REDD stands for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD). REDD is a set of steps or mechanism designed to use market/financial incentives in order to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases from deforestation and forest degradation. Its original objective is to reduce green house gases but it can deliver "co-benefits" such as biodiversity conservation and poverty alleviation. REDD credits offer the opportunity to utilize funding from developed countries to reduce deforestation in developing countries.
"Reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation" implies a distinction between the two activities. The process of identifying the two is what raises questions about how to measure each within the REDD mechanism, therefore their distinction is vital. Deforestation is the permanent removal of forests and withdrawal of land from forest use. Forest degradation refers to negative changes in the forest area that limit its production capacity.
In recent years, estimates for deforestation and forest degradation were shown to account for 20-25% of greenhouse gas emissions, higher than the transportation sector. Recent work shows that the combined contribution of deforestation, forest degradation and peatland emissions accounts for about 15% of greenhouse gas emissions, about the same as the transportation sector. Even with these new numbers it is increasingly accepted that mitigation of global warming will not be achieved without the inclusion of forests in an international regime. As a result, it is expected to play a crucial role as a future successor to the Kyoto Protocol.
History
In the 1997 global climate agreement, Kyoto Protocol, policies related to deforestation and degradation were excluded because of a possible leakage problem with such policies. After the exclusion, deforestation rose particularly in Brazil resulting in the the Coalition of Rainforest Nations. These nations included Papua New Guinea and Costa Rica and other forest nations.
In 2005, at the 11th Conference of the Parties (COP-11), the Coalition of Rainforest Nations initiated a request to consider 'reducing emissions from deforestation in developing countries.' The matter was referred to the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technical Advice (SBSTA). The United States challenged the proposal but failed in its attempts.
Later, at the 2007 Bali UNFCCC meeting (COP-13), an agreement was reached on “the urgent need to take further meaningful action to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation”. The deadline for reaching an agreement on the specifics of an international REDD mechanism, at least as regards to it being implemented in the short and medium term, is the 15th Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC (COP-15) which will be held in Copenhagen in December 2009.
Main actors
REDD activities are undertaken by national or local governments, NGOs, the private sector, or any combination of these. A number of NGOs, development agencies, research institutes and international organizations support developing countries that wish to engage in REDD activities. The World Bank's Forest Carbon Partnership Facility World Banks's Forest Carbon Partnership Facility, the UN-REDD Programme, Norway's International Climate and Forest Initiative Norway's International Climate and Forest Initiative are such examples. The genuine actors of REDD, however, will be the populations whose livelihoods derive from forests. Indigenous Peoples and forest-dependent communities will be the front liners of REDD, and the success of REDD activities will largely depend on their engagement.
Active international organizations
REDD has received great support from international organizations. The World Bank presently plays an important role in the progression of REDD activities. The World Bank as one of the financial contributor for the REDD program, has created a $300 million fund, the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF). This fund is aimed towards initiating REDD activities in developing countries. In addition, another World Bank facility, Carbon Partnership Facility (CPF) expected to be use in areas like the power sectors, transportation, urban development and energy efficiently where greenhouse gases are generated.
The UNDP, UNEP and FAO set up the UN-REDD Programme, which is aimed to assist nine developing countries address certain measures needed in order to effectively participate in the REDD mechanism. These measures include capacity development, governance, and technical needs. The selected nine countries include Bolivia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Indonesia, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Tanzania, Vietnam, and Zambia. It recently promised US$18 million to five of these countries.
Active governments
In relation with national governments, the REDD mechanism has received positive reactions. At the 2007 Bali Conference, the Norwegian government announced their International Climate and Forests Initiative, which provided $500 million towards the creation and implementation of national-based, REDD activities in the nation of Tanzania. The Norwegian government will work closely with international organizations such as UN-REDD to promote REDD activities in the area. In addition, the Government of Norway and United Kingdom contributed $200 million towards the Congo Basin Forest Fund to aid forest conservation actives in Central Africa. Australia has joined the efforts to promote REDD mechanisms. With its efforts aimed towards their region, areas like Indonesia, and Papua New Guinea, their $200 million International Forest Carbon Initiative focused on developing REDD activities in the region.
Key questions
A number of questions are being discussed and will inform the decisions on REDD at the upcoming 15th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. They include:
* The structure of funding mechanisms
* Setting reference levels to measure the reduction in emissions. Will it be based on current emissions levels or historical deforestation rates, a business-as-usual scenario? Will countries with different forest covers and historic deforestation rates hold different interests in the way the reference levels are constructed? Involving countries with high forest covers and low historic deforestation rates will be necessary to reduce perverse incentives.
* Monitoring, reporting and verification of forest cover and biomass and other outputs. Current research focuses on ways to remotely monitor the progression of deforestation using satellite data. Such systems include the Center for Global Development's Forest Monitoring for Action (FORMA) and the Group on Earth Observation's Forest Carbon Tracking Portal.
* Participation of Indigenous peoples and Forest-Dependent Communities in the design, implementation and monitoring of REDD activities, and respect for their human rights
* Distribution of benefits: How can the benefits from REDD be distributed to forest communities in a just, equitable way that minimizes capture of the benefits by national governments or local elites?
* Strategies to prevent "carbon leakage", caused by the displacement of deforestation to other areas
* Achieving multiple benefits, for example the conservation of biodiversity and ecosystem services (such as watersheds), and social benefits (for example income and improved forest governance).
Concerns
* The availability of a large supply of potentially cheap carbon credits could provide an avenue for companies in the developed world to simply purchase REDD credits without providing meaningful emission reductions at home.
* Large number of carbon credits could swamp developing carbon markets...but could also facilitate ambitious emissions targets in a post-Kyoto agreement.
* Putting a commercial value on forests neglects the spiritual value they hold for Indigenous Peoples and local communities.
* There is no consensus on a definition for forest degradation.
* Fair distribution of REDD benefits will not be achieved without a prior reform in forest governance and more secure tenure systems in many countries.
REDD-Plus
* In 2007, at the Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC in Bali (COP-13) an agreement was reached called the Bali Action Plan. As defined, its aims are directed toward forest conservation, sustainable forest management and the enhancement of carbon stocks.
* REDD-plus calls for activities with serious implications directed towards the local communities, indigenous people and forests which relate to reducing emission from deforestation and forest degradation. Therefore this will involve enhancing existing forests and increasing forest cover. In order to meet these objectives, policies need to address enhancement of carbon stocks by providing funding and investments in these areas.
From http://en.wikipedia.org/
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Post-Kyoto Protocol negotiations on greenhouse gas emissions
Post-Kyoto negotiations refers to high level talks attempting to address global warming by limiting greenhouse gas emissions. Generally part of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), these talks concern the period after the first "commitment period" of the Kyoto Protocol, which is due to expire at the end of 2012. Negotiations have been mandated by the adoption of the Bali Roadmap and Decision 1/CP.13 ("The Bali Action Plan").
UNFCCC negotiations are conducted within two subsidiary bodies, the Ad Hoc Working Group on Long-term Cooperative Action under the Convention (AWG-LCA) and the Ad Hoc Working Group on Further Commitments for Annex I Parties under the Kyoto Protocol (AWG-KP) and are expected to culminate in the United Nations Climate Change Conference taking place in December 2009 in Copenhagen (COP-15); negotiations are supported by a number of external processes, including the G8 process, a number of regional meetings and the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate that was launched by US President Barack Obama in March 2009. High level talks were held at the meeting of the G8+5 Climate Change Dialogue in February 2007 and at a number of subsequent G8 meetings, most recently leading to the adoption of the G8 leaders declaration "Responsible Leadership for a Sustainable Future" during the G8 summit in L´Aquila, Italy, in July 2009.
February 2007 Washington Declaration
In the non-binding "Washington Declaration" on February 16, 2007, the G8+5 group of leaders agreed in principle to a global cap-and-trade system that would apply to both industrialized nations and developing countries, which they hoped would be in place by 2009.
33rd G8 summit
On June 7, 2007, leaders at the 33rd G8 summit issued a non-binding communiqué announcing that the G8 nations would "aim to at least halve global CO2 emissions by 2050". The details enabling this to be achieved would be negotiated by environment ministers within the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in a process that would also include the major emerging economies. Groups of countries would also be able to reach additional agreements on achieving the goal outside and in parallel with the United Nations process. The G8 also announced their desire to use the proceeds from the auction of emission rights and other financial tools to support climate protection projects in developing countries.
The agreement was welcomed by British Prime Minister Tony Blair as "a major, major step forward". French president Nicolas Sarkozy would have preferred a binding figure for emissions reduction to have been set. This was apparently blocked by U.S. President George W. Bush until the other major greenhouse gas emitting countries, like India and China, make similar commitments.
2007 UN General Assembly plenary debate
As part of the schedule leading up to the September UN High-Level-Event, on July 31 the United Nations General Assembly opened its first-ever plenary session devoted exclusively to climate change, which also included prominent scientists and business leaders. The debate, at which nearly 100 nations spoke, was scheduled to last two days but was extended for a further day to allow a greater number of "worried nations" to describe their climate-related problems.
In his opening speech, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged Member States to work together, stating that the time had come for "decisive action on a global scale", and called for a "comprehensive agreement under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change process that tackles climate change on all fronts, including adaptation, mitigation, clean technologies, deforestation and resource mobilization". In closing the conference General Assembly President Haya Rashed Al-Khalifa called for an "equitable, fair and ambitious global deal to match the scale of the challenges ahead". She had earlier stressed the urgency of the situation, stating that "the longer we wait, the more expensive this will be".
The day after the session ended, the UN launched its new climate change web site detailing its activities relating to global warming.
2007 Vienna Climate Change Talks and Agreement
A round of climate change talks under the auspices of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) concluded in Austria in 31 August 2007 with agreement on key elements for an effective international response to climate change.
A key feature of the talks was a United Nations report that showed how energy efficiency could yield significant cuts in emissions at low cost.
The talks set the stage for the 2007 United Nations Climate Change Conference held in Bali in December 2007.
September 2007 United Nations High-Level-Event
As well as the meeting of the United Nations General Assembly, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon was to hold informal high-level discussions on the post-Kyoto treaty on September 24. It was expected that these would pave the way for the United Nations Climate Change Conference, held in Bali in December 2007. Three Special Envoys on Climate Change, appointed on May 1, 2007, held discussions with various governments to define and plan the event.
In advance of the "High-Level-Event", the Secretary-General hoped that world leaders would "send a powerful political signal to the negotiations in Bali that “business as usual” will not do and that they are ready to work jointly with others towards a comprehensive multilateral framework for action".
September 2007 Washington conference
It emerged on August 3, 2007, that representatives of the United Nations, major industrialized and developing countries are being invited by George Bush to a conference in Washington on September 27 and 28. Countries invited are believed to include the members of the G8+5 (Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, United Kingdom, United States, Brazil, China, India, Mexico and South Africa), together with South Korea, Australia, Indonesia and South Africa. The meeting is to be hosted by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, and is envisaged as the first of several extending into 2008. Initial reaction to the news of the conference invitation was mixed.
2007 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Bali
Negotiations on a successor to the Kyoto Protocol dominated the 2007 United Nations Climate Change Conference conference. A meeting of environment ministers and experts held in June called on the conference to agree a road-map, timetable and "concrete steps for the negotiations" with a view to reaching an agreement by 2009.
2008 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Poznań
Following preliminary talks in Bangkok, Bonn, and Accra, the 2008 negotiations culminated in December with the 2008 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Poznań, Poland.
35th G8 Summit
September 2009 United Nations Secretary General´s Summit on Climate Change
United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon will convene a high-level event on Climate Change on 22 September 2009 to which Heads of State and Government have been invited. This event is intended to build further political momentum for an ambitious Copenhagen agreed outcome to be adopted at COP-15.
2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen (COP-15)
Following preparatory talks in Bonn, Bangkok and Barcelona, the 2009 conference will be held in December 2009 in Copenhagen, Denmark, and the treaty succeeding the Kyoto Protocol is expected to be adopted there.
Potential topics to be discussed include carbon capture and storage, biofuels, adaptation financing, technology transfer, sustainable agriculture, emissions targets, tropical forests and rural and transport electrification (plug-in hybrids)
Development of technologies will be important to reduce carbon emissions. Even if all carbon emissions stopped tomorrow, global warming would continue for the next 30 years. James E. Rogers, CEO of Duke Energy and member of Copenhagen Climate Council said “It is a myth that we have the technologies to do the job. We don’t. New technologies are crucial as is further development of existing technology.”
Some media sources claim that the meeting will lead to empty promises without measurable goals. In a recent meeting of the Group of Eight G8, the world top leaders agreed to halve carbon emissions by 2050; however, they did not set specific targets because they did not agree on a base year.
However members of the climate council acknowledge that action needs to happen fast. “My personal view is that the future of humanity is at stake,” said Tim Flannery, Professor at Macquaire University and chairman of the Copenhagen Climate Council, in an interview with chinadialogue.net.
From http://en.wikipedia.org/
UNFCCC negotiations are conducted within two subsidiary bodies, the Ad Hoc Working Group on Long-term Cooperative Action under the Convention (AWG-LCA) and the Ad Hoc Working Group on Further Commitments for Annex I Parties under the Kyoto Protocol (AWG-KP) and are expected to culminate in the United Nations Climate Change Conference taking place in December 2009 in Copenhagen (COP-15); negotiations are supported by a number of external processes, including the G8 process, a number of regional meetings and the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate that was launched by US President Barack Obama in March 2009. High level talks were held at the meeting of the G8+5 Climate Change Dialogue in February 2007 and at a number of subsequent G8 meetings, most recently leading to the adoption of the G8 leaders declaration "Responsible Leadership for a Sustainable Future" during the G8 summit in L´Aquila, Italy, in July 2009.
February 2007 Washington Declaration
In the non-binding "Washington Declaration" on February 16, 2007, the G8+5 group of leaders agreed in principle to a global cap-and-trade system that would apply to both industrialized nations and developing countries, which they hoped would be in place by 2009.
33rd G8 summit
On June 7, 2007, leaders at the 33rd G8 summit issued a non-binding communiqué announcing that the G8 nations would "aim to at least halve global CO2 emissions by 2050". The details enabling this to be achieved would be negotiated by environment ministers within the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in a process that would also include the major emerging economies. Groups of countries would also be able to reach additional agreements on achieving the goal outside and in parallel with the United Nations process. The G8 also announced their desire to use the proceeds from the auction of emission rights and other financial tools to support climate protection projects in developing countries.
The agreement was welcomed by British Prime Minister Tony Blair as "a major, major step forward". French president Nicolas Sarkozy would have preferred a binding figure for emissions reduction to have been set. This was apparently blocked by U.S. President George W. Bush until the other major greenhouse gas emitting countries, like India and China, make similar commitments.
2007 UN General Assembly plenary debate
As part of the schedule leading up to the September UN High-Level-Event, on July 31 the United Nations General Assembly opened its first-ever plenary session devoted exclusively to climate change, which also included prominent scientists and business leaders. The debate, at which nearly 100 nations spoke, was scheduled to last two days but was extended for a further day to allow a greater number of "worried nations" to describe their climate-related problems.
In his opening speech, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged Member States to work together, stating that the time had come for "decisive action on a global scale", and called for a "comprehensive agreement under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change process that tackles climate change on all fronts, including adaptation, mitigation, clean technologies, deforestation and resource mobilization". In closing the conference General Assembly President Haya Rashed Al-Khalifa called for an "equitable, fair and ambitious global deal to match the scale of the challenges ahead". She had earlier stressed the urgency of the situation, stating that "the longer we wait, the more expensive this will be".
The day after the session ended, the UN launched its new climate change web site detailing its activities relating to global warming.
2007 Vienna Climate Change Talks and Agreement
A round of climate change talks under the auspices of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) concluded in Austria in 31 August 2007 with agreement on key elements for an effective international response to climate change.
A key feature of the talks was a United Nations report that showed how energy efficiency could yield significant cuts in emissions at low cost.
The talks set the stage for the 2007 United Nations Climate Change Conference held in Bali in December 2007.
September 2007 United Nations High-Level-Event
As well as the meeting of the United Nations General Assembly, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon was to hold informal high-level discussions on the post-Kyoto treaty on September 24. It was expected that these would pave the way for the United Nations Climate Change Conference, held in Bali in December 2007. Three Special Envoys on Climate Change, appointed on May 1, 2007, held discussions with various governments to define and plan the event.
In advance of the "High-Level-Event", the Secretary-General hoped that world leaders would "send a powerful political signal to the negotiations in Bali that “business as usual” will not do and that they are ready to work jointly with others towards a comprehensive multilateral framework for action".
September 2007 Washington conference
It emerged on August 3, 2007, that representatives of the United Nations, major industrialized and developing countries are being invited by George Bush to a conference in Washington on September 27 and 28. Countries invited are believed to include the members of the G8+5 (Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, United Kingdom, United States, Brazil, China, India, Mexico and South Africa), together with South Korea, Australia, Indonesia and South Africa. The meeting is to be hosted by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, and is envisaged as the first of several extending into 2008. Initial reaction to the news of the conference invitation was mixed.
2007 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Bali
Negotiations on a successor to the Kyoto Protocol dominated the 2007 United Nations Climate Change Conference conference. A meeting of environment ministers and experts held in June called on the conference to agree a road-map, timetable and "concrete steps for the negotiations" with a view to reaching an agreement by 2009.
2008 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Poznań
Following preliminary talks in Bangkok, Bonn, and Accra, the 2008 negotiations culminated in December with the 2008 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Poznań, Poland.
35th G8 Summit
September 2009 United Nations Secretary General´s Summit on Climate Change
United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon will convene a high-level event on Climate Change on 22 September 2009 to which Heads of State and Government have been invited. This event is intended to build further political momentum for an ambitious Copenhagen agreed outcome to be adopted at COP-15.
2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen (COP-15)
Following preparatory talks in Bonn, Bangkok and Barcelona, the 2009 conference will be held in December 2009 in Copenhagen, Denmark, and the treaty succeeding the Kyoto Protocol is expected to be adopted there.
Potential topics to be discussed include carbon capture and storage, biofuels, adaptation financing, technology transfer, sustainable agriculture, emissions targets, tropical forests and rural and transport electrification (plug-in hybrids)
Development of technologies will be important to reduce carbon emissions. Even if all carbon emissions stopped tomorrow, global warming would continue for the next 30 years. James E. Rogers, CEO of Duke Energy and member of Copenhagen Climate Council said “It is a myth that we have the technologies to do the job. We don’t. New technologies are crucial as is further development of existing technology.”
Some media sources claim that the meeting will lead to empty promises without measurable goals. In a recent meeting of the Group of Eight G8, the world top leaders agreed to halve carbon emissions by 2050; however, they did not set specific targets because they did not agree on a base year.
However members of the climate council acknowledge that action needs to happen fast. “My personal view is that the future of humanity is at stake,” said Tim Flannery, Professor at Macquaire University and chairman of the Copenhagen Climate Council, in an interview with chinadialogue.net.
From http://en.wikipedia.org/
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Personal carbon credits
Personal carbon credits are carbon credits created and owned by individuals who reduce their green house gas (GHG) emissions by a real and verifiable amount. Individuals cause GHG emissions from a variety of direct and indirect activities including transportation use, electrical use and home heating and cooling. Verifiable reductions in GHG emissions are aggregated into 1 metric ton increments and they become personal Carbon Credits.
Traditional carbon credits are purchased by GHG emitters to offset the difference between their actual emissions and their allowable limit under a cap and trade type GHG reduction program or to reduce their total GHG emissions under a voluntary limit. These same credits are created when specific GHG reduction projects produce real, additional and verifiable GHG reductions. These carbon projects are typically large in scale and include reforestation, fuel switching and biogas projects.
Personal carbon credits follow the same concept as traditional carbon credits, but these projects are small in scale, developed by individuals and encourage actual reduction in energy demand at the use point. They are applicable globally, wherever the verification requirements can be satisfied.
Personal carbon credits differ from personal carbon trading which imposes a cap or allowance on individual GHG emissions. Personal carbon credits are a voluntary method for individuals to directly reduce energy consumption and the resulting GHG emissions. Successful individual reductions are rewarded through lower utility costs and the value of the created personal carbon credits.
Personal carbon credits were first introduced by My Emissions Exchange in April 2009. Some experts on carbon credit markets have called for inclusion of small scale GHG reduction projects and verification methods that are valid, appropriate and cost effective for projects of this size. Personal carbon credits address this need and create more opportunities for GHG reductions.
Verification
Verification and certification of all carbon credits are necessary to insure real GHG reductions are occurring and to insure buyer confidence in using credits to offset GHG emissions. There are many certification standards in existence today for both the compliance and voluntary credit markets. Personal carbon credits are a new approach to GHG reduction strategies and as such there are no specific protocols existing today within the various certification standards, specifically, because personal carbon credits are so new. However, the proper design of the verification system, such as the use of utility company billing meters and review of historical consumption patterns, can insure that personal carbon credits comply with all the requirements of The Greenhouse Gas Protocol by the World Resources Institute, including additionality.Greater awareness of personal carbon credits will encourage certification organizations to develop specific protocols in the future.
From http://en.wikipedia.org/
Traditional carbon credits are purchased by GHG emitters to offset the difference between their actual emissions and their allowable limit under a cap and trade type GHG reduction program or to reduce their total GHG emissions under a voluntary limit. These same credits are created when specific GHG reduction projects produce real, additional and verifiable GHG reductions. These carbon projects are typically large in scale and include reforestation, fuel switching and biogas projects.
Personal carbon credits follow the same concept as traditional carbon credits, but these projects are small in scale, developed by individuals and encourage actual reduction in energy demand at the use point. They are applicable globally, wherever the verification requirements can be satisfied.
Personal carbon credits differ from personal carbon trading which imposes a cap or allowance on individual GHG emissions. Personal carbon credits are a voluntary method for individuals to directly reduce energy consumption and the resulting GHG emissions. Successful individual reductions are rewarded through lower utility costs and the value of the created personal carbon credits.
Personal carbon credits were first introduced by My Emissions Exchange in April 2009. Some experts on carbon credit markets have called for inclusion of small scale GHG reduction projects and verification methods that are valid, appropriate and cost effective for projects of this size. Personal carbon credits address this need and create more opportunities for GHG reductions.
Verification
Verification and certification of all carbon credits are necessary to insure real GHG reductions are occurring and to insure buyer confidence in using credits to offset GHG emissions. There are many certification standards in existence today for both the compliance and voluntary credit markets. Personal carbon credits are a new approach to GHG reduction strategies and as such there are no specific protocols existing today within the various certification standards, specifically, because personal carbon credits are so new. However, the proper design of the verification system, such as the use of utility company billing meters and review of historical consumption patterns, can insure that personal carbon credits comply with all the requirements of The Greenhouse Gas Protocol by the World Resources Institute, including additionality.Greater awareness of personal carbon credits will encourage certification organizations to develop specific protocols in the future.
From http://en.wikipedia.org/
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Personal carbon trading
Personal carbon trading refers to proposed emissions trading schemes under which emissions credits are allocated to adult individuals on a (broadly) equal per capita basis, within national carbon budgets. Individuals then surrender these credits when buying fuel or electricity. Individuals wanting or needing to emit at a level above that permitted by their initial allocation would be able to engage in emissions trading and purchase additional credits. Conversely, those individuals who emit at a level below that permitted by their initial allocation have the opportunity to sell their surplus credits. Thus, individual trading under Personal Carbon Trading is similar to the trading of companies under EU ETS.
Proposals
Current proposals include:
* Tradable Energy Quotas (TEQs) - devised by environmental writer, David Fleming, who first published the idea in 1996 under its former name Domestic Tradable Quotas (DTQs). The UK's Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research has been researching this scheme since 2003, and more recently the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures & Commerce (RSA) through its project RSA CarbonLimited.
* Personal Carbon Allowances (PCAs) - described in the book “How we can save the planet” by Mayer Hillman and Tina Fawcett. Work on PCAs is ongoing at the Environmental Change Institute, Oxford, UK. The title "PCAs" or "PCA scheme" is sometimes used generically to refer to any proposed form of personal carbon trading.
* Tradable Personal Pollution Allowances - originally proposed in an article by Dr. Kirk Barrett in 1995 and applicable to any form of pollution, including carbon dioxide.
Individuals would most likely hold their emissions credits in electronic accounts, and would surrender them when they make carbon-related purchases, such as electricity, heating fuel and petroleum. PCAs could also require individuals to use credits for public transport. Tradable Energy Quotas would bring all other sectors of society (eg. Industry, Government) within the scope of a single scheme.
Individuals who exceed their allocation (i.e. those who want to use more emissions credits than they have been given) would be able to purchase additional credits from those who use less, so individuals that are under allocation would profit from their small carbon footprint.
Proponents of personal carbon trading claim that it is an equitable way of addressing climate change and peak oil, as it could guarantee that a national economy lives within its agreed carbon budget and ensure fair access to fuel and energy. They also believe it would increase ‘carbon literacy’ among the public, while encouraging more localised economies.
Personal carbon trading has been criticised for its possible complexity and high implementation costs. As yet, there is minimal reliable data on these issues. There is also the fear that personal "rationing" and trading of allowances will be politically unacceptable, especially if those allowances are used to buy from industries who are already passing-on costs from their participation in carbon levy or trading schemes such as the EU ETS.
Research in this area has shown that personal carbon trading would be a progressive policy instrument - redistributing money from the rich to the poor - as the rich use more energy than the poor, and so would need to buy allowances from them. This is in contrast to a direct carbon tax, under which all lower income people are worse off, prior to revenue redistribution.
Progress towards implementation
There are no operating schemes currently in existence, although the United Kingdom Climate Change Bill will grant powers allowing the Government to introduce a personal carbon trading scheme without further primary legislation.
In May 2008 DEFRA completed a pre-feasibility study into TEQs, with the headline finding that “personal carbon trading has potential to engage individuals in taking action to combat climate change, but is essentially ahead of its time and expected costs for implementation are high”. Based on this DEFRA announced that “the Government remains interested in the concept of personal carbon trading and, although it will not be continuing its research programme at this stage, it will monitor the wealth of research focusing on this area and may introduce personal carbon trading if the value of carbon savings and cost implications change".
Later that same month the UK Parliament Environmental Audit Committee produced their report on the subject, which concluded that ”personal carbon trading could be essential in helping to reduce our national carbon footprint" and rebuked the Government for delaying a full feasibility study, stating that "although we commend the Government for its intention to maintain engagement in academic work on the topic, we urge it to undertake a stronger role, leading and shaping debate and coordinating research".
Related emissions reduction proposals and initiatives
* Carbon Rationing Action Groups - groups in the UK and US that voluntarily cap their greenhouse gas emissions
* "Icecaps" - devised by George Monbiot in his book Heat: How to Stop the Planet Burning.
Media
Carbon rationing is considered in the new feature film The Age of Stupid, set for release in February 2009.
From http://en.wikipedia.org/
Proposals
Current proposals include:
* Tradable Energy Quotas (TEQs) - devised by environmental writer, David Fleming, who first published the idea in 1996 under its former name Domestic Tradable Quotas (DTQs). The UK's Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research has been researching this scheme since 2003, and more recently the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures & Commerce (RSA) through its project RSA CarbonLimited.
* Personal Carbon Allowances (PCAs) - described in the book “How we can save the planet” by Mayer Hillman and Tina Fawcett. Work on PCAs is ongoing at the Environmental Change Institute, Oxford, UK. The title "PCAs" or "PCA scheme" is sometimes used generically to refer to any proposed form of personal carbon trading.
* Tradable Personal Pollution Allowances - originally proposed in an article by Dr. Kirk Barrett in 1995 and applicable to any form of pollution, including carbon dioxide.
Individuals would most likely hold their emissions credits in electronic accounts, and would surrender them when they make carbon-related purchases, such as electricity, heating fuel and petroleum. PCAs could also require individuals to use credits for public transport. Tradable Energy Quotas would bring all other sectors of society (eg. Industry, Government) within the scope of a single scheme.
Individuals who exceed their allocation (i.e. those who want to use more emissions credits than they have been given) would be able to purchase additional credits from those who use less, so individuals that are under allocation would profit from their small carbon footprint.
Proponents of personal carbon trading claim that it is an equitable way of addressing climate change and peak oil, as it could guarantee that a national economy lives within its agreed carbon budget and ensure fair access to fuel and energy. They also believe it would increase ‘carbon literacy’ among the public, while encouraging more localised economies.
Personal carbon trading has been criticised for its possible complexity and high implementation costs. As yet, there is minimal reliable data on these issues. There is also the fear that personal "rationing" and trading of allowances will be politically unacceptable, especially if those allowances are used to buy from industries who are already passing-on costs from their participation in carbon levy or trading schemes such as the EU ETS.
Research in this area has shown that personal carbon trading would be a progressive policy instrument - redistributing money from the rich to the poor - as the rich use more energy than the poor, and so would need to buy allowances from them. This is in contrast to a direct carbon tax, under which all lower income people are worse off, prior to revenue redistribution.
Progress towards implementation
There are no operating schemes currently in existence, although the United Kingdom Climate Change Bill will grant powers allowing the Government to introduce a personal carbon trading scheme without further primary legislation.
In May 2008 DEFRA completed a pre-feasibility study into TEQs, with the headline finding that “personal carbon trading has potential to engage individuals in taking action to combat climate change, but is essentially ahead of its time and expected costs for implementation are high”. Based on this DEFRA announced that “the Government remains interested in the concept of personal carbon trading and, although it will not be continuing its research programme at this stage, it will monitor the wealth of research focusing on this area and may introduce personal carbon trading if the value of carbon savings and cost implications change".
Later that same month the UK Parliament Environmental Audit Committee produced their report on the subject, which concluded that ”personal carbon trading could be essential in helping to reduce our national carbon footprint" and rebuked the Government for delaying a full feasibility study, stating that "although we commend the Government for its intention to maintain engagement in academic work on the topic, we urge it to undertake a stronger role, leading and shaping debate and coordinating research".
Related emissions reduction proposals and initiatives
* Carbon Rationing Action Groups - groups in the UK and US that voluntarily cap their greenhouse gas emissions
* "Icecaps" - devised by George Monbiot in his book Heat: How to Stop the Planet Burning.
Media
Carbon rationing is considered in the new feature film The Age of Stupid, set for release in February 2009.
From http://en.wikipedia.org/
Friday, December 11, 2009
Carbon project
A carbon project refers to a business initiative that receives funding because of the cut the emission of greenhouse gases (GHGs) that will result. To prove that the project will result in real, permanent, verifiable reductions in Greenhouse Gases, proof must be provided in the form of a project design document and activity reports validated by an approved third party in the case of Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) or Joint Implementation (JI) projects.
Reasons for carbon project development
Carbon projects are developed for reasons of voluntary environmental stewardship, as well as legal compliance under a Greenhouse Gas Cap & Trade program. Voluntary carbon (GHG) reducers may wish to monetize reductions in their carbon footprint by trading the reductions in exchange for monetary compensation. The transfer of environmental stewardship rights would then allow another entity to make an environmental stewardship claim. There are several developing voluntary reduction standards that projects can use as guides for development.
Kyoto Protocol
Carbon projects have become increasingly important since the advent of emissions trading under Phase I of the Kyoto Protocol in 2005. They may be used if the project has been validated by a Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) Designated Operational Entity (DOE) according the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The resulting emissions reductions may become Certified Emissions Reductions (CERs) when a DOE has produced a verification report which has been submitted to the CDM Executive Board.
There may be new project methodology validated by the CDM EB for post phase II Kyoto trading.
United States
In the United States standards similar to those of the Kyoto Protocol schemes are developing around California's AB-32 and the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). Offset projects can be of many types, but only those that have proven additionality are likely to become monetized under a future U.S. Cap & Trade program.
One example of such a project, the Valley Wood Carbon Sequestration Project, receives funding from a partnership that was developed by Verus Carbon Neutral that links 17 merchants of Atlanta's Virginia-Highland shopping and dining neighborhood retail district, through the Chicago Climate Exchange, to directly fund the thousands of acres of forest in rural Georgia. The unique partnership established Virginia-Highland as the first Carbon-Neutral Zone in the United States.
Operation
An entity whose greenhouse gas emissions are capped by a regulatory program has three choices for complying if they exceed their cap. First, they could pay an alternative compliance measure or "carbon tax", a default payment set by the regulatory body. This choice is usually the least attractive given the ability to comply by trading.
The second option is to purchase carbon credits within an emissions trading scheme. The trade provides an economic disincentive to the polluter, while providing an incentive to the less polluting organisation. As fossil fuel generation becomes less attractive it will be increasingly unattractive to exceed a carbon cap because the financial disincentive will grow via market forces. The price of a carbon allowance would go up because supply would decline while demand stays constant (assuming a positive growth rate for energy consumption).
The final option is to invest in a carbon project. The carbon project will result in a greenhouse gas emission reduction which can be used to offset the excess emissions generated by the polluter. The financial disincentive to pollute is in the form of the capital expenditure to develop the project or the cost of purchasing the offset from the developer of the project. In this case the financial incentive would go to the owner of the carbon project.
Project selection
The most important part of developing a carbon project is establishing and documenting the additionality of the project - that the carbon project would not have otherwise occurred. It is also essential to document the measurement and the verification methodology applied, as outlined in the project development document.
Developing a carbon project is appropriate for renewable energy projects such as wind, solar, low impact-small hydro, biomass, and biogas. Projects have also been developed for a wide variety of other emissions reductions such as reforestation, fuel switching, carbon capture and storage, and energy efficiency.
From http://en.wikipedia.org/
Reasons for carbon project development
Carbon projects are developed for reasons of voluntary environmental stewardship, as well as legal compliance under a Greenhouse Gas Cap & Trade program. Voluntary carbon (GHG) reducers may wish to monetize reductions in their carbon footprint by trading the reductions in exchange for monetary compensation. The transfer of environmental stewardship rights would then allow another entity to make an environmental stewardship claim. There are several developing voluntary reduction standards that projects can use as guides for development.
Kyoto Protocol
Carbon projects have become increasingly important since the advent of emissions trading under Phase I of the Kyoto Protocol in 2005. They may be used if the project has been validated by a Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) Designated Operational Entity (DOE) according the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The resulting emissions reductions may become Certified Emissions Reductions (CERs) when a DOE has produced a verification report which has been submitted to the CDM Executive Board.
There may be new project methodology validated by the CDM EB for post phase II Kyoto trading.
United States
In the United States standards similar to those of the Kyoto Protocol schemes are developing around California's AB-32 and the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). Offset projects can be of many types, but only those that have proven additionality are likely to become monetized under a future U.S. Cap & Trade program.
One example of such a project, the Valley Wood Carbon Sequestration Project, receives funding from a partnership that was developed by Verus Carbon Neutral that links 17 merchants of Atlanta's Virginia-Highland shopping and dining neighborhood retail district, through the Chicago Climate Exchange, to directly fund the thousands of acres of forest in rural Georgia. The unique partnership established Virginia-Highland as the first Carbon-Neutral Zone in the United States.
Operation
An entity whose greenhouse gas emissions are capped by a regulatory program has three choices for complying if they exceed their cap. First, they could pay an alternative compliance measure or "carbon tax", a default payment set by the regulatory body. This choice is usually the least attractive given the ability to comply by trading.
The second option is to purchase carbon credits within an emissions trading scheme. The trade provides an economic disincentive to the polluter, while providing an incentive to the less polluting organisation. As fossil fuel generation becomes less attractive it will be increasingly unattractive to exceed a carbon cap because the financial disincentive will grow via market forces. The price of a carbon allowance would go up because supply would decline while demand stays constant (assuming a positive growth rate for energy consumption).
The final option is to invest in a carbon project. The carbon project will result in a greenhouse gas emission reduction which can be used to offset the excess emissions generated by the polluter. The financial disincentive to pollute is in the form of the capital expenditure to develop the project or the cost of purchasing the offset from the developer of the project. In this case the financial incentive would go to the owner of the carbon project.
Project selection
The most important part of developing a carbon project is establishing and documenting the additionality of the project - that the carbon project would not have otherwise occurred. It is also essential to document the measurement and the verification methodology applied, as outlined in the project development document.
Developing a carbon project is appropriate for renewable energy projects such as wind, solar, low impact-small hydro, biomass, and biogas. Projects have also been developed for a wide variety of other emissions reductions such as reforestation, fuel switching, carbon capture and storage, and energy efficiency.
From http://en.wikipedia.org/
Carbon emissions reporting
Businesses worldwide face pressure to reduce the impact their activities have upon the environment, and in particular the volume of greenhouse gases they produce.
In the United Kingdom, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has described climate change as the "greatest environmental challenge facing the world today". Although there is currently no legislation in place in the UK forcing companies to reduce carbon emissions, tax benefits and consumer pressure provide a strong incentive for businesses to develop environmental strategies. Emissions trading is the primary tool advocated by the UK Government for tackling global climate change, a method which aims to tackle emissions reduction at the points where there is the lowest cost for doing so. For emissions trading to work, a uniform method of reporting is necessary to allow for comparisons to be made across organisations. Kilograms of CO2 is the preferred unit of measurement for emissions and Defra have developed conversion tables which provide a standard CO2 cost for typical business activities, allowing organisations to report on the volume of CO2 they produce. This article describes the various methods by which businesses and organisations can report on their carbon emissions.
From http://en.wikipedia.org/
In the United Kingdom, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has described climate change as the "greatest environmental challenge facing the world today". Although there is currently no legislation in place in the UK forcing companies to reduce carbon emissions, tax benefits and consumer pressure provide a strong incentive for businesses to develop environmental strategies. Emissions trading is the primary tool advocated by the UK Government for tackling global climate change, a method which aims to tackle emissions reduction at the points where there is the lowest cost for doing so. For emissions trading to work, a uniform method of reporting is necessary to allow for comparisons to be made across organisations. Kilograms of CO2 is the preferred unit of measurement for emissions and Defra have developed conversion tables which provide a standard CO2 cost for typical business activities, allowing organisations to report on the volume of CO2 they produce. This article describes the various methods by which businesses and organisations can report on their carbon emissions.
From http://en.wikipedia.org/
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Carbon profiling
Carbon profiling is a mathematical process that calculates how much Carbon Dioxide is put into the atmosphere from 1msq of space in a building over 1 year.
The metric analysis this in two parts, 1 operational carbon emissions and 2 embodied carbon emissions, which are then added together to produce an overall figure which is termed the ‘Carbon Profile’.
Embodied Carbon Emissions relate to the amount of Carbon Dioxide emitted into the atmosphere from creating and maintaining the materials that form the building eg the carbon dioxide released from the baking of bricks or smelting or iron. In the Carbon Profiling Model these emissions are measured in ECE’s (Embodied Carbon Efficiency) in KgCO2/msq/year
Occupational Carbon Emissions relate to the amount of Carbon Dioxide emitted into the atmosphere from the direct use of energy to run the building e.g. the heating or electricity used by the building over the year. In the Carbon Profiling Model these emissions are measured in BER’s (Building Emission Rate) in KgCO2/msq/year.
The BER is a United Kingdom government accepted unit of measurement that comes from an approved calculation process called sBEM (Simplified Building Emission Model)
The purpose of Carbon Profiling is to provide a method of analyzing and comparing both operational and embodied carbon emissions at the same time. With this information it is then possible to allocate a projects resources in such a way to minimize the total amount of Carbon Dioxide emitted into the atmosphere through the use of a given piece of space.
A secondary benefit is that having quantified the Carbon Profiling of different buildings it is then possible to make comparisons and rank buildings in term of their performance. This allows investors and occupiers to identify which building are good and bad carbon investments.
Simon Sturgis and Gareth Roberts of Sturgis Associates in the United Kingdom originally developed ‘Carbon Profiling’ in December 2007.
Carbon Profiling
From http://en.wikipedia.org/
The metric analysis this in two parts, 1 operational carbon emissions and 2 embodied carbon emissions, which are then added together to produce an overall figure which is termed the ‘Carbon Profile’.
Embodied Carbon Emissions relate to the amount of Carbon Dioxide emitted into the atmosphere from creating and maintaining the materials that form the building eg the carbon dioxide released from the baking of bricks or smelting or iron. In the Carbon Profiling Model these emissions are measured in ECE’s (Embodied Carbon Efficiency) in KgCO2/msq/year
Occupational Carbon Emissions relate to the amount of Carbon Dioxide emitted into the atmosphere from the direct use of energy to run the building e.g. the heating or electricity used by the building over the year. In the Carbon Profiling Model these emissions are measured in BER’s (Building Emission Rate) in KgCO2/msq/year.
The BER is a United Kingdom government accepted unit of measurement that comes from an approved calculation process called sBEM (Simplified Building Emission Model)
The purpose of Carbon Profiling is to provide a method of analyzing and comparing both operational and embodied carbon emissions at the same time. With this information it is then possible to allocate a projects resources in such a way to minimize the total amount of Carbon Dioxide emitted into the atmosphere through the use of a given piece of space.
A secondary benefit is that having quantified the Carbon Profiling of different buildings it is then possible to make comparisons and rank buildings in term of their performance. This allows investors and occupiers to identify which building are good and bad carbon investments.
Simon Sturgis and Gareth Roberts of Sturgis Associates in the United Kingdom originally developed ‘Carbon Profiling’ in December 2007.
Carbon Profiling
From http://en.wikipedia.org/
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