EMN: March 9, 2010

I will be in Boca Raton, Florida from Tuesday through Saturday at the FIA Conference. So Rachel Koning-Beals will be taking the editorial duties while I am away.

Jim Kharouf


Lead Stories

Counting 'Outsourced' Greenhouse Gas EmissionsJohn M. Broder - The New York Times
One of the stickiest points in international climate change negotiations is how to account for carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions produced to make goods that are then sold for export. Should the producing country be held to account for those emissions? Or does the consuming country bear some responsibility for counting those emissions?
http://jlne.ws/ddzpYr

Asia seen as growth driver for voluntary CO2 market
David Fogarty - Reuters
Fear of Western-imposed carbon tariffs on goods and services from Asia is likely to drive growth in offsetting emissions by large firms in the region, a voluntary carbon market executive said.
http://jlne.ws/bt7YjK

Concerns mount over vague Japanese climate billJames Murray - BusinessGreen
Carbon traders and green businesses are increasingly concerned that Japan's planned emissions trading scheme could be watered down after the government released a draft climate bill that provided few details of how the proposed initiative would work.
http://jlne.ws/cq6GEN

South African minister tipped for top UN climate roleBusinessGreen
The South African government confirmed yesterday that it has nominated the country's tourism minister, Marthinus van Schalkwyk, to replace Yvo De Boer as head of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) when he steps down in July.
http://jlne.ws/b6RtUS

The View From Big Oil WSJ
These days, giant oil companies find themselves trying to balance two big pressures on their business. Governments are trying to slash carbon emissions--but the world's thirst for oil is growing by leaps and bounds. Peter Voser, chief executive officer of Royal Dutch Shell PLC, is navigating the situation by joining a business-backed effort to push for global-warming laws, and making sure Shell has a strong exposure to natural gas and alternative fuels.
http://jlne.ws/cCegro

Business leaders blast Congress for cap-and-trade indecisionDanny Bradbury - BusinessGreen
Power company executives expressed their frustration at Congress last week, urging political leaders to resolve the debate over carbon pricing even as plans for cap-and-trade legislation appeared to wither on the vine.
http://jlne.ws/c1Uqi6

Businesses will save $700m by cutting emissions: report Adam Morton - The Age
CLAIMS that even small greenhouse gas targets will hurt big industry have been undermined by a government report that found basic efficiency improvements could cut national emissions and save businesses more than $700 million.
http://jlne.ws/bfjzh6

THE REPORT:
Energy Efficiency Council
http://jlne.ws/ddE10L

EPA defends greenhouse gas capsLisa Lerer - Politico
Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson Monday defended controversial new rules that would slash greenhouse gases across the economy, taking on critics from both sides of the aisle who want to delay the regulations.
http://jlne.ws/ckS3mW

EPA Piecing Together Regulatory Framework for Greenhouse Gas Rules Robin Bravender - Greenwire
U.S. EPA has submitted the first piece of its suite of greenhouse gas rules to the White House for review, a signal that the agency is on schedule to finalize its first regulations to curb the heat-trapping emissions.
http://jlne.ws/b4jJfI

Supreme Court Won't Review Decision That Closed EPA Emissions 'Loophole' Gabriel Nelson - Greenwire
The Supreme Court declined today to review a lower court's ruling prohibiting U.S. EPA from suspending normal emissions standards for major pollution sources during "startup, shutdown and malfunction" (SSM) periods.
http://jlne.ws/ae2ZJS

Democrats to Turn Spotlight on Energy Efficiency Programs This Week Katherine Ling - Greenwire
Democrats will turn the focus to energy efficiency standards and incentive programs this week with hearings in the Senate and House energy panels.
http://jlne.ws/cGa95M

IMF suggests how to raise climate change funds
Tom Malti - AP
The head of the International Monetary Fund on Monday proposed a plan for the world's governments to pool together to raise money needed to adapt to climate change, a rare step for an organization that normally does not develop environmental policies.
http://jlne.ws/bAPYV0

IMF Plans Fund to Help Rich World Meet Climate Pledge
Bloomberg
Dominique Strauss-Kahn, head of the International Monetary Fund, said the organization is devising a "green fund" that would help rich nations meet their Copenhagen pledge to raise $100 billion a year by 2020 to tackle the effects of climate change.
http://jlne.ws/dh2S87

World Bank split over controversial "clean coal" investmentCath Everett - BusinessGreen
In what could prove a precursor to future rows over climate funding for developing countries the UK and US have reportedly threatened to withhold support for a World Bank loan intended to help South Africa build a new coal-fired power station.
http://jlne.ws/cwAyyD

Sydinvest "green themes" fund eyes U.S. and China
Reuters
U.S. and Chinese economic stimulus measures are likely to focus on energy efficiency and renewable energy, according to fund manager Sydinvest, which took a stake in a U.S. alternative fuel components company last month.
http://jlne.ws/9X9jf2

Investors Sour on These Stocks, So I Like Them: John Dorfman
Bloomberg
Solar-energy stock prices have been falling for about two years.
http://jlne.ws/cs9cro

Are we really going to let ourselves be duped into this solar panel rip-off?
George Monbiot - Guardian
Those who hate environmentalism have spent years looking for the definitive example of a great green rip-off. Finally it arrives, and nobody notices. The government is about to shift £8.6bn from the poor to the middle classes. It expects a loss on this scheme of £8.2bn, or 95%. Yet the media is silent. The opposition urges only that the scam should be expanded.
http://jlne.ws/dqXdDJ

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EMN: March 8, 2010

Lead Stories

China May Start Its First City-Wide Carbon Cap-and-Trade System
Bloomberg
China may start its first city-wide carbon cap-and-trade system by June as the world's biggest polluter seeks to rein in emissions, a project adviser said.
http://jlne.ws/9o3gF5

EPA regulation delays leave a bigger question unresolved
FT.com
In the words of David Doniger, policy director of the NRDC's Climate Center:
It is not constructive to block the only working law on the books to curb global warming pollution and replace it with nothing. Blocking the Clean Air Act will do nothing to bring Congress closer to passing comprehensive climate and energy legislation. Rather than fighting global warming solutions, we need to focus on cutting carbon pollution in a way that will spur clean energy investment and reduce our dependence on foreign oil.
http://jlne.ws/d99rOQ

EPA Sends 'Johnson Memo' Reconsideration on CO2 Emissions to White House
Robin Bravender - Greenwire
U.S. EPA sent its final reconsideration yesterday of a George W. Bush-era memorandum detailing when the government should regulate carbon dioxide emissions from industrial facilities to the White House Office of Management and Budget for review.
http://jlne.ws/b5jdv0

John Rockefeller leads charge against EPA on greenhouse gases
Mark Clayton - The Christian Science Monitor
To the applause of coal workers and dismay of environmentalists, lawmakers in the Senate and House led by Sen. John Rockefeller (D) introduced legislation Thursday that would delay by two years any regulation of greenhouse gases by the EPA.
http://jlne.ws/bzthpf

Democrat senator calls for pause to US carbon regulations
James Murray - BusinessGreen
The row surrounding the Environment Protection Agency's (EPA) plans to regulate greenhouse gas emissions took another twist yesterday when an influential Democrat Senator proposed a bill that would impose a two-year hiatus on the agency's efforts to curb emissions from power plants.
http://jlne.ws/cuoPrW

Cap-and-trade key to U.S. energy reform: Exelon CEORos Krasny - Reuters
U.S. energy reform has stalled now that the Democrats have lost their filibuster-proof majority in the Senate and Republicans drift to a more negative position, a top industry executive said on Saturday.
http://jlne.ws/cnFFXf

CEOs seek firm signal on climate change policyPoornima Gupta - Reuters
SANTA BARBARA, California - Global leaders in the energy business say they want some certainty in U.S. climate policy to encourage development of new technologies and other investment, but they do not expect federal legislation to pass this year.
http://jlne.ws/aLmSTz

IETA Says Industry CO2 Trade May Work in Place of Broader Caps Bloomberg
Carbon trading programs for high- polluting industries may fill the void as broader cap-and-trade systems for entire economies face opposition in emerging nations, according to the International Emissions Trading Association.
http://jlne.ws/bCy2tr

THE REPORT:
IETA site
http://jlne.ws/al3UwY

Democrats Revolt Over Energy Rebecca Smith and Stephen Power - Wall Street Journal
President Barack Obama's energy strategy came under attack on at least three fronts Thursday, highlighting the conflict that has hobbled one of the administration's top domestic priorities.
http://jlne.ws/9ukYkO

Looming Climate Regulations Put EPA in Conservatives' Cross Hairs
Alex Kaplun - Greenwire
U.S. EPA moves toward regulating greenhouse gases is drawing fire from conservatives who are hoping to slow the agency's efforts using many of the same political strategies that they used to stall climate legislation on Capitol Hill.
http://jlne.ws/amOpAj

Opinion: Carbon Caps Through the Backdoor
Kimberley Strassel - WSJ
Copenhagen was a flop. Congress's cap-and-trade bill is stalled. The EPA has delayed its climate rules. If you think this means American business is escaping the threat of carbon restraints, think again.
http://jlne.ws/bWRfEO

Global climate battle plays out in World Bank
Lesley Wroughton - Reuters
The United States and Britain are threatening to withhold support for a $3.75 billion World Bank loan for a coal-fired plant in South Africa, expanding the battleground in the global debate over who should pay for clean energy.
http://jlne.ws/9BBFkL

Climate change shareholder actions hit record high
James Murray - BusinessGreen
The number of climate change-related shareholder actions has soared 40 per cent during the 2010 proxy season to a record 95 resolutions, according to new figures from sustainable investment lobby group Ceres.
http://jlne.ws/af8DIG

Japan struggles to meet emissions pledge
FT
The cabinet on Friday delayed until next Friday a decision on a bill covering emissions trading, carbon taxes and other green measures, after Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama complained that it was in danger of being pummelled by industry groups and their allies. Failure to reach agreement next week would delay the bill until parliament reconvenes after elections in July.
http://jlne.ws/9wWrOz

Rise in UK carbon emissions disputed by report
Juliette Jowit - The Observer
A major study for the UK government has cast doubt over claims that rising temperatures are causing soil to pump greater amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, further fuelling global warming.
http://jlne.ws/cnJPWE

Climate sceptics guilty of double standards in condemnation over data
Bob Ward - Guardian
Some climate change sceptics have been guilty of applying double standards in their condemnation of alleged misdeeds by researchers at the Climatic Research Unit at the University of East Anglia.
http://jlne.ws/9enqto

The Newest Hybrid ModelJad Mouawad - The New York Times
INDIANTOWN, Fla. -- In former swamplands teeming with otters and wild hogs, one of the nation's biggest utilities is running an experiment in the future of renewable power.
http://jlne.ws/b50Ftq

More Governments Using Markets to Save Species
Steve Zwick - Ecosystem Marketplace
Cash-strapped governments around the world are turning to market-based schemes that preserve endangered species by incorporating the cost of habitat destruction into the cost of development, according to a new report compiled by Ecosystem Marketplace. Unfortunately, most schemes lack the transparency needed to send the kind of price signals necessary to create an incentive to conserve.
http://jlne.ws/bH8IZx

Met Office analysis reveals 'clear fingerprints' of man-made climate change
Alok Jha - The Guardian
It is an "increasingly remote possibility" that human activity is not the main cause of climate change, according to a major Met Office review of more than 100 scientific studies that track the observed changes in the Earth's climate system.
http://jlne.ws/cGAKEZ

E-Mails Show Scientists Planning Push-Back Against 'McCarthyite' Attacks on Climate Science
Alex Kaplun - Greenwire
U.S. scientists are planning to counter criticisms directed at them during the "Climategate" scandal and congressional debates, saying conservatives and industry groups have waged a "McCarthyite" campaign, according to e-mails exchanged by the researchers.
http://jlne.ws/bvmDu0

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EMN: March 4, 2010

Lead Stories

Graham's Cap-And-Trade Pronouncement Reframes Hill Debate
Darren Samuelsohn - Greenwire
Is cap and trade really "dead"? After all, didn't Sen. Lindsey Graham say so? The South Carolina Republican's recent remarks -- or snippets of them -- have ricocheted around Capitol Hill and beyond in recent weeks, lending momentum to the notion that the congressional effort he is helping lead no longer plans to implement a system that requires companies to buy and sell emission credits.
http://jlne.ws/bOXPPI
**JK - Cap-and-trade is not dead? Just rebranded. I still can't get over Accenture.

Hopes for $2 trillion global carbon market fade
Nina Chestney - Reuters
Investors are becoming less convinced that a global carbon market, estimated to be worth about $2 trillion by the end of the decade, can be established as uncertainty over global climate policy persists.
http://jlne.ws/cPBjYZ

Carbon traders pessimistic over global expansion
James Murray - BusinessGreen
Carbon traders are increasingly sceptical that major new cap-and-trade schemes will emerge over the next five years, although they remain bullish over the prospects for existing carbon trading schemes such as the European emissions trading scheme (ETS).
http://jlne.ws/9KOIHV

Cap-and-trade will be a no-go zone for leaders
The Australian
WHEN Barack Obama visits Australia this month, Kevin Rudd will have to be careful what he chooses to discuss.
http://jlne.ws/biWjmb

Dems drop cap-and-trade to woo GOPLisa Lerer - Politico
Democrats pushing a climate change bill have been desperately looking for a few more Lindsey Grahams on the Republican side of the aisle.
http://jlne.ws/cOu2n4

Senate Trio Hopes to Hit Pay Dirt With Carbon 'Fee' on Fuels Darren Samuelsohn - Climatewire
Key senators are weighing a request from Big Oil to levy a carbon fee on the industry rather than wrap it into a sweeping cap-and-trade system that covers most of the U.S. economy.
http://jlne.ws/be3GaK

Utilities Willing to Go First -- but Not Alone -- on Emission Limits Katherine Ling - Climatewire
The heads of several prominent utilities say they would not necessarily object to the power sector being the first industry subject to carbon emission limits under proposed climate change legislation.
http://jlne.ws/cKaIKl

Murkowski Blasts EPA Leader for Conflicting Statements on GHG RegulationsRobin Bravender - Greenwire
Alaska Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski today grilled U.S. EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson on what the senator called conflicting statements on whether the agency's leader would prefer to curb greenhouse gas emissions using regulations or legislation.
http://jlne.ws/b4pGcB

Senators seek to block stimulus money for overseas
AP
A group of Democratic senators is urging the Obama administration to suspend an economic stimulus program aimed at financing renewable energy, complaining that money is going to projects that are creating jobs in foreign countries.
http://jlne.ws/cAbyjy

Investors Say Environment is Key For Economic Turnaround
Ben Baden - US News & World Report
According to a recent survey from Allianz Global Investors, everyday investors believe that environmental technology will drive future economic growth in the U.S. and that the Obama administration isn't doing enough to promote these initiatives. Some 70 percent of respondents said policies that promote green practices and technologies will have a positive impact on economic growth, while 57 percent believe that a major push to create green jobs will help turn the economy around. From Dec. 28, 2009 to Jan. 12, 2010, Allianz polled more than 1,200 adults who hold primary or shared responsibility for investment decisions in households with financial assets of at least $100,000.
http://jlne.ws/dhBszz

Carbon Traders Question Europol's EU5 Billion Fraud EstimateMathew Carr - Bloomberg
The Carbon Markets and Investors Association is questioning whether a law-enforcement estimate that fraud has robbed European nations of about 5 billion euros ($6.8 billion) of tax revenue is too high.
http://jlne.ws/a2tfLV

CO2 Projects Suffer in ‘Unstable' Market, Baker & McKenzie Says Catherine Airlie and Mathew Carr - Bloomberg
Spending to cut greenhouse gas emissions is less appealing after last year's climate summit in Copenhagen unsettled investors, according to an attorney at Baker & McKenzie LLP.
http://jlne.ws/deiTmK
Startup GreenRoad gets funding from Gore, BransonAlexander Haislip - Reuters
SAN FRANCISCO - Sir Richard Branson and former Vice President Al Gore share a passion for environmentalism and are now co-investors in startup GreenRoad Technologies.
http://jlne.ws/cbvSzb

Climate finance key for Cancun talks: U.N. chief
Nina Chestney - Reuters
The debate on using public and private financing to fight climate change must be resolved for the Cancun climate summit to succeed where Copenhagen failed, U.N. climate chief Yvo de Boer warned on Wednesday.
http://jlne.ws/cnVFR5

UN Climate Process ‘Needs a Good Spanking,' Yvo de Boer Says Catherine Airlie - Bloomberg
The process for reaching a global climate agreement "needs a good spanking,” United Nations Climate Chief Yvo de Boer said today.
http://jlne.ws/cfGsl6**JK - If you're going for corporal punishment, you may well go with caning, maybe water boarding.

EPA Waits for 2013 on Carbon Emissions of 50,000 Tons a YearKim Chipman - Bloomberg
U.S. regulation of greenhouse-gas emissions won't target stationary sources emitting 50,000 to 75,000 tons a year until at least 2013, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson said today.
http://jlne.ws/cpC5fW

German cabinet agrees solar incentive cuts: source
Erik Kirschbaum - Reuters
Chancellor Angela Merkel's cabinet as expected has agreed to a proposed cuts to state-mandated solar power incentives in July, a government source told Reuters on Wednesday.
http://jlne.ws/a7F5As

Scientists Taking Steps to Defend Work on ClimateJohn Broder - The New York Times
For months, climate scientists have taken a vicious beating in the media and on the Internet, accused of hiding data, covering up errors and suppressing alternate views. Their response until now has been largely to assert the legitimacy of the vast body of climate science and to mock their critics as cranks and know-nothings.
http://jlne.ws/cXUUiw
**JK - Black eyes are hard to hide.

The Credibility of Climate Science, Cont.
John Broder - The New York Times
There is an intense debate under way among climate change scientists over how to rebuild public confidence in their work after the damaging disclosures in hundreds of hacked e-mail messages from a British climate research center and the more recent revelations of errors in the latest United Nations report on climate change.
http://jlne.ws/9Dl6WF

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EMN: March 2, 2010

Lead Stories

Senate Climate Talks Intensify With New Carbon Pricing Draft Expected This WeekDarren Samuelsohn - Climatewire
The Senate trio at the center of talks on a comprehensive climate and energy bill will present a draft proposal this week to their fence-sitting colleagues and high-profile interest groups amid warnings from Democratic leadership that the window for action is closing.
http://jlne.ws/aB15Yc

Senators to propose abandoning cap-and-tradeJuliet Eilperin and Steven Mufson - The Washington Post
Three key senators are engaged in a radical behind-the-scenes overhaul of climate legislation, preparing to jettison the broad "cap-and-trade" approach that has defined the legislative debate for close to a decade.
http://jlne.ws/aLd9BP

Rogue Democrats propose new roadblock for EPA carbon rules
James Murray - BusinessGreen
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is facing a further challenge to its right to regulate carbon emissions, after two senior Democrats in the House of Representatives defied the Obama Administration to file a resolution that would block the agency's plan to limit greenhouse gas emissions.
http://jlne.ws/anj6Da

SEE THE RESOLUTION:
http://jlne.ws/bQYpLj

Skelton seeks distance on cap and trade David Catanese - Politico
Democratic Rep. Ike Skelton of Missouri has introduced a resolution in the House to block the federal government's authority to regulate greenhouse gases, a measure that his GOP opponents view as an attempt to distance himself from his vote for cap and trade legislation last summer.
http://jlne.ws/91QyXz

White House Faces Tough Fight on Climate Push
Ian Talley - Wall Street Journal
The Obama administration faces an escalating political battle over plans to regulate greenhouse-gas emissions, even though it announced a nine-month delay late last month.
http://jlne.ws/cSKV0C

House GOP to Launch Another Salvo at EPA Emission Rules Robin Bravender - Greenwire
Top House Republicans tomorrow will launch the second congressional effort in a week aimed at preventing U.S. EPA from regulating greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act.
http://jlne.ws/8ZQDx1

US Senate's top climate sceptic accused of waging 'McCarthyite witch-hunt'
Suzanne Goldenberg - Guardian
The US Congress's most ardent global warming sceptic is being accused of turning the row over climate science into a McCarthyite witch-hunt by calling for a criminal investigation of scientists.
http://jlne.ws/coNTQJ

U.S. Carbon Market Worth $2.7 Billion, Analyst Says
Simon Lomax - Bloomberg
The U.S. carbon market is worth $2.7 billion, environmental market analysis firm Point Carbon said.
http://jlne.ws/9E3wET

At least 3 more firms probed in Norway CO2 case
Reuters
At least three more firms are under investigation over allegations of tax fraud relating to carbon emissions, Norwegian police said on Monday.
http://jlne.ws/ckEnP4

Norway legislates against EU carbon credits fraudDaniel Brooksbank - Responsible Investor
The Norwegian Ministry of Finance has become the latest European country to try to counter VAT fraud in connection with the trading of carbon emissions allowances (carbon credits).
http://jlne.ws/bDchfr

Bill Gates Calls for Zero Carbon Emissions by 2050Environmental Leader
At TED2010, Bill Gates discussed his vision for the world’s energy future, and why he’s backing a dramatically different type of nuclear reactor. Gates said the world needs to achieve zero carbon emissions by 2050 to avoid planetary catastrophe.
http://jlne.ws/bDZaT6

Al Gore takes aim at climate change skeptics
Reuters
Former Vice President Al Gore took aim at skeptics who doubt the reality of human-caused climate change, saying he wished it were an illusion but that the problem is real and urgent.
http://jlne.ws/azqOg9

How do you convince people of global warming in a snowstorm?
Brad Knickerbocker - The Christian Science Monitor
The dead of winter – especially this winter with its massive snow storms in the eastern United States – is not the easiest time to make the case for global warming. Short-term weather events and long-range climate change are not the same thing, of course, but it’s hard to separate them in the public’s mind.
http://jlne.ws/9Gvqce

UN proposes WTO-style environment watchdog
James Murray - BusinessGreen
A global environmental watchdog modelled on the powerful World Trade Organisation (WTO) could be formed as part of any international climate change treaty, according to environment ministers meeting in Bali last week who agreed to form a new working group to investigate proposed reforms to environmental governance procedures.
http://jlne.ws/9wX8N2

Exclusive: Sea Bridges and docking stations to reach out to inaccessible offshore turbines
James Murray - BusinessGreen
Visiting an offshore wind turbine is a hair-raising experience. "It's quite a crude process," explains Phil De Villiers, head of the offshore wind accelerator scheme at the Carbon Trust. "You basically drive a small boat into the base of the turbine and then hop across."
http://jlne.ws/duSXok

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EMN: March 1, 2010

Lead Stories

Senator Kerry says compromise climate bill coming
Richard Cowan and Timothy Gardner - Reuters
Senator John Kerry said a bipartisan climate change bill would emerge soon in the U.S. Senate, contradicting what he called the "conventional wisdom" that the legislation was dead this election year.
http://jlne.ws/cTQnlQ
**Can Kerry leapfrog healthcare and financial reform?

House members seek to block EPA carbon limits
Reuters
Two senior Democrats in the U.S. House filed a resolution to block the Obama administration from regulating greenhouse gases on its own if a climate change bill fails to pass Congress soon.
http://jlne.ws/cTMAGQ
**JK - One has to love that Congress creates "independent" regulatory authorities and then intervenes when they dislike the independence they mandated. 

Two Key House Dems Move to Block EPA Regulatory Authority Robin Bravender - Greenwire
Two top House Democrats introduced a measure yesterday aimed at blocking U.S. EPA's authority to regulate greenhouse gases, mirroring the controversial effort launched on the Senate side by Alaska Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski.
http://jlne.ws/cSkjZ9

THE RESOLUTION:
Disapproving a rule submitted by the Environmental Protection Agency relating to the endangerment finding and the cause or contribute findings for greenhouse gases under section 202(a) of the Clean Air Act.
http://jlne.ws/bQYpLj

Bill Promoters Looking for a Boost From 'Professor in Chief'
Darren Samuelsohn - Greenwire
Shirt sleeves rolled up, President Obama paced on a stage in Henderson, Nev., last week trying to explain why he wants to curb U.S. emissions of heat-trapping gases.
http://jlne.ws/d6wRGT

Environmentalists question coal's place in Obama policyRenee Schoof - McClatchy Newspapers
President Barack Obama, a longtime believer in "clean coal," is launching an ambitious and expensive plan to help the energy industry lock climate-changing gases from coal-fired power plants deep underground.
http://jlne.ws/bJIqdg
**JK - Good piece on coal, CCS and other technologies.

House Dems balk at Senate jobs billJonathan Allen and Lisa Lerer - Politico
If House Democrats send a jobs bill to President Barack Obama on Friday, they'll be doing it with their noses firmly held.
http://jlne.ws/d6kSC0
**JK - At what point does it occur to Congress that they are failures at writing legislation?

Google develops prototype mirror for solar energy
Poornima Gupta - Reuters
Google Inc has developed a prototype for a new mirror technology that could cut by half the cost of building a solar thermal plant, the company's green energy czar said on Friday.
http://jlne.ws/9LntyA
**JK - I'm all in on Google. And Bloom too.

Launch of the Bloom box fuel cell generates a slice of Apple hypeAlok Jha - Guardian
Not every company can boast Arnold Schwarzenegger, Colin Powell and the heads of Google and Walmart at its launch. Even more unlikely, the firm in question makes what some may regard as a less than sexy clean energy device.
http://jlne.ws/97NklF

Energy unit bankrolls hi tech research: director
Matt Daily - Reuters
Nanotubes that use sunlight to produce fuel, liquid metal batteries, and synthetic molecules to capture carbon dioxide may become realities under Arun Majumdar's push to revolutionize the U.S. Energy Department.
http://jlne.ws/9Awirq

Emerging from the Ashes : Carbon Finance and Public Forest RestorationDavid Diaz - Ecosystem Marketplace
Six years after the worst fire in California's recorded history, the state is trying out carbon financing to help restore one of its struggling forests. The project raises - and perhaps answers - several serious questions about enrolling public lands in offset programs, but the elephant in the room - US federal land - continues to loom largely unaddressed.
http://jlne.ws/9OtR38

Commentary: Buying off the big polluters looks bad but it worksCharles Clover in The Times
These are gloomy times for those convinced that cutting fossil fuel emissions is vital for the climate and the health of the oceans. Yvo de Boer, the formidable United Nations climate chief, has resigned, public belief in global warming is on the wane and there is shrill triumphalism in the blogosphere about the silly errors made by climate scientists.
http://jlne.ws/bZdVDW
**JK - Nice column. Also from this piece:
As Denny Ellerman, an economist from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and lead author of Carbon Pricing, says, it is clear that US banks’ bad debt has had a far greater effect on the European economy than the price on energy imposed by carbon trading.

'No intention' of capping emissions
Lan Lan - China Daily
China has no intention of capping its greenhouse gas emissions even as authorities are committed to realizing the nation's target to reduce carbon intensity through new policies and measures, the country's top climate change negotiators said yesterday.
http://jlne.ws/bV4qkT

End to bickering urged to achieve new climate pactJim Gomez - AP
BALI, Indonesia - Environmental officials urged industrialized and developing countries Friday to stop bickering in climate change negotiations, as a Chinese delegate accused rich nations of reneging on commitments to fight global warming.
http://jlne.ws/c0mraF

EU needs new CO2 strategy for global talks: Poland
Reuters
The European Union's aim to lead the world in adopting ambitious emission cuts has failed and the bloc needs a new strategy for global climate talks, a Polish official was quoted on Saturday as saying.
http://jlne.ws/aKeOdp

UN creates new panel for IPCC review
ABC
The world's top climate science panel, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), is set for review by an independent board of scientists, a UN climate spokesman said.
http://jlne.ws/cELcXh

Warming panel, under attack, seeks outside review
Seth Borenstein - AP
The Nobel Prize-winning international scientific panel studying global warming is seeking independent outside review for how it makes major reports.
http://jlne.ws/dh4PZy

UN to review controversial climate panel
Jerome Rivet - AFP
The United Nations said Friday it would conduct an independent review of its Nobel prize-winning climate panel, whose credibility has been hit by errors in a key report on global warming.
http://jlne.ws/btzBb6

Push to Oversimplify at Climate Panel Jeffrey Ball and Keith Johnson - The Wall Street Journal
In the next few days, the world's leading authority on global warming plans to roll out a strategy to tackle a tough problem: restoring its own bruised reputation.
http://jlne.ws/9T9s58
**JK - In other news: IPCC Chairman Rajendra Pachauri won the gold medal over Shaun White for best hair.

U.N. meeting moots WTO-style environment agencySunanda Creagh - Reuters
NUSA DUA, Indonesia - A World Environment Organization, similar to the World Trade Organization, could be formed as part of environmental governance reform, a meeting of environment ministers decided on Friday.
http://jlne.ws/9p1DhV

Costs, plant age obstacles to nuclear renaissance
Mark Williams - AP
The renaissance of nuclear power in the U.S. appears inevitable. It just may not happen as smoothly as the Obama administration and others hope.
http://jlne.ws/9JbRCo

Grass-Roots Organizer Jumps From Nature Conservancy to API
Anne C. Mulkern - Greenwire
The oil industry's biggest trade group has nabbed one of the environmental community's top grass-roots organizers as it ramps up efforts to build a network of citizen lobbyists.
http://jlne.ws/a3ezNt

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