Posts tagged…Kyoto
Are the BRICS ready to lead?
Wed, Jan 20 2010
Reflecting on the greater influence of the BRICS, recently, in global forums, the always-interesting Alan Beattie asks:
"Is this a pivot point such as the second world war, where the confident, innovative US muscled aside the weakened, debt-laden economies of Europe and remade the global financial architecture? " Extract from FT.com
His guess? "No, not yet". He points out the BRICS are…
Read more…Lamy’s assessment of Copenhagen
Thu, Jan 14 2010It's called whistling in the wind.
"The outcome of the conference in Copenhagen represents a step forward. The Kyoto Protocol addresses about 30% of global carbon emissions. In contrast, the framework accord hammered out in Copenhagen last week may encompass the majority of world emissions. " Extract from WTO | 2009 News items - Lamy praises Copenhagen efforts, calls for more to be done
The…
Global governance in the aughties
Sun, Dec 27 2009First, bodice-ripping as political theory
"We live in an era in which unprecedented globalization and economic interdependence, liberal-democratic hegemony, nanotechnology, robotic warfare, the 'infosphere,' nuclear proliferation and geoengineering solutions to climate change coexist with the return of powerful autocratic-capitalist states, of a new Great Game in Central Asia, of imperialism in…
China worries about U.S. carbon tariffs
Wed, Apr 22 2009In a speech in the U.S. yesterday, Tung Chee-hwa, vice-chairman of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) hit out at plans for carbon tariffs in the Democrats' bill for emission controls
"A top adviser to the Chinese government on Tuesday warned that a proposed US border tax on carbon sensitive materials ‘smells of protectionism’ and could spark retaliation from developing…
India says ‘no’
Wed, Apr 15 2009Even IPCC chairman Rajendra Pachauri considers India is 'very unlikely' to change its opposition to emissions targets (for India).
"'If the question is whether India will take on binding emission reduction commitments, the answer is no. It is morally wrong for us to agree to reduce when 40 percent of Indians do not have access to electricity,' said a member of the Indian delegation to the…
A tangle of carbon taxes
Thu, Mar 19 2009A big storm on the horizon… get ready for it
Border tax adjustments ('carbon tariffs') are inevitable once mandatory carbon taxes or emission caps with market value are applied to production. Now, the Obama administration acknowledges that:
"Mr. Chu, speaking before a House science panel, said establishing a carbon tariff would help 'level the playing field' if other countries haven't imposed…
What the carbon caps will cost
Sun, Feb 08 2009
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The Reserve Bank of Australia's quarterly Statement on Monetary Policy (6 Feb, 09) contains the latest estimate—using the Treasury model, is my guess:
"Overall, assuming an emissions permit price of $25 per tonne of CO2-e, it is estimated that the net result will be to reduce GDP growth by…
Emission controls not warranted by facts
Tue, Dec 16 2008
Some environmentalists (and The Age newspaper) are predictably crying foul at Kevin Rudd's relatively modest White Paper option of up to 25% or 35% cuts from the estimated business as usual level of Australian GHG emissions in 2020. Nevertheless, the proposed ETS conforms to the government's threat to "reform and transform our economy" (Climate Minister, Penny Wong), by effectively choking it…
Monckton’s litany
Fri, Jul 18 2008Christopher, Viscount Monkton of Brenchley, is a good scholar and a fine writer. This clever recital pulls no punches but you may feel like responding 'amen' (at least you might…if you were a 'dissenter')
- Canute couldn’t stop sea level rising. Officials can’t stop it either.
- Even if global temperature has risen, it has risen in a straight line at a natural 0.5 °C/century for 300 years since…
Global emission targets: here we go
Tue, Jun 24 2008We are likely to discover where this will lead only after a long process.
"Major carbon dioxide emitters failed to agree on a numerical target for reducing the world's greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent by 2050 even though the final session of a two-day meeting here was extended into Monday morning, conference sources said…The [Major Emitters Group] comprises 16 nations, including China,…
Can WTO control Kyoto climate tariffs?
Thu, Feb 21 2008My answer: ‘probably not’. The harder question is: can either the WTO or Kyoto regime reach a consensus on enforceable emission controls? I doubt that, too.
The European Commission debates on a climate tariff are a gesture, I suspect, to EC industries who are demanding continued unpriced allocation of base emission rights under Europe’s emissions trading scheme. But the import taxes are a real…
The cost of the IPCC carbon target
Fri, Feb 15 2008
Italian energy economists report on the means of achieving the IPCC’s target of 550 ppm of greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere by the second half of the 21st century. It implies a different world, poorer than we currently imagine, and visibly different too.
Click the image to see a larger version.
The full paper can be found here
“Given projected world population dynamics, this objective requires…