For a long time the concept of carbon trading has had its critics. The primary one is that trading carbon does not really get rid of the problem: the emissions of carbon dioxide. It merely changes pollution into a commodity that can be traded. As the NGO Carbontrade Watch argues: “Carbon offsets allow companies and … Read More
carbon trading
Carbon Trading Obsession is “Irresponsible”
As the diplomatic squabbling continues in Cancun, lots of policy options are being put on the table. One of the key ones is trading carbon emissions. The influential EU bloc is one of carbon tradings greatest proponents, with its Emissions Trading Scheme the largest carbon trading scheme in the world. New rules to the ETS … Read More
“Spend as much on climate change as war”
When the Nobel Peace Prize committee decided earlier this year to award the prize to President Obama, they could not have envisaged that it would be in the same month as he sent 30,000 more troops to war. Giving the peace prize to the Commander in Chief of American forces involved in two brutal and … Read More
Flawed Talks Must Fail, Says Hansen
The pseudo garbage that constitutes the British Daily Express newspaper yesterday ran a headline saying climate change was a con to put up taxes Quoting yet another climate sceptic the Express served up a disservice to journalism, by completely manipulating the climate debate. Suddenly sceptics are appearing out of the wood-work left, right and centre, … Read More
The Angry Mermaid Strikes Back
All the news reports this morning are that a deal at Copenhagen is dead. Barack Obama has said that we had run out of time to secure a deal in December. This will please the corporate lobbyists no end. The longer they can delay action on climate the better. But now Copenhagen’s iconic mermaid is … Read More
Enviros Say Climate Bill Should be “Fixed or Ditched”
Cometh the hour, the old phrase goes, cometh the man. Barack Obama is staking much of his high credibility by calling for the House to pass the landmark US Climate bill, that may come before the House this afternoon. Or it may not, depending on the political drama. While Democratic support has been growing, some … Read More
Lukewarm Response to “Centrist” Clean Energy Bill
As President Obama has breakfast with Prime Minister Gordon Brown, and demonstrators start taking to the streets to protest at the G20, we should not forget the events of yesterday. Congressman Henry Waxman and Ed Markey released a discussion draft of the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009 – a massive 648-tome that … Read More
G20 Meeting Starts on Fossil Fools Day….
So tomorrow is Fossil Fools day – and as it is the start of the G20 meeting in London, there will be lots of protests happening against the current economic meltdown, with people demanding radical action from the G20 leaders. First off will be four simultaneous marches, led by effigies of the four horsemen of … Read More
Rich Should “Pay Poor to Cut Carbon”
Rich nations should be absolved from the need to cut emissions if they pay developing countries to do it on their behalf, a senior UN official has said. The controversial suggestion from Yvo de Boer, head of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), has angered environmental groups. They say climate change will not … Read More