Climate Change News - January 11, 2010

Eleven Eastern States Sign Pact on Low Carbon Fuels

On December 30, 11 eastern states signed an agreement to develop a plan to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from vehicle fuels. The memorandum of understanding was signed by the ten states that make up the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, partners in a regional cap and trade program to reduce GHG emissions from power plants, and the state of Pennsylvania. Part of the agreement included committing to evaluate alternative fuel options and study the costs of such a program, which will promote using cleaner fuels. “Developing alternatives to our continued reliance on petroleum-based fuels will foster economic growth and enable increases in fuel security and reliability,” the memorandum said. “And further, the development, commercialization and use of fuels that have low carbon intensity can support the growth of jobs, businesses, and services in a clean energy economy.” The memorandum calls for a proposed program framework to be completed by early 2011.

For additional information see: Boston Globe , Providence Business News , Boston Business Journal

Survey Finds Half of Money Managers Ignore Climate Risks

On January 6, the group Ceres, a coalition of environmentalists and investors, released a new survey that found that 44 percent of money managers surveyed did not consider climate risks in their investment decisions. In addition, 71 percent of respondents said they do not calculate climate risks when developing traditional investments versus a "green fund." A possible reason for this, the report noted, was that 49 percent of respondents said investors do not ask them to look at corporate climate risks. "A key problem identified in the report is that asset owners, such as pension funds, governments, and other private institutional investors, are only just beginning to ask their asset managers to include climate risk and opportunity analysis in their investment due diligence," the report said. The survey was sent to the 500 largest asset managers listed in Pensions & Investments, and was also made available to others who heard about it through the Internet or Ceres itself. The survey took place between November 2008 and January 2009 and respondents included 84 managers handling $8.6 trillion.

For additional information see: New York Times , Reuters , Washington Post , Bloomberg

USDA Concerned with Climate Change Model's Effect on Food Production

On December 18, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) released its economic analysis showing that agriculture will benefit from energy and climate legislation “if it includes a robust carbon offsets program and other helpful provisions.” The results of the USDA’s analysis indicated that the costs of any possible legislation would be modest while returns from offsets “would increase over-time and result in positive net income for agriculture.”

The USDA also commented on the results of a recent analysis conducted by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which used output from the FASOM model – a model developed by researchers at Texas A & M University. USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack noted that the FASOM model has raised concern within the farm community about the model’s projected number of acres converted to forest, resulting in lower crop production. "As other recent analyses have shown, there are opportunities to expand greenhouse gas offsets and biomass energy production without removing significant amounts of land from production…careful design of the offsets program will be important in order to avoid unintended consequences," Vilsack said. "In addition to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, I strongly believe that energy and climate legislation should be structured to help farmers profit from new income opportunities and that an outcome that damages agriculture is not anyone's intent or interest."

For additional information see: Cattle Network , USDA Press Release

Study Finds Michigan's Climate Plan Would Boost Economy

On January 4, the Center for Climate Strategies released a study on the economic impacts from a set of recommendations developed by the Michigan Climate Action Council, reporting that implementing the plan could create $25 billion for the state’s economy by 2025. The council was formed in 2007 by Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm as part of an effort to reduce the state’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Implementing the plan could also create 129,000 jobs and significantly reduce home energy costs, the report said. It noted that approximately 90 percent of Michigan residents’ energy purchases leave the state, so investing in energy efficiency and renewable energy sources in the state reduces the money that would otherwise leave the state. “This study validates our commitment to energy efficiency and renewable sources of fuel,” said Steven Chester, director of the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality.

For additional information see: Michigan Messenger , Detroit News , Center for Climate Strategies Michigan Macroeconomic Study

Minnesota to Enact Carbon Tariff against North Dakota

On December 29, North Dakota Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem said his state is likely to sue Minnesota over its plan to enact a carbon tariff for electricity generated by coal-fired power plants. Minnesota’s Public Utilities Commission plans to enact a fee of between $4 – 34 per ton of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from coal-fired electricity, beginning in 2012. Most of North Dakota’s electricity exports are generated by coal-fired power plants, which the state’s officials argued would create an unfair tax on electricity exports from the state and discourage its use by Minnesota utilities. Stenehjem argued the rules would violate the U.S. Constitution's restrictions on states regulating each other's businesses. "The bottom line is . . . their legislation will result in much higher electricity costs in Minnesota, with no appreciable improvement in the amount of carbon dioxide that's emitted," he said.

For additional information see: Rochester Post-Bulletin , Bismarck Tribune , Scientific American

Hottest Decade on Record for Australia; 2009 Second Hottest Year

On January 5, Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology announced that the decade spanning 2000 to 2009 was the hottest decade on record for Australia. The average temperature in Australia in the past decade was 0.48°C above the 1961-1990 average, the bureau’s annual climate statement noted. Every decade since the 1940s had been warmer than the previous one. "This suggests an apparent shift in Australia's climate from one characterized by natural variability to one increasingly characterized by a trend to warmer temperatures," it said. In addition, 2009 was also the second hottest year for the country since official records began in 1910. Senior climatologist Dean Collins said that while higher temperatures were partly the result of an El Nino effect in the past decade, it is also an indication of human-caused global warming. “To get six, seven decades in a row that are warmer than the previous one -- it doesn't happen by chance,” Collins said. “It's reflecting what's happening at the global level."

For additional information see: Reuters , AFP , Herald Sun , Sydney Morning Herald

French Government Plans Amended Carbon Tax

On January 5, the French government announced that a new carbon tax will go into effect July 1, following last week’s declaration from the country’s Constitution Council that a previous carbon tax was illegal. On December 29, the constitutional court declared a carbon tax that President Nicholas Sarkozy had proposed was illegal because it exempted too many members of industry and would burden a small portion of consumers. French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde suggested that industry could be subjected to the new carbon tax, but at a separate rate, to ensure companies are not penalized with a heavy tax burden. “The president raised the issue of the carbon tax,” government spokesman Luc Chatel said at a press conference. “The government reaffirmed its conviction that a carbon tax is necessary to change behavior toward the environment.”

For additional information see: Wall Street Journal , AFP , Financial Times , Reuters

Bolivian Leader Proposes Alternative Climate Change Conference in April

On January 5, Bolivian President Evo Morales announced that he would invite activists, scientists and government officials to attend a climate change conference in April, in response to what he saw as a failure to reach binding agreements at climate negotiations in Copenhagen. The meeting will take place on April 20-22 in the central Bolivian city of Cochabamba. “Due to a historical responsibility for the mankind, we decided to summon the First World Conference of the People on Climate Change,” Morales said. One of the goals of the proposed conference will be to get industrialized countries to accept that they have a “climate debt” to developing countries and to establish an international court focused on environmental crimes. Other goals of the conference include analyzing the structural and systemic causes of climate change and proposing further measures to enhance harmony between mankind and nature, Morales added.

For additional information see: AP , Xinhua

Methane Release in Arctic Looks Stronger than Previously Thought

On January 7, BBC News reported that scientists measuring methane seepage in the north of Russia are finding a dramatic increase in the methane leakage from the Arctic seabed. “Methane release from the East Siberian Shelf is underway and it looks stronger than it was supposed [to be],” said Igor Semiletov, the leader of the International Siberian Shelf Study (ISSS) from the University of Alaska at Fairbanks. Methane is approximately 20 times more potent than carbon dioxide (CO2) as a greenhouse gas (GHG). Siberia’s shallow shelf holds vast stores of methane hydrate, which is released both into the sea and atmosphere as the temperature rises. Orjan Gustafsson, another researcher in the study from Stockholm University in Sweden, said that methane measured in the atmosphere around the Siberian shelf region is 100 times higher than normal background levels, and in some cases 1,000 times higher. There was no cause for alarm yet, Gustafsson said, stressing that further studies were still necessary to determine the exact cause of the methane seepage. "It is important now to understand how fast it is being released and how much is being released," he said.

For additional information see: BBC

Canada's Arctic Meltdown Growing At Alarming Pace

In the December 29 issue of the Journal of Geophysical Research, scientists reported that the period of time in which Arctic ice is melting in northern Canada has increased by 20 days since 1979. The scientists conducting the research used satellite microwave data to measure when sea ice begins to melt and when it refreezes each year. They found that, on average, sea ice began melting 2.5 days earlier each decade and began refreezing 3.7 days later. “All areas in the Arctic show a trend toward earlier melt onset and also a trend toward later freeze-up,” the article noted, but the study also found that rate is even faster in areas of the Canadian Arctic. One of the most southerly ice packs is Hudson Bay, which the study found was melting at one of the fastest rates in the world. One of the researchers, Julienne Stroeve from the National Snow and Ice Data Center at the University of Colorado in Boulder, said the findings are consistent with other data about the effects of climate change on the Arctic.

For additional information see: Journal of Geophysical Research Abstract , Toronto Star , Canadian Press

Animal Health Body to Study Meat Impact on Climate

On January 7, the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) announced it would launch a study looking into the impact of meat production on climate change. The United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization estimates that meat production is responsible for 18 percent of all greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, which has led some scientists to recommend reducing meat consumption in order to tackle climate change. OIE Director Bernard Vallat cautioned against oversimplifying the issue and said that the study is intended to look at the issue very carefully. "It's a question that needs to be studied with a lot of distance," Vallat said. "We want to make a modest and independent contribution." The study could likely recommend further research to find ways of limiting the direct effects of meat production on the environment, such as emissions from methane, a potent GHG, Vallat added. This is the first time in its nearly 85-year history that the 175-nation OIE is to carry out an environmental investigation.

For additional information see: Reuters , AFP

Climate Change Increasing Risk of Malaria

On December 31, researchers from the Kenyan Medical Research Institute reported that global warming had caused a seven-fold increase in cases of malaria on Mount Kenya from ten years ago. In 1989 in the Central Highlands region of Kenya, the average temperature was 17°C. Because the parasite that causes malaria matures at 18°C, researchers did not observe any significant cases of malaria. Temperatures in that region now average 19°C, and local officials are now seeing mosquitoes carrying malaria in higher altitudes and epidemics among humans. “The spread of malaria in the Mount Kenya region is a worrying sign of things to come,” said Douglas Alexander, the international development secretary for the UK Department for International Development, which funded the study. “Without strong and urgent action to tackle climate change, malaria could infect areas without any experience of the disease. That's why we need to make sure vulnerable, developing nations such as Kenya have the support they need to tackle the potentially devastating impacts of climate change.”

For additional information see: The Guardian , The Times

January 14: Public Transportation, Jobs, and a Clean Energy Economy

The Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) invites you to a briefing on the job creation and economic development impacts of public transportation. Legislation pending before Congress to help sustain job growth and economic recovery (H.R. 2847, Jobs for Main Street Act) contains targeted investments to stimulate job creation and lay a foundation for long-term productivity gains. This briefing will examine the potential for public transportation investments to expand U.S. heavy-duty equipment manufacturing; increase employment in construction, operation, and maintenance occupations; and support regional economic development strategies. The briefing will take place on Thursday, January 14, from 2:00 - 3:30 p.m. in 562 Dirksen Senate Office Building. This briefing is free and open to the public. No RSVP required. For more information, please contact us at policy [at] eesi.org or (202) 662-1883.

January 26-28: EDTA Conference & Annual Meeting at the Washington Auto Show

The Electric Drive Transportation Association (EDTA) invites you to its annual conference at the Washington Auto Show. The event features two general plenary sessions, 12 breakout sessions covering all aspects of the electric drive industry, and pre-conference workshops. Delegates will also enjoy numerous social and networking opportunities. By registering for the EDTA Conference, you will have full access to the Washington, DC Auto Show—including the “Government Sneak Peek” on January 26. The EDTA Conference will also feature an Advanced Technology Superhighway, featuring EDTA members and other companies showcasing the latest in battery, hybrid, plug-in hybrid and fuel cell electric drive vehicles. Meet suppliers and infrastructure providers as well! To register, visit www.electricdrive.org or call 202-408-0774 x 306.

January 28-29: Bridging Carbon Conference -- Building the Bridge from Pre-compliance to Compliance

Electric Utility Consultants, Inc. (EUCI) invites you to the "Bridging Carbon Conference: Building the Bridge from Pre-compliance to Compliance," taking place from January 28-29. This conference focuses on the corporate policy and implementation measures that will be necessary to build the “bridge” between GHG emission pre-compliance and compliance requirements, with a special emphasis on the energy industry. As U.S. carbon regulation gains increasing definition in Congress and at the EPA, the energy, industrial, and financial sectors are confronting the transition from voluntary to mandatory regimes. Throughout our energy economy, this shift to carbon business integration will be fundamental to successful expense recovery and revenue growth. The conference will take place from January 28-29, at the Hyatt Regency Crystal City in Arlington, Virginia. Congressional and government agency staff receive complimentary registrations, and all other readers receive a 25% discount on registration. For more information or to register, please visit http://www.euci.com/conferences/0110-BCC.