Environmental and Energy Study Institute

Carol Werner, Executive Director
February 8, 2010

News

• Obama's FY 2011 Budget Pushes Clean Technologies, Cuts Fossil Fuel Incentives
• President Introduces Initiatives for Biofuels, Coal
• Administration Sets Targets on Agencies' Greenhouse-Gas Emissions
• Obama, Sen. Graham Speak Out Against Separating Energy and Climate Legislation
• Over 50 Nations Submit GHG Targets; UN Fears It May Not Be Enough
• Canada Matches U.S. Carbon Emissions Target
• Pentagon Ranks Global Warming As a Destabilizing Force
• California Sets Up Statewide Network to Monitor Global-Warming Gases
• UK Introduces Feed-in Tariff For Low-Carbon Power
• Report Finds Inaction on Climate Change a Threat to Food Prices
• Suppliers That Do Not Manage CO2 Could Lose Clients
• IMF Working on Multi-Billion Dollar Climate Fund
• Flight Management Reduces Aviation Emissions
• Declining Wolverine Numbers Linked to Climate Change
• Trees Growing Faster Due to Global Warming
• Climate Change Threatens Waterfowl in Prairie Regions
• Other Headlines

On February 1, President Obama released his FY 2011 budget containing $6 billion in support for clean energy research, development and demonstration, while removing tax preferences to fossil fuels worth $40 billion over the next 10 years. Last year’s budget proposal contained provisions to cut support and impose fees on oil and gas companies totaling $30 billion, but not all measures were maintained by Congress. The budget provided the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) an additional $47 million to make plans and regulate carbon dioxide emissions; $21 million would go to implement a Mandatory Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule for polluters, $25 million to aid state permitting activities, $7 million to develop New Source Performance Standards for major stationary facilities, and $6 million to support mobile source regulatory programs. The President’s budget sought a three year temporary freeze in all non-military discretionary spending to help curb the increasing federal debt.

For additional information see: New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Reuters

On February 3, President Obama announced three measures to boost biofuels production and an order for interagency collaboration to speed up carbon capture and storage for coal plants. First, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized a rule regarding the lifecycle analysis of greenhouse gasses (GHGs) associated with biofuel production necessary to move forward on statutory obligations to produce 36 billion gallons of biofuel by 2022. The agency concluded that corn ethanol produced with energy-efficient means produces 20 percent less GHGs than gasoline. In addition, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) issued a draft rule for a program to support the production of biomass energy resources, while the Biofuels Interagency Working Group, co-chaired by USDA, Department of Energy, and EPA, released a new plan to advance biofuels production and use.

The President also moved forward on a campaign promise to accelerate the research and demonstrate carbon capture and storage (CCS) for coal fired power generation. He established the Interagency Task Force on Carbon Capture and Storage tasked with the purpose of developing a comprehensive and coordinated federal strategy to hasten CCS deployment. The task force has 180 days to produce a plan to reduce the costs of carbon capture and storage and make it what Chu called "an affordable solution" in 10 years. It calls for five to 10 commercial demonstration projects by 2016.

For additional information see: Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, AP, Houston Chronicle, DOE Press Release

On January 30, President Obama issued Executive Order 13514 which specified greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions targets for the federal government. The executive order covers 35 government agencies that must submit plans to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) by June for meeting an emissions reduction target of 28 percent below 2008 levels by 2020. The federal government spent more than $24.5 billion on electricity and fuel in 2008, roughly 1.5 percent of the country's total energy spending. "As the largest energy consumer in the United States, we have a responsibility to American citizens to reduce our energy use and become more efficient," Obama said in a statement. He continued, "Our goal is to lower costs, reduce pollution, and shift federal energy expenses away from oil and towards local, clean energy." Sen. Tom Carper (D-DE), chairman of the Subcommittee on Federal Financial Management, Government Information, Federal Services and International Security, called Obama's overall emissions reduction target "aggressive, but realistic." Nancy Sutley, chairwoman of the White House Council on Environmental Quality, noted that the plan aims to cut emissions by roughly 88 million metric tons of carbon dioxide (CO2), energy use by about 646 trillion British thermal units (BTUs) and save $8 billion to $11 billion in energy costs through 2020. The executive order "will spur clean energy investments, create new private sector jobs, drive long-term savings, build local market capacity and foster innovation and entrepreneurship in clean energy industries," Sutley said.

For additional information see: Washington Post, New York Times, Guardian, Wall Street Journal, USA Today

On February 3, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) responded to the suggestion by some U.S. Senators that a carbon pricing mechanism be removed from pending climate and energy legislation saying, “[Removing the carbon pricing mechanism is] the 'kick the can down the road' approach. It's putting off to another Congress what really needs to be done comprehensively. I don't think you'll ever have energy independence the way I want until you start dealing with carbon pollution and pricing carbon. The two are interconnected." Clarifying his support for addressing climate change through a bill that places a price on carbon, President Obama said, “I don't want us to just say the easy way out is to just give a bunch of tax credits to clean energy companies. The market works best when it responds to price. And if they start seeing, you know what, that dirty energy is a little pricier, clean energy is a little cheaper, they'll innovate and they'll think things through in all kinds of ways."

For additional information see: New York Times, Climatewire

On January 31, more than 50 nations — together producing 78 percent of the world's GHG emissions — submitted emission reduction plans to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Among them were many of the world’s biggest emitters, such as the United States, China, the European Union, India, Japan and Australia. Most commitments were reiterations of pledges made during the Copenhagen negotiations in December. Many commitments came with conditional provisions promising greater reductions if other major emitters would simultaneously commit to higher reductions. In making their pledges, China and India referenced obligations pursuant to the 1992 UNFCCC and omitted any reference to the non-binding Copenhagen Accord. Both China and India committed voluntary pledges that focused on reducing GHG per unit of gross domestic product (GDP), rather than limiting actual emissions.

On February 1, UN officials announced that goals for reducing GHG emissions announced by major industrialized nations are a step forward but not enough to forestall the disastrous effects of climate change by midcentury. "It is likely, according to a number of analysts, that if we add up all those figures that were being discussed around Copenhagen, if they're all implemented, it will still be quite difficult to reach the two degrees," said Janos Pasztor, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's top climate adviser.

For additional information see: Washington Post, Reuters, Financial Times, Xinhua News, Wall Street Journal

On January 30, Canadian Environment Minister Jim Prentice announced his country would cut emissions 17 percent below 2005 levels by 2020, matching the commitment the United States made on January 28. The commitment will result in Canada’s 2020 emissions being 2.5 percent higher than in 1990, according to Greenpeace Canada’s Dave Martin. The commitment is actually weaker than the one put forth by conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper in 2007, which withdrew Canada from its obligations under the Kyoto accord.

“We need to address the challenges of climate change, but not with excessive haste,” Prentice said in a recent speech in Calgary, Alberta. “We need to work more closely with all members of the global community within the auspices of the Copenhagen Accord and, in particular, to harmonize our policy with that of the United States.”

For additional information see: Globe and Mail, AFP, Bloomberg

On February 1, the Pentagon presented its 2010 Quadrennial Defense Review to Congress, for the first time including strategic analyses on the effects climate change will have on national security and world conflict. In its review, Pentagon officials stated that, “While climate change alone does not cause conflict, it may act as an accelerant of instability or conflict, placing a burden on civilian institutions and militaries around the world.” The review also noted that more than 30 U.S. bases around the world are directly threatened by rising sea levels. It ordered the Pentagon to review the risks to the installations and troops from increased heat waves and fires.

Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for the Environment Dorothy Robyn noted, “Our dependence on fuel adds significant cost and puts U.S. soldiers and contractors at risk. Energy can be a matter of life and death and we have seen dramatically in Iraq and Afghanistan the cost of heavy reliance on fossil fuels.” She also said the Pentagon was looking to cut greenhouse gas emissions from non-combat operations 34 percent below 2008 levels by 2020, following the broad trend in federal government emission cuts.

For additional information see: BBC, The Hill, Guardian

On February 3, California announced plans to introduce a statewide methane monitoring program on major sources of emissions throughout the state. The plan would use state of the art $50,000 monitoring equipment no bigger than a laptop to be installed on many towers and flue pipes. The California Air Resources Board is responsible for the program and sees the program as a way to check whether the computer modeled estimates of emissions actually match up to reality. The program is critical in determining whether California will meet its statutory goals of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent in 10 years. CARB currently uses computer modeling to estimate greenhouse gas emissions in the state. The first task of the new network will be to see if actual concentrations of methane match those estimates.

For additional information see: New York Times, AP

On February 1, the UK introduced incentives for small-scale low-carbon electricity generation and low-carbon heating technologies. Starting on April 1, households and communities that install low-carbon electricity technology, such as solar panels and wind turbines, will be paid for doing so via “feed-in tariffs,” even if they generate only enough energy for their own use. Businesses and households installing renewable energy equipment will gain a return on their investment of 5-8 percent a year, according to government estimates. "The feed-in tariff will change the way householders and communities think about their future energy needs, making the payback for investment far shorter than in the past. It will also change the outlook for a range of industries, in particular those in the business of producing and installing small-scale low carbon technology," said UK Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Miliband. Deloitte Energy Director Tim Warham said there was concern the tariffs may not be high enough to encourage consumers. "Higher returns may be necessary in order to stimulate widespread adoption, especially to encourage intermediaries such as energy service companies to initiate major programs," Warham said.

The introduced renewable heat incentive, which would be the first of its kind anywhere in the world, is to come into effect in April 2011 and guarantees payments for installing technologies such as ground source heat pumps, biomass boilers and air source heat pumps. According to the Renewable Energy Association (REA), which represents the UK's renewables industry, demand for heat dominates UK energy use and is responsible for 47 percent of the country’s carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. "Renewable heat is the sleeping giant of renewable energy in the UK with a major contribution to make," said REA policy director Gaynor Hartnell.

For additional information see: Wall Street Journal, Reuters, Telegraph, Financial Times

On February 1, the Australian based independent think-tank the Climate Institute issued a press release on their latest report “Food Prices and Emissions Trading,” showing that food costs from greenhouse gas (GHG) emission controls are dwarfed by expected costs from climate change. The report highlighted the effects of recent extreme weather events—expected to increase from climate change—storefront prices of bananas by 200 percent and lamb by 60 percent. Comparatively, analyses for UK and Australian emission trading schemes found grocery prices would face significantly smaller rises. “Hysterical claims by some politicians and business lobbyists of food prices sky-rocketing because of action on climate change that limits and prices carbon pollution are just not supported by publically available, credible evidence,” said Climate Institute CEO John Connor. “The conclusion is pretty stark for farmers, food producers and consumers alike – an emissions trading scheme is affordable, climate change is not,” he concluded.

For additional information see: Climate Institute Press Release, Sydney Morning Herald, ABC News, AAP

On February 1, the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) Supply Chain Report, which was produced by the consulting firm A.T. Kearney, was released and showed that some global customers now expect their suppliers to demonstrate greenhouse gas emissions management, awareness and action, in order to maintain business relationships. According to the report, roughly 56 percent of large firms would deselect suppliers in the future for failure to meet criteria on managing carbon emissions while 6 percent would stop doing business today with suppliers that did not manage their carbon. "This is no longer a 'nice to have' for leaders, it is becoming a 'need to have' and we expect to see this trend growing across the whole business sector," said Paul Dickinson, head of CDP. This sentiment was echoed by Brad Minnis, director of Environmental, Health, Safety and Security at Juniper Networks. "We see carbon management as an increasingly important part of supplier engagement. It makes good business sense for us to work with suppliers who understand how climate change is impacting their business and manage these issues properly," Minnis said. The CDP report showed that despite the fact that a significant proportion of carbon emissions are typically found in the supply chain, it is still a challenging area for member companies to measure and 20 percent report figures for supply chain emissions.

For additional information see: Reuters, CDM Press Release

On January 30, International Monetary Fund managing director Dominique Strauss-Kahn proposed the creation of a multi-billion dollar “green fund” to help developing nations cope with the challenges of climate change. Strauss-Kahn estimated the money needed could amount to $100 billion within a few years, and further stated that projects should focus on low-carbon clean energy. He pointed out that, “the developing world has still to build most of its energy infrastructure (and) physical infrastructure, and to buy most of its consumer goods,” creating an opportunity to simultaneously tackle climate change and ecological sustainability. Advocacy groups such as campaign group ONE applauded the mission, but worried that there is need of immediate grant financing to help the developing nations currently fighting the effects of climate change.

For additional information see: Reuters, Environment News Service, AP

On February 1, the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment at the University of Oxford released its study, “Future of Mobility Roadmap: Ways to Reduce Emissions While Keeping Mobile,” detailing emission reductions possible from better flight management. The study found that improved airport logistics represented the quickest feasible method of reducing airplane emissions. The study noted that biofuels and redesigned airplane bodies are decades away from commercial implementation. Bio-jetfuel is still commercially infeasible, while airplane redesign and retrofit is largely impossible, requiring the 30 year lifespan of current airplanes to expire. Rather, as the Smith School’s aviation expert Dr. Chris Harvey said, “If you reduced the time aircraft spent waiting to land and taxi, allowed planes to use more direct flight paths and approach routes, and introduced a common air traffic control system, you could cut emissions from aviation by a significant amount.” Chris Goater of the Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation pointed out that the amount of emission cuts ranges anywhere from five to eight percent.

For additional information see: BBC, Canadian River, Oxford Press Release

On January 25, the journal Population Ecology published a study detailing the impact climate change has had in the decline of wolverine populations across Canada. The study authors — Dr. Jedediah Brodie of the University of Montana and Professor Eric Post of Pennsylvania State University — found that snowpack levels declined significantly between 1968 and 2004 in five out of the six Canadian provinces and territories they studied. The study benefitted from Canada’s well kept records of snowpack and fur-bearing mammal harvest numbers. The data they assembled showed a strong correlation between declining snowpack and declining wolverine population. “In provinces where winter snowpack levels are declining fastest, wolverine populations tend to be declining most rapidly," the study concluded. Brodie said he suspects the connection may be partly due to milder winters decreasing access to the wolverine’s favored prey species and large mammal carrion.

For additional information see: BBC, Vancouver Sun, Study Abstract

On February 3, the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences published a study that found eastern forests in the United States have been growing faster than any other time in the last 225 years. The authors concluded that higher concentrations of carbon dioxide (CO2) and longer growing seasons have resulted in an additional 1.8 tonnes of timber per acre on average. The study spanned 20 years tracking 55 different stands of mixed hardwood trees. They compared trees ranging from five to 225 years old, finding more than 90 percent of them had grown two to four times faster than expected. Over the past 22 years, the study area saw CO2 concentration increase 12 percent, average temperature increase nearly 0.3°C, and the growing season lengthen 7.8 days.

For additional information see: Telegraph, Independent, UPI, PNAS Article

On February 3, the journal BioScience published a study explaining the negative effects on millions of waterfowl caused by the loss of wetlands in the prairie pothole region of central North America. Researchers from the U.S. Geological Survey developed a model to predict the impacts of warmer temperatures on the region. The results projected a drastic decrease in water volume, shortening of water residence time, and changes in regional vegetation. The study concludes that if temperatures rise by 4°C, parts of the North American prairie will become too dry for waterfowl and other parts will have too few functional wetlands to support nesting. The region currently supports the nesting and rearing grounds for millions of waterfowl.

For additional information see: US News, UPI, AP

• Colorado groups say climate change endangers skiing
• Nepal cabinet meets at Everest to send climate message
• UK Emissions drop due to recession, not government, say experts
• Feds deny petition to make pika 1st animal in lower 48 states protected due to climate change