Climate Action

 As Washington and Wall Street dicker over a financial rescue plan, everyone is missing the real opportunity to fix the problem. Some see the variously proposed plans as bailouts of dumb borrowers and dumber lenders, while others view it as a chance to restore liquidity to the marketplace so we can all have access to credit again, whether it's for student loans or to finance the acquisition of industrial machinery.

But when the "Great Depression" struck America more than 70 years ago, we didn't just make more money available and hope people would borrow it to jump start the economy. President Roosevelt put us back to work, building bridges, highways, schools, and water projects. All of that infrastructure has served us well over the years, although at the time it must have looked like a lot of pork barrel spending designed to keep workers off of street corners and out of soup kitchens. What if we could do something like that again, but this time, make it a build-out that had fantastic economic, environmental, and social return on the invested capital?

In 2003, President Bush spoke about hydrogen cars in his State of the Union address. Shortly thereafter, the American Petroleum Institute (API) warned that building a hydrogen fueling infrastructure that could reach all Americans would cost $140 billion. Although I'm sure the API had no reason to use scare tactics and biased estimates (well, OK, maybe I'm not THAT sure), let's assume that's an accurate figure.

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

The photo above is of the endangered Langur monkey which lives in the Nongguan Nature Reserve in China.  The Langur's population dropped dramatically due to habitat loss and hunting, a sad and common story.   The residents of the surrounding villages were cutting down forest to for fuel to heat their homes and cook their food.

Pan Wenshi, China's premier panda biologist, hired wardens to protect the remaining animals.  He then went a step further and looked at the larger social and economic factors that were jeopardizing the species.  In 2000, he received a $12,500 environmental award which he used to build biogas digesters[1] which provides cooking fuel for roughly 1,000 people.  Dr. Pan believed that alleviating poverty in the region was essential for their long-term survival of the Langur.  Since then, the Langur population has increased from 96 in 1996, to over 500 today.

The tale of the Langur is a familiar one, and reminded me of another primate that is a helpless pawn in a tragic battle for fuel.

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.

That is the question of my blog this week.  Watching Rudy Giuliani speak at the Republican Nation Convention last Wednesday and listening to thousands of people chant, "Drill, baby, drill," I realized how confused our country is on this, well, confusing issue.  Somehow we arrived at a place where Republicans and Democrats are more divided than ever, and over issues like offshore drilling, which had once been off limits by both parties.  I believe people are misinformed, because if the facts were understood, the choice would be clear, no matter what your party affiliation.

The major misconception I've observed is that offshore drilling will lower high gas prices. The fact is that if these projects were to start today, it would take years before new refineries would affect the market...if ever.  Not to mention the amount of oil that could be produced is tiny in comparison with the amount that is produced worldwide.  And let's face it-these refineries really can't start producing today, because realistically it would take years to build a new refinery and.... large amounts of money. 

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.

Commentators have coined a term that is being hotly debated in business, political, and social settings these days: the "China Price".

A quick Google search shows that the China Price is variously defined as:

• The cost to America, in terms of jobs (mostly manufacturing) and boarded-up storefronts in rust-belt towns, of cheap imports made in China where labor, land, and energy costs are far cheaper than in the US.
• The cost of cheap goods expressed in terms of Dickensian labor conditions for Chinese workers, pollution, and the destruction of families and their ancient social fabric.
• The cost to human rights, in places like Tibet, when we propel an authoritarian government into the ranks of the world's leading economic powers and thereby provide tacit support for their policies.

The recent Olympic Games that China hosted gave talking heads the opportunity to examine this question from all perspectives, but much ink has been spilled on the issue of human rights in particular. So what is the inherent cost, in terms of human dignity and the intangibles that we call "inalienable rights", of a plastic lawn flamingo bearing the label "Made in China"?

(By SASHA ABELSON, Guest Blogger to the Climate Program)

 
When I first moved to LA I told people I hoped to find a job close to home which did not involve an hour commute to and from the office. The response to this statement was generally one of uncontrollable laughter.   I, however, did not think it was funny.

I was born and raised in New York City and the idea of walking to work was not a foreign concept to me.  In fact, in all of my years as a New Yorker, I was able to get to each place of employment on foot.  I always enjoyed my walk to work, and I appreciated the fact that it was indeed possible to walk to work. 

I am now a resident of LA and my current commute takes me approximately 10 minutes - on my bike.  I will always remember that I am one of the lucky ones! A colleague of mine just explained to me how she spent 3 hours last night traveling the 19.1 miles to her home. 

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.