The Climate Action Blog

Tuesday, September 30, 2008

CARBON TRADING: ALBANY - Demand high for pollution credits.   If the law of supply and demand holds true, then the nation's first auction of pollution rights to combat global warming was a success. New York state was not ready for the inaugural auction of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, but six other states sold off rights last week to about 12.5 tons of carbon dioxide, a known greenhouse gas. Demand was high, with 59 bidders seeking nearly four times as many allowances as were offered. Times Union, September 30, 2008

CARBON CREDITS: Eastern Europe's Carbon Credit Windfall.  Thanks to Kyoto emission levels pegged to 1990, when pollution was worse, former Eastern Bloc countries now sell carbon credits to Japan.  In an odd twist on market economics, Europe's ex-communist states are starting to exploit a new market. Thanks to the Kyoto climate-change agreement, they can, in effect, now make money off the pollution their onetime central planners were willing to tolerate as the price for rapid industrialization and universal employment.  Business Week September 30, 2009

Friday, September 12, 2008

AVIATION: U.S.-bound flight from New Zealand to showcase ways to save time and fuel. A major initiative to help cut airline flight times, burn less fuel, and reduce harmful carbon emissions is to be presented today by the FAA at the San Francisco International Airport. Los Angeles Times, California. 12 September 2008. [Registration Required]

CARBON MARKETS: World carbon standards to relax. World greenhouse gas markets probably will relax their notions of what constitutes a carbon credit to encourage more people to reduce emissions of planet-warming gases, the head of the Chicago Climate Exchange said. Reuters. 12 September 2008.

BANGLADESH: Bangladesh launches climate change action plan. Bangladesh, one of the countries most vulnerable to the effects of climate change, has launched a strategy to help the nation adapt to threats such as rising sea level, water-logged land and increased salinity. Nature. 12 September 2008.

Friday, September 5, 2008

IMPACTS: Seas to rise faster this century. Hot on the heels of findings that tropical cyclones have been intensifying over the past few decades, researchers report in Science that global warming will cause sea levels to rise much faster by the end of the century than officially projected. Science. 5 September 2008.

IMPACTS: Loss of Manhattan-sized Arctic ice shelf is 'sign of things to come'. An ice shelf almost the size of Manhattan has broken off from an island in the Canadian Arctic, researchers revealed today, warning that the near-record loss of polar ice cover this summer was an indicator of the changes global warming would inflict on mankind. London Times, England. 5 September 2008.

Friday, August 29, 2008

SCIENCE: 'Unbreakable' greenhouse gas meets its doom at last. The war on climate change just got a chemical weapon: a way to destroy the carbon-fluorine bonds that make a class of widely used industrial gases so dangerous in the atmosphere. New Scientist, England. 29 August 2008.

ELECTIC CARS: Toyota plugs into electric vehicles. Toyota Motor Corp. said Thursday it will start mass-producing next-generation electric vehicles in the early 2010s, demonstrating a renewed commitment to develop fuel-efficient cars. Japan Times, Japan. 29 August 2008.

CARBON TRADING - FORESTS: Forestry experts launch carbon trading project. While world leaders are yet to agree on much-discussed forestry carbon credits, KeeptheHabitat, an Australian non-profit company, will launch a pilot project to promote the reduction of emissions from deforestation and degradation (REDD) on Friday. Jakarta Post, Indonesia. 29 August 2008.

Friday, August 15, 2008

GREEN JOBS: Oregon creates hot jobs in green energy. The green energy sector in Oregon is an economic and environmental success story in an area hard-pressed for family-wage jobs, an example of "green collar" employment blossoming in reaction to high energy costs and concerns about global warming. Portland Oregonian, Oregon. 15 August 2008.

SOLAR ENERGY: Two large solar plants planned in California. The plants will cover 12.5 square miles of central California with solar panels, and in the middle of a sunny day will generate about 800 megawatts of power, roughly equal to the size of a large coal-burning power plant or a small nuclear plant. New York Times. 15 August 2008. [Registration Required]

ALGAE: Algae could help cut coal plants' carbon emissions. With international attention focused on carbon dioxide and its role in global climate change, power companies might find a hero in humble algae. Louisville Courier-Journal, Kentucky. 15 August 2008.

Friday, August 8, 2008

SOLAR HIGHWAY: Oregon installs first highway solar project. In an attempt to spur the spread of solar power, the Oregon Department of Transportation on Thursday unveiled the nation's first solar panel project on a major U.S. highway. Portland Oregonian, Oregon. 8 August 2008.

EMISSIONS TRADING: Boost for emissions trading scheme. European Union and United Nations systems for tracking the use of carbon credits will be connected before December, a move that should significantly facilitate emissions trading. London Financial Times, United Kingdom. 8 August 2008.

Friday, August 1, 2008

WIND ENERGY: Wind energy: Much potential, but also daunting challenges. Pioneers in the emerging wind-power industry are touting their product as The Next Big Thing as they chart a course to produce at least 20 percent of the nation's electricity in just over two decades. McClatchy Newspapers. 1 August 2008.

STATES/EPA - LEGAL: California moves ahead with plan to sue EPA. Fed up with the federal government's refusal to regulate greenhouse gas emissions, California announced it will lead five states and New York City in a landmark lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency. Long Beach Press-Telegram, California. 1 August 2008.

CALIFORNIA UTILITIES: L.A. utility wary of California's emissions strategy. Hailed as a step in the right direction to fight climate change, California's proposed greenhouse gas reduction policy has worried some of its most valued customers. Associated Press. 1 August 2008.

Friday, July 25, 2008

STATE POLICY (CA): California adopts stiff pollution rules for ships. California regulators adopted the world's toughest pollution rules for oceangoing vessels Thursday, vowing to improve the health of coastal residents. Los Angeles Times, California. 25 July 2008. [Registration Required]

EPA INVESTIGATION: EPA saw greenhouse gases as threat in squelched document. The head of the EPA told the White House that high levels of manmade heat-trapping gases are causing global warming and endanger the American people, Sen. Barbara Boxer said Thursday after she reviewed the EPA finding. McClatchy Newspapers. 25 July 2008.

WASTE TO POWER: Animal waste may supply cleaner power. Cows, pigs and chickens in the U.S. produce enough manure to supply 2.4 per cent of the nation's electricity if the waste were converted into burnable gas, an energy option overlooked by the government, researchers said. Bloomberg News. 25 July 2008.

Friday, July 18, 2008

HYDROGEN CARS: Hydrogen cars could rule road by 2050, slash oil need. A government-backed study says America could nearly eliminate its need for gasoline for cars, pickup trucks and SUVs by 2050 if the government helps build a market for hydrogen fuel cells and other technologies. McClatchy Newspapers. 18 July 2008.

IMPACTS: Antarctic icebergs scouring seabed are new threat to marine life. Antarctic marine life is coming under increasing threat from icebergs that are scouring the seabed and destroying their habitat, a new study by the British Antarctic Survey has found. London Daily Telegraph, England. 18 July 2008

EPA STUDY - IMPACTS: Climate change puts U.S. way of life at risk: EPA. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, under fire for apparently discounting the impact of climate change, on Thursday said global warming poses real risk to human health and the American way of life. Reuters. 18 July 2008.

Friday, July 11, 2008

U.N CONTROVERSY: U.N. warming program draws fire. A United Nations program designed to combat global warming has started doing something no one expected: It is subsidizing fossil-fuel power plants that spew millions of tons of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere annually. Wall Street Journal. 11 July 2008. [Subscription Required]

FEDERAL POLICY: EPA won't act on emissions this year. The Bush administration has decided not to take any new steps to regulate greenhouse gas emissions before the president leaves office, despite pressure from the Supreme Court and broad accord among senior federal officials. Washington Post. 11 July 2008. [Registration Required]

GLOBAL WARMING - SMOG: Study links global warming to more smog. U.S. environmental regulators quietly published a draft study on Thursday that linked global warming to higher levels of smog that could harm human health, a report green groups said stood in contrast to the Bush Administration's slow movement on climate change. Reuters UK. 11 July 2008.