicameral group of members of Congress to provide timely information on energy and environmental policy issues to policymakers and stakeholders and develop innovative policy solutions that set us on a cleaner, more secure and sustainable energy path. |
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