Air Emissions Trading - Articles - Zimbio

Carbon health warnings for all new cars.

Sat, 21 Oct 2007 15:06:25 GMT

posted by pg8595
All advertising for new cars will have to carry cigarette-style health warnings about their environmental impact, under a European plan to force manufacturers to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

by: Ben Webster, Transport Correspondent
Times Online

Companies that produce the most polluting cars will also have to pay penalties of up to £5,000 per vehicle, with the proceeds used to reduce the cost of the most efficient cars.Advertisements in newspapers and magazines, will have to devote at least 20 per cent of the space to details about fuel economy and CO2 emissions. At the moment manufacturers have to include only basic mpg and CO2 figures in the small print. They do not have to explain what the numbers mean or provide any comparison.

Car advertisements will have to carry colour-coded emissions labels such as those already displayed on new fridges and washing machines, with bands ranging from dark green to red. The plan, expected to be approved by the European Parliament on Wednesday, has been drawn up in response to the car industrys failure to meet its own voluntary target on reducing CO2 emissions.

The industry agreed in 1998 that the 18 million new cars expected to be sold in Europe in 2008 should emit an average of no more than 140g of CO2 per kilometre. The average last year was 160g/km and emissions fell only 0.2 per cent on the previous year, the lowest reduction on record. Privately manufacturers admit that they have no hope of meeting the target.

Chris Davies, the Liberal Democrat MEP for the North West of England, who was appointed by the European Parliament to draw up the plan, said that the car industry had grossly exaggerated the cost of making cars more efficient to avoid taking action.

He said that the German car industry had been particularly obstructive because it was dominated by manufacturers such as Mercedes and BMW, which specialised in larger, more polluting cars.Mr Davies has agreed a compromise, which he expects to be supported by the majority of MEPs, under which manufacturers would be given until 2015 to achieve an average of 125g/km for new cars. He said: I accept it takes seven years from the design stage to vehicles rolling off the production line. But the new target would be made wiggle-proof and manufacturers who failed to achieve it would pay penalties.

He predicted that some companies would prefer to pay the penalty rather than reduce emissions because they would not want to reduce the power or weight of their cars.He said that the proceeds would be used to reward companies that beat their emissions targets and a grant system to encourage people to trade in their cars for more efficient new ones.

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders opposes the idea of giving more space to environmental information. A spokesman said the basic details were already in advertisements: Theres no point in giving this sop to the environmental lobby because most people will ignore it.

A pioneering 'clean' city.

Sun, 22 Oct 2007 18:00:14 GMT

posted by pg8595
VAXJO, SWEDEN -- When this quiet city in southern Sweden decided in 1996 to wean itself off fossil fuels, most people doubted the ambitious goal would have any effect beyond the town limits.

By Karl Ritter, The Associated Press

A few melting glaciers later, Vaxjo is attracting a green pilgrimage of politicians, scientists and business leaders from as far afield as the U.S. and North Korea seeking inspiration from a city program that has enabled it to cut carbon dioxide emissions 30% since 1993.

Vaxjo (pronounced VECK-shur), a city of 78,000 on the shores of Lake Helga, surrounded by thick pine forest in the heart of Smaland province, is a pioneer in a growing movement in dozens of European cities, large and small, that aren't waiting for national or international measures to curb global warming.

Initiatives taken at the local level -- including London's congestion charge, Paris' city bike program and the solar power campaign in Barcelona, Spain -- are being introduced across the continent, often influencing national policies instead of the other way around.

"People used to ask: Isn't it better to do this at a national or international level?" said Henrik Johansson, Vaxjo's environmental controller. "We want to show everyone else that you can accomplish a lot at the local level."

The European Union, mindful that many member states are failing to meet mandated emissions cuts under the Kyoto Protocol climate-change treaty, has taken notice of the trend and is encouraging cities to adopt their own emissions targets.

The bloc awarded one of its inaugural Sustainable Energy Europe awards this year to Vaxjo, which aims to cut emissions by 50% by 2010 and 70% by 2025.

"We are convinced that the cities are a key element to change behavior and get results," said Pedro Ballesteros Torres, manager of the Sustainable Energy Europe campaign. "Climate change is a global problem, but the origin of the problem is very local."

Only a handful of European capitals have set emissions targets, including Stockholm, Copenhagen and London. Torres said he hoped to persuade about 30 European cities to commit to targets next year.

Although such goals are welcome, they might not always be the best way forward, said Simon Reddy, who manages the C40 project, a global network of major cities exchanging ideas on tackling climate change.

"At the moment a lot of cities don't know what they're emitting, so it's very difficult to set targets," Reddy said.

More important than emissions targets, he said, is that cities draft action plans outlining specific goals to reduce emissions, such as switching a certain percentage of the public transit system to alternative fuels.

London Mayor Ken Livingstone's Climate Action Plan calls for cutting the city's CO2 emissions 60% by 2025, compared with 1990 levels. But planners acknowledge the cuts are not realistic unless the government introduces a system of carbon pricing.

Barcelona, Spain's second-biggest city, has since last year required all new and renovated buildings to install solar panels to supply at least 60% of the energy needed to heat water.

The project has been emulated by dozens of Spanish cities and inspired national legislation with similar though less stringent requirements, said Angels Codina Relat of the Barcelona Energy Agency.

It's not only in Europe that cities are taking action on climate change.

Several U.S. cities including Seattle; Austin, Texas; and Portland, Ore., have launched programs to cut greenhouse gas emissions. Bogota, the capital of Colombia, has reduced emissions with its TransMilenio municipal bus system and an extensive network of bicycle paths.

In Vaxjo, the vast majority of emissions cuts have been achieved at the heating and power plant, which replaced oil with wood chips from local sawmills as its main source of fuel. Ashes from the furnace are returned to the forest as fertilizer.

"This is the best fir in Sweden," said plant manager Ulf Johnsson, scooping up a fistful of wood chips from a giant heap outside the factory.

He had just led Michael Wood, the U.S. ambassador to Sweden, on a guided tour of the facility, which is considered state of the art. Not only does it generate electricity, but the water that warms up as it cools the plant is used to heat homes and offices in Vaxjo.

Every week, foreign visitors arrive to see Vaxjo's environmental campaign. Last year, a delegation of 10 energy officials from reclusive North Korea got a tour.

Though Vaxjo is tiny by comparison with cities in C40, including New York, Mexico City and Tokyo, the group has been impressed by the city's progress and uses it as an example of "best practices."

"They're a small town," C40's Reddy said. "Apply that to 7 million? It's doable but it's going to take a lot longer."

Welcome to our blog about Air Emissions Trading

Thu, 30 Jun 2006 23:43:25 GMT

posted by The_Zimbio_Team
This is our group blog, which is unique because any Zimbio member can post an entry to it. Some members blog about recent news and trends related to the portal topic, others recount relevant personal stories. You can also comment on and rate existing blog entries, to voice your opinion and to help the community identify which members and entries on the portal are must-reads. Got an interesting idea or story to share with other members of this portal? Well, then put on your journalist's cap and add your own blog entry!

EU Official Tells Bingaman to Keep Emissions Plan Simple

Mon, 27 Mar 2007 12:53:09 GMT

posted by jschwartz
A European official who helped launch, and now oversees, a 27-nation carbon dioxide emissions trading program advised senators Monday that they should keep any emissions plan for the United States simple.

Schwarzenegger, backed by Brown, says he's frustrated waiting for federal approval for the state to impose its own tough emissions limits on automakers.

Thu, 9 Nov 2007 23:13:57 GMT

posted by pg8595
SACRAMENTO -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Thursday sued the Bush administration and said he was prepared to "sue again and sue again" until California gets permission to impose its own tough standards on automakers to curb global warming.
By Marc Lifsher, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

The governor, backed by Atty. Gen. Jerry Brown, said he is frustrated to be waiting for nearly two years for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to waive federal regulations and give the state's plan a green light.

"We are now ready to implement the nation's cleanest standards for vehicle emissions, and we cannot do that, of course, until the federal government gives us a waiver," Schwarzenegger said at a Capitol news conference. "Our health and our environment are too important to delay any longer."

At issue for California is the 2009 model year and the state's desire to get prompt action from the EPA so automakers will have time to redesign their passenger cars and light vehicles, including SUVs.

Over the last four decades, the EPA has granted more than 50 requests from California to force automakers to meet tougher anti-pollution standards than imposed nationally. The state used the mechanism to pioneer such requirements as catalytic converters to reduce tailpipe emissions and on-board computers to alert drivers if their smog-control equipment malfunctions.

Thursday's move was a major assault on the federal government's response to global warming and what critics perceive to be a slow and environmentally questionable response to what many national and world leaders consider the No. 1 threat to the planet.

The U.S. Supreme Court this summer turned down the Bush administration's effort to fight the state regulation of global warming as it cleared the way for the EPA to approve California's regulations.

The justices ruled that carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change should be considered pollutants under the U.S. Clean Air Act.

The high court's decision "clearly bolsters California's case and should make it more difficult for the EPA to deny the waiver," said Ann E. Carlson, a professor of environmental law at UCLA. Carlson noted that the EPA never denied a California request for new tools to deal with local smog conditions. But the agency could balk at allowing California to set the national agenda when it comes to tackling a global problem such as climate change, she said.

EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson has promised to act on California's request by year's end. But California officials said they were pressing ahead with their lawsuit out of fear that the White House could order Johnson to postpone his decision.

"There's no legal basis for Washington to stand in our way," said Schwarzenegger.

Under the Clean Air Act, California has special rights to chart its own course in crafting more stringent pollution controls, and other states can choose to follow the California model. So far, 14 states have passed laws incorporating California's greenhouse gas tailpipe standards. Together with California, they represent 40% of the U.S. population.

The coalition of states "is filling the void left by the Bush administration's refusal to protect the environment," said New York state Atty. Gen. Andrew M. Cuomo, the group's leader. The group has filed legal papers making it a party to California's suit in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C. California also filed a related lawsuit against the EPA in the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington.

The California regulations, which were approved by the Legislature and signed into law by then-Gov. Gray Davis in 2002, are a key component of a landmark global warming law signed last year by Schwarzenegger.

The law aims to cut California's carbon emissions by one-fourth over the next 12 years. Such a reduction is the equivalent of taking 6.5 million vehicles off California roads, Schwarzenegger said.

"Under the Clean Air Act, California is recognized as an innovator," said Brown, noting that the federal government has approved at least 50 such requests from California since the early 1970s. The lawsuit, Brown added, "is not about politics. It's about science, it's about human well-being and it's about innovation."

The Bush administration is ignoring that science, charged Mary Nichols, chairwoman of the California Air Resources Board. "They are running out the clock in hopes somebody else will deal with this problem," she said.

California can't afford to wait, the lawsuit says, because considerable evidence exists that "global warming is making California's climate worse." Increasing greenhouse gas emissions are raising average temperatures, reducing snowfall in the mountains, shifting northward the prevailing storm track and worsening air quality, the suit contends.

An altered climate has contributed to a record drought in 2006 and 2007 in Southern California and record rains two years earlier in Los Angeles, the suit says.

Automakers, though not a party to the California complaint against the EPA, want to do their part to combat global warming but don't favor states creating "a patchwork quilt of regulations at the state level," said Dave McCurdy, president of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers.

The Washington-based trade group, which represents the Big Three U.S. automakers and a number of foreign firms, is supporting a bill in Congress that would increase auto fuel economy by up to 40% by 2022, he said.

Automakers have filed their own suit in federal court in Fresno to overturn California's greenhouse regulations. They recently lost a similar case in Vermont, where a federal judge upheld state regulations based on the California standards.

Automakers should call off their lawyers and join California and the other states in using available expertise to meet the new emission standards, said Nichols of the Air Resources Board.

"We're talking about cars with more efficient drivetrains, with more efficient steering mechanisms. We're talking about cars that are about 18% more efficient on average than what's available today but with completely known technology," she said.

"Those cars should be coming onto the roads beginning in 2009."

marc.lifsher@latimes.com