Top Stories
[It's
Friday, so
we loosen up a little. One
reason Daily Brief includes lots of
stories from Britain, even though
more of our readers at the moment are outside the UK, is that we
think that Britain is a few years ahead of the U.S. in dealing with the
carbon transition, and perhaps 10 years ahead of India. Just as readers
in Texas can benefit from seeing what is going on in California, so
readers in the U.S. can use information from the UK to anticipate
future challenges.]
Britain's Conservatives propose carbon levy.—reliability
high.
"A Conservative British government would impose a carbon tax on
electricity generation, to create a clear incentive for long-term
investment in renewable energies, the party said on Friday. Unveiling
its energy strategy, the opposition Conservative party said it would
reform an existing Climate Change Levy (CCL), imposing a levy instead
on the carbon content of power production. Utilities would only have to
pay the levy if the European carbon price fell below the level of the
levy, which would thereby act as a floor price for carbon emissions in
Britain. ... By setting a floor price for carbon, the levy would
provide a reliable signal for investment in all forms of low carbon
energy including nuclear power, it said." Reuters
story. [Another
typical pre-election effort to pander to the masses?]
More Maize Ethanol May Boost Greenhouse Gas
Emissions.—reliability high.
"In the March issue of BioScience, researchers present a sophisticated
new analysis of the effects of boosting use of maize-derived ethanol on
greenhouse gas emissions. ... The researchers' main conclusion is
stark: these indirect, market-mediated effects on greenhouse gas
emissions "are enough to cancel out the benefits the corn ethanol has
on global warming." ... their bottom line, though only one-quarter as
large as the earlier estimate of Searchinger and his coauthors, still
indicates that the maize ethanol now being produced in the United
States will not significantly reduce total greenhouse gas emissions,
compared with burning gasoline." From Science
Daily. Abstract and first page available here.
[There go those
pointy-headed scientists again. Senators can safely ignore them again.]
The science of climate change.—reliability
high.
Feature article examines the state of the science of climate change.
Uncertainties exist, of course, but many have been resolved by research
in recent years. The probabilities are against a non-catastrophic
future. "Using the IPCC’s assessment of probabilities, the sensitivity
to a doubling of carbon dioxide of less than 1.5ºC in such a scenario
has perhaps one chance in ten of being correct. But if the IPCC were
underestimating things by a factor of five or so, that would still
leave only a 50:50 chance of such a desirable outcome. The fact that
the uncertainties allow you to construct a relatively benign future
does not allow you to ignore futures in which climate change is large,
and in some of which it is very dangerous indeed. The doubters are
right that uncertainties are rife in climate science. They are wrong
when they present that as a reason for inaction." See The
Economist. There is a shorter companion article here.
[Rather long and
detailed, but the issues are complex. Worth reading. Nobody said
dealing with climate change would be easy.]
Companies,
Industries, Markets and Supply Chains
'Revolution' required to tackle climate
change, IEA says.—reliability medium.
"The Paris-based intergovernmental body and the chief technology
officers of 30 major companies issued a joint statement urging greater
action to limit global temperature increases. The statement says:
'Dramatic greenhouse gas emission cuts are required. IEA studies have
shown that halving current global CO2 emissions by 2050 is technically
within our reach. To achieve this requires a stronger focus on energy
efficiency measures and substantially decarbonised power and transport
sectors by 2050. This means a revolution in the way modern society uses
and produces energy.' ". From edie.net.
PDF of statement here.
[The companies
supporting the Joint Statement are: ABB, Air Liquide, Alstom Power,
Ansaldo Energia, Areva, Dow Chemical, DuPont, Electrolux, ENEL, General
Electric, HeidelbergCement, Hitachi, Hydro-Québec, Iberdrola, Norsk
Hydro, Philips Lighting, Renault, Sasol, Shell, Schlumberger, Siemens,
TEPCO, Total, Toyota Motor Europe, United Technologies Corporation,
Vestas Wind Systems, Volkswagen AG. Admittedly most of these stand to
make a great deal of money from the transition to a low-carbon economy.]
Toshiba says good-bye to incandescent era.—reliability
high.
"Toshiba announced Wednesday it has produced its last major run of
incandescent lightbulbs. The Japanese electronics manufacturer said the
phaseout is part of a strategy to ultimately concentrate on LED
(light-emitting diode) lighting products, though it will continue to
produce certain specialty incandescent bulbs. ... Hakunetsu-sha &
Company was Japan's first electric incandescent lighting factory and
produced its first bulbs in 1890 at a rate of 10 bulbs per day. The
company was renamed the Tokyo Electric Company in 1899, and in 1939
merged with Shibaura Engineering Works to become what is today known as
Toshiba." Story at CNET News.
Government and
Regulation
Why California's new electric vehicle
rebates are good, and why they're not so good.—reliability
medium.
"Since Monday, the state of California has been offering tax rebates
for eligible zero-emission and plug-in hybrid vehicles under the $4.1
million Clean Vehicle Rebate Project (CVRP). The rebates are worth up
to $20,000 for commercial vehicles and up to $5,000 for new light-duty
vehicles. The list includes pure electrics like the Tesla Roadster and
the Nissan Leaf, NEVs from GEM and a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle:
the Honda 2010 FCX Clarity. The all-electric Zero DS and S motorcycles
are eligible for $1,500. ... Gas2.0 wishes the start date could
have been pushed back a bit, until the Leaf, for example, becomes
available. $5,000 means a lot more when the car costs $35,000 (or
whatever) and not the $109,000 for a Tesla Roadster." See Autoblog
Green. The project's site is here.
Not So Green
News
Egg boss jailed for 'free range' fraud.—reliability
high.
"A Midlands businessman was jailed for three years today after
admitting making a fortune by fraudulently passing off battery farm
eggs as free range or organic. Around 100m mislabelled eggs sold by
Keith Owen ended up on the shelves of supermarkets including
Sainsbury's and Tesco. That the fraud was able to carry on for two
years while he made a £3m profit raises questions for the food industry
about the provenance of goods." See The
Guardian.
Calif. locals vs. lake of chicken waste.—reliability
high.
Olivera Egg Ranch's 16.5-acre waste lagoon tormented neighbors for
years. "Now, after the Humane Society of the United States petitioned
state air regulators for an investigation last month, Olivera Egg Ranch
is facing six violations for expanding and operating its facilities
without proper permits. . . . Upon completion of the investigation, the
company could be subject to fines of up to $10,000 a day for each of
the six violations. The lawsuit, which seeks a cleanup and unspecified
damages, alleges that 'Olivera has systematically and continuously
released unlawful levels of ammonia from the hen houses and manure
lagoon into the local community without reporting them as required by
(federal law) since at least 2004.'" Story at MSNBC
from AP.
[Crossposted from HaraBara.com courtesy of HaraBara, Inc. Copyright © 2010 HaraBara, Inc.]
