Climate Change News - May 27, 2013

Rep. Capps Introduces Legislation to Help Health Professionals Understand Impacts of Climate Change

On May 17, Rep. Lois Capps (D-CA), along with Reps. Ed Markey (D-MA), Doris Matsui (D-CA), and Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), reintroduced the Climate Change Health Protection and Promotion Act (H.R. 2023) to provide health professionals with resources to understand and address the human health-related impacts of climate change. The legislation directs the Centers for Disease Control, under the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, to develop a National Strategic Action Plan to help support state and local health departments, train public health professionals about climate-related health risks, and engage in coordinated research and tracking of infectious diseases. Upon the reintroduction, Rep. Capps stated, “One of the most troubling and immediate impacts of climate change is its harmful effects on public health. [. . .] The heat waves, droughts, wildfires, and extreme weather events that are happening with greater frequency and intensity have a profound impact on public health that we’re only beginning to understand. We have to provide our public health officials with the tools and resources they need to effectively track and prepare for these significant public health challenges.” The bill was first introduced in the 110th Congress and was part of the American Clean Energy and Security Act, also known as Waxman-Markey, which passed the House in 2009.

For additional information see: The Hill , Rep. Capps Press Release , H.R. 2023

CBO Assesses the Impacts of a Carbon Tax on the Economy and Environment

On May 22, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released a report detailing the effects a carbon tax could have on the U.S. economy. The report notes that much depends on how the tax is structured, stating, “The effects of a carbon tax on the U.S. economy would depend on how the revenues from the tax were used.” The report concludes that without incorporating how the revenue is used, a carbon tax would increase fossil fuel prices and in turn, increase the costs of goods across the economy, especially those that are fossil fuel intensive. The increased costs of fossil fuel would reduce their consumption and therefore improve public health, but would also have a negative effect on the economy and a disproportionate impact on low-income households. The report suggests that the negative economic effects could be mitigated or even reversed if the revenue is used to cut marginal income or payroll tax rates or reduce the federal deficit. The CBO also concludes that the costs of not implementing a carbon tax could be significant in the long run, stating, “[D]elays would increase the expected damage from climate change by increasing the risk of very costly, potentially even catastrophic, outcomes. [. . .] In general, the risk of costly damage is higher as the extent of warming increases and as the pace of warming picks up; thus, failing to limit emissions soon increases that risk.”

For additional information see: Wall Street Journal , The Hill , Report

Secretary of Energy Moniz: Climate Change is “Not Debatable,” Eyes Energy Efficiency to Reduce Emissions

At U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz’s swearing-in ceremony May 21, the new secretary outlined his position on climate change. “Let me make it very clear that there is no ambiguity in terms of the scientific basis calling for a prudent response on climate change,” he said. Moniz continued, “I am not interested in debating what is not debatable. There is plenty to debate as we try and move forward on our climate agenda.” Later that day, Moniz highlighted the role for energy efficiency to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, stating, “Let me just say off the bat that I have been working these problems for quite a while, I have never seen a credible solution to the climate risk mitigation challenge, to reach the kinds of goals we need to reach, without the demand side playing a very, very important part in that. [. . .] Efficiency is going to be a big focus as we go forward.” Moniz also endorsed the bipartisan Energy Savings and Industrial Competitiveness Act of 2013 (S. 761) introduced by Sen. Jean Shaheen (D-NH) and Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH), saying, “This is the kind of initiative that I think has a real chance to move forward and I certainly will work with Senator Shaheen and others to try and help make it work.”

For additional information see: The Hill – 1 , Moniz Speech , The Hill – 2

California Holds Third Carbon Permit Auction

California held its third auction of carbon permits under its cap and trade program on May 16. Current-year carbon allowances sold for a record $14.00 per tonne, up from $13.62 per tonne at the previous auction in February. All 14.5 million available 2013 permits sold out, raising $203 million. The state also auctioned off carbon permits for 2016, selling 7.5 million allowances at the minimum price of $10.71 per tonne to bring in an additional $80 million. The latest auction exceeded the February round, which generated $224 million through sales of 12.9 million 2013 permits and 4.4 million 2016 permits (see February 25 issue). California has now raised $812 million through the program.

For additional information see: Reuters , Auction Results Report

International Agreement on Aviation Emissions Possible by 2020

Representatives from 17 countries have been working with the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) to develop an agreement to reduce aviation emissions. It is possible that the plan will involve some form of mandatory offset costs for every ton of carbon used over a set baseline amount. Explains Tony Tyler, chief executive of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), “We are looking for simplicity and ease of administration as a key component of what we go forward with, so it's likely that the industry will come out in favor of a global offsetting scheme rather than emissions trading.” The plan could be negotiated and voted on at ICAO’s triennial assembly meeting in September. However, it may take longer for a full agreement to be reached. Anthony Philbin, acting chief of communications at ICAO, stated, “Standards, not to mention the broad consensus which effective ones require, take time to develop. [. . .] The present timetable looks to it being more fully resolved by end-2014 or possibly sometime in 2015.” Paul Steele, environmental specialist for IATA and head of the Geneva-based Air Transport Action Group, said, "We're not going to get there this year. With 191 countries in ICAO, you're not going to get agreement easily.” However, officials are optimistic that an international agreement can be reached to come into place by 2020. “Eventually I think we'll get there,” said Kurt Edwards, director general of the International Business Aviation Council. When finalized, the plan will replace the European Union (EU) aviation carbon trading system, which the EU suspend for a year after international pushback, including from the United States and China (see April 4 issue). China recently stated that its airlines will not pay any money owed under the EU carbon trading system. In April, EESI held a Congressional briefing about the potential for an international agreement through ICAO (see briefing summary).

For additional information see: Reuters – 1 , Reuters – 2 , Bloomberg , Agence France-Presse

Report: Britain Can Save $150 Billion through 2050 and Cut GHG Emissions by Investing in Clean Power

A report from the British Parliamentary Committee on Climate Change found that Britain could save $150 billion through 2050 by focusing energy development on clean technologies. The report concludes that clean energy investments will cost more than natural gas-fired plants upfront, but will produce significant financial benefits by the 2030s. Additionally, an emphasis on wind power, nuclear power, and carbon capture systems would still be financially beneficial even if significant natural gas resources are found in Great Britain over the next several years. Conservative Minister of Parliament Tim Yeo noted, “There has clearly been quite a big attempt to portray decarbonisation as a huge burden to the consumer. But this report provides a robust rebuttal to that argument on anything but a short-term basis.”

For additional information see: Bloomberg Businessweek , The Independent

Finland’s Greenhouse Gas Emissions Fell 8 Percent in 2012

In 2012, Finland’s greenhouse gas emissions fell to their lowest level in 22 years. Last year, Finland emitted 61.4 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent, a reduction of eight percent from 2011. The greatest decrease came from economic sectors impacted by the European emissions trading scheme, which fell 16 percent, compared to a one percent decrease for sectors not affected by the trading scheme.

For additional information see: Alaska Dispatch , Statistics Finland

Carbon Disclosure Project Helping to Reduce GHG Emissions from Suppliers of 65 Major Companies

The Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) is helping to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from 65 multinational corporations including General Motors, Pfizer, Pepsi, Wal-Mart, and Dell, as well as the hundreds of thousands of companies that supply them. Combined, the 65 companies represent more than $1 trillion in spending power. “Traditionally, a lot of our members would make a 100 percent of decision on whether to work with a supplier based on price and quality. [. . .] What we're seeing now is companies like Vodafone and Dell are actually reducing the amount [of consideration] they give to price and quality, and basing, say, 20 percent of the supplier's score on sustainability issues,” said Dexter Galvin, head of CDP’s supply chain program. A recent CDP survey of 2,415 companies found that 92 percent of the purchasing companies have GHG emissions targets, but only 38 percent of their suppliers have targets. However, the suppliers that are reducing emissions benefit financially – the 29 percent of suppliers that reduced their annual GHG emissions saved $13.7 billion from reduced energy use. Galvin noted, “There's a huge opportunity here if all main suppliers were to reduce emissions.”

For additional information see: E&E Publishing , CDP Supply Chain Program

Scientists Revise Projected Temperature Sensitivity to Carbon Dioxide Increase

A study published May 19 in Nature Geoscience revises the sensitivity of global temperatures to increased atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide (CO2). The study incorporates global temperature data over the past 10 years to model long-term equilibrium warming due to increased atmospheric CO2 emissions as well as near-term, transient temperature increases. The researchers find a doubling of CO2 would increase temperatures between 1.2 and 3.9 degrees Celsius over the long-term, skewed slightly lower than previous predictions of between 2.2 and 4.7 degrees Celsius. The researchers find the near-term warming could be 20 percent less than previously expected, at 1.3 degrees Celsius versus previous estimates of 1.6 degrees Celsius. While temperature increases have not kept pace with CO2 increases over the past decade, there are a number of factors involved, including the ocean absorbing a greater amount of heat (see April 8 issue). Study coauthor Jochem Marotzke, professor at the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology, cautions, “It is important not to over-interpret a single decade, given what we know, and don't know, about natural climate variability. Over the past decade the world as a whole has continued to warm but the warming is mostly in the subsurface oceans rather than at the surface.” Richard Allen, climate scientist at the University of Reading, said in reference to the new study, “With work like this our predictions become ever better.”

For additional information see: The Guardian , Reuters , Study

Sulfates Have Less of a Cooling Impact on the Climate Than Previously Thought

A study published May 10 in Science concludes that sulfates may not have as strong of a climactic cooling effect as previously believed. Current climate models typically include the process, by which sulfur dioxide emissions from burning fossil fuels oxidize to produce sulfate aerosols. Sulfates reflect sunlight, cooling the atmosphere. Sulfates also influence cloud formation, which has additional climate impacts. However, these models do not account for a second pathway, in which sulfur dioxide oxidizes with bits of minerals, producing heavier sulfates that fall out of the atmosphere faster, and consequently reflect less light. A research team, led by scientists from the Max Planck Institute, concludes that this second pathway may be far more common than previously believed, and suggests that it consequently needs to be incorporated into climate models. The authors state, “Future aerosol cooling may be strongly overpredicted by current climate chemistry models.”

For additional information see: Max Planck Institute , Los Angeles Times , Study

Study Finds Heat Related Mortality to Increase with Climate Change

A May 19 article published in Nature Climate Change concludes that climate change could increase the number of heat-related deaths in New York City by 22 percent by the 2020s, and by as much as 91 percent by the 2080s. The researchers also found that even when warmer winters were taken into account, the overall temperature-related mortality rate would likely still rise by as much as 31 percent by 2080. Cities like New York are especially vulnerable to increasing temperatures due to the absorption of heat by the built infrastructure, which turn cities into “heat islands” and maintain warm temperatures at night. Study coauthor Dr. Patrick Kinney, professor of environmental health sciences at Columbia University, stated, “What our study suggests is that the heat effects of climate change dominate the winter warming benefits that might also come: climate change will cause more deaths through heat than it will prevent during winter.”

For additional information see: The Guardian , Time , Study

State Unemployment Reduces Likelihood of “Green” Vote

A recent study published in the journal Economic Letters found that Senators cast fewer “green” votes as the unemployment rate in their state rises. Grant Jacobsen, professor of planning, public policy and management at the University of Oregon, compared the national environmental scores assessed by the League of Conservation Voters (LCV) to the state unemployment rate for nearly 300 Senators between 1976 and 2008. He found that for every percentage increase in the state unemployment rate, there was an average decline of 0.48 in the Senator’s LCV score. The effect was stronger in Republicans than Democrats, with an average decline in the LCV score of 0.83 and 0.29, respectively, for each percentage rise in state unemployment. Across the study period, approximately 36 percent of votes had environmentally favorable outcomes. The study projected that this would have risen to 41 percent if states had maintained their lowest unemployment levels throughout the study period.

For additional information see: Washington Post , Study

Climate Change the Most Serious Threat to Arctic Biodiversity

The Arctic Biodiversity Assessment Report, released May 15 at the eighth Ministerial Meeting of the Arctic Council, concludes that climate change is the most significant underlying driver of biodiversity change in the Arctic. The Arctic is home to over 21,000 species, including many cold-adapted species found nowhere else on Earth. The report notes that climate change-driven losses of Arctic sea ice are already negatively impacting species and ecosystems, and more will become threatened as climate belts begin to move north. The Arctic has warmed twice as fast as the global average over the past 30 years, and if global average temperatures increase two degrees Celsius, the warming in the Arctic is expected to “result in severe disruptions to Arctic biodiversity.” However, the report concludes that immediate, comprehensive, and global action on both carbon dioxide and on short-lived climate pollutants – including black carbon, which is responsible for half of Arctic warming – can mitigate impacts. “Reducing short-lived climate pollutants can cut the rate of Arctic warming by two-thirds, and significantly slow the loss of Arctic biodiversity”, said Durwood Zaelke, president of the Institute for Governance and Sustainable Development. “Reducing HFCs under the Montreal Protocol is the single biggest, fastest, and cheapest climate mitigation available to the Arctic and indeed the world today.” Other major threats to Arctic biodiversity include climate-driven encroachment of invasive species, increasing interest in resource extraction, and overharvesting of migratory species.

For additional information see: Press Release , CBC News , Report

70 Percent of Americans Think that Climate Change Should Be a Priority

A survey by Yale and George Mason Universities released May 21 finds that 70 percent of Americans say that global warming should be a priority for Congress and the president, a seven percent decrease from a previous study conducted last fall. A majority of people polled also supported regulating carbon dioxide as a pollutant (68 percent) and a carbon tax where the revenue was used to pay down the federal debt (61 percent). The poll also found strong support for renewable energy, with 87 percent of Americans saying it should be a government priority and 55 percent saying that utilities should be required to generate 20 percent of electricity from renewable sources, even if it costs households an extra $100 per year. The poll of 1,045 American adults was conducted April 8-15.

For additional information see: Los Angeles Times , Poll

Tuesday, June 4: State Clean Energy Innovations and the Value of Federal-State Partnerships

The Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) and the Clean Energy States Alliance (CESA) invite you to a briefing about energy innovations at the state level. The briefing will investigate the significant role states are playing by implementing novel policies and effective approaches that reduce the cost of generating clean energy. Many state governments view clean energy as a foundation of their environmental and economic development strategies and have taken leadership roles in demonstrating the business case for renewable energy initiatives. The briefing will discuss the role and value of federal-state partnerships on innovative clean energy investments and provide state-specific examples. Speakers include: Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT); Sarah Fisher-Goad, Executive Director, Alaska Energy Authority; Andrew McAllister, Commissioner, California Energy Commission; Janet Joseph, Vice President for Technology and Strategic Planning, NYSERDA; Bryan Garcia, President and CEO, Clean Energy Finance and Investment Authority; Andy Brydges, Senior Director, Renewable Energy Generation, Massachusetts Clean Energy Center; Anne Eisele, Chief of Staff, Maryland Energy Administration; and Lewis Milford, President, Clean Energy Group. The briefing will be held Tuesday, June 4th, from 3:00 – 4:30 p.m. in 562 Dirksen Senate Office Building. The event is free and open to the public.

16th Annual Congressional Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency EXPO + Policy Forum