Sustainable Energy News: 02/27/12

Monday, February 27, 2012

EU emissions up in 2011

EU industry emissions rise slightly in 2011: analysts | Reuters

(Reuters) - European Union industrial carbon emissions rose by up to 2.4 percent last year, analysts surveyed by Reuters estimated, below the market cap and keeping the 27-nation bloc on track to meet its 2020 climate target.

Energy bill would benefit state renewables sectors

Environmental Finance | News | Energy bill could promote state feed-in tariffs, PACE, says SEIA

The US is not likely to adopt a feed-in tariff (FiT) at the federal level, but an energy bill this year could help FiTs become more widespread at the state level, and include other benefits for the renewables sector, according to the head of the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA). US states such as California and Vermont have implemented FiTs to encourage renewable energy investment, while local municipalities such as Gainesville, Florida have also introduced FiT programmes.

Coal carbon tax could increase shift to natural gas

A small carbon tax on coal could help drive shift to natural gas and reduce greenhouse gas emissions significantly « Summit County Citizens Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — A slight shift in the relative prices of coal and natural gas could pay big dividends in the quest to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, according to Harvard researchers who said that, when the United States fell into the 2009 recession, greenhouse gas emissions also fell, by 6.59 percent relative to 2008.

Beyond Cap and Trade

Beyond Cap and Trade, A New Path to Clean Energy by Ted Nordhaus and Michael Shellenberger: Yale Environment 360

A funny thing happened while environmentalists were trying and failing to cap carbon emissions in the U.S. Congress. U.S. carbon emissions started going down. The decline began in 2005 and accelerated after the financial crisis. The latest estimates from the U.S. Energy Information Administration now suggest that U.S. emissions will continue to decline for the next few years and remain flat for a decade or more after that.

EU financiers saved US renewables

Environmental Finance | News | EU financiers ‘saved US renewables sector’

Financial institutions in the US and China continue to lag behind their European counterparts in supporting the US clean-tech sector, according to a financing expert. European financial institutions have led the way in funding renewable energy projects and are still very active despite much more stringent requirements, said Reyad Fezzani, chief executive officer of Regenerate Power, a Menlo Park, California-based developer, owner and financier of utility-scale solar projects.

Talking trash is costly, sustainability pays

Trash costs, sustainability pays, says campus recycling ‘King’

t was the recycling-bin-that-wasn’t — the one he searched for high and low, soda can in hand — that set him on the path to become manager of Campus Recycling and Refuse Services at Berkeley. That was back in 1993, while a graduate student in environmental policy and planning at Cal State University, Fullerton. After his frustrating quest for a recycling receptacle, King “asked a lot of questions” of CSUF administrators — who turned around and hired him to create the campus’s first comprehensive recycling program.

Carbon surcharge announced by Virgin

Virgin announces carbon price surcharges - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Virgin Australia has announced a range of surcharges to cover the costs of Australian and European carbon pricing schemes. From July 1, every domestic flight will cost an additional $1.50 to $6 depending on the distance travelled.

First EUAA Trade Announced By ICE

ICE Futures Europe Announces First EUAA Trade - PR Newswire - sacbee.com

LONDON, Feb. 27, 2012 -- /PRNewswire/ -- IntercontinentalExchange (NYSE: ICE), a leading operator of regulated global futures exchanges, clearing houses and over-the-counter (OTC) markets, announced the first trade in its new futures contract on European Union Aviation Allowances (EUAAs), which was introduced for trading today.

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2012/02/27/4294081/ice-futures-europe-announces-first.html#storylink=cpy

A bit too optimistic?

Renewables developers ‘too optimistic’ on financing

Renewable energy developers need to be more realistic about their projects to secure financing, experts said. Developers have a tendency not to fully consider the challenges faced by their projects, such as permitting issues that are sometimes caused by legal challenges filed by NGOs.

US and China are lagging behind their European counterparts

Environmental Finance | News | EU financiers ‘saved US renewables sector’

Financial institutions in the US and China continue to lag behind their European counterparts in supporting the US clean-tech sector, according to a financing expert. European financial institutions have led the way in funding renewable energy projects and are still very active despite much more stringent requirements, said Reyad Fezzani, chief executive officer of Regenerate Power, a Menlo Park, California-based developer, owner and financier of utility-scale solar projects.

Is the carbon market too focused on short term goals?

Carbon Market May Be Too Focused on Short-Term, Delbeke Says

Feb. 27 (Bloomberg) -- Investors in the European Union emissions trading system may be overconcentrating on the short- term perspective, said Jos Delbeke, director general for climate at the European Commission. He made the comments at a conference organized by Eurelectric in Brussels today:

Is the decline in carbon emissions a result of the poor US economy?

Beyond Cap and Trade, A New Path to Clean Energy by Ted Nordhaus and Michael Shellenberger

A funny thing happened while environmentalists were trying and failing to cap carbon emissions in the U.S. Congress. U.S. carbon emissions started going down. The decline began in 2005 and accelerated after the financial crisis. The latest estimates from the U.S. Energy Information Administration now suggest that U.S. emissions will continue to decline for the next few years and remain flat for a decade or more after that.

South Korea is taking it's sweet time going green

South Korea Delays Bill Challenging Top-Emitter Ranking

South Korea delayed approving a cap- and-trade system to cut carbon emissions, setting back efforts to regulate factories and power plants in the fastest-growing producer of greenhouse gases among industrial democracies. The National Assembly’s Legislative and Judiciary Committee put off the vote for at least a month, chairman Woo Yoon Keun told lawmakers today. The bill to establish the third cap-and- trade system in Asia by 2015 will probably be taken up again in April when the assembly reconvenes, he said.

The recycling bin that wasn't

Trash costs, sustainability pays, says campus recycling ‘King’

It was the recycling-bin-that-wasn’t — the one he searched for high and low, soda can in hand — that set him on the path to become manager of Campus Recycling and Refuse Services at Berkeley. That was back in 1993, while a graduate student in environmental policy and planning at Cal State University, Fullerton. After his frustrating quest for a recycling receptacle, King “asked a lot of questions” of CSUF administrators — who turned around and hired him to create the campus’s first comprehensive recycling program.