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TOP STORY

California’s 2017 emissions dip on power, while Quebec’s rise on fuel

California’s capped GHG emissions dipped in 2017 on lower power sector output, while increased fuel consumption in Quebec saw its emissions to rise, possibly transforming the province into a net buyer, according to jurisdictional data.

FEATURE: US midterm elections could unlock future state-level climate initiatives

Tuesday’s US midterm elections are unlikely to have a significant near-term impact on the RGGI carbon market or California’s suite of climate initiatives, but the winners could play a key role in developing those and other programmes further down the line, legislative experts said.

AVIATION

Aviation industry urges governments to wait to set a global GHG target

Governments should wait two or three years before setting a global aviation emission goal in case they “lose focus” on implementing the CORSIA offsetting mechanism, which is designed to limit emissions at 2020 levels, senior aviation representatives told a conference Monday.

Brussels urges EU states to “file difference” to UN’s CORSIA aviation scheme

The European Commission is urging EU states to file a difference to the rulebook on the UN’s CORSIA, a Commission official said Monday, a move that casts further doubt on the future of the aviation offsetting scheme.

ASIA PACIFIC

Indonesia economy ministry eyes 2021 start for carbon pricing mechanism

Indonesia, one of the world’s biggest GHG emitters, could have an emissions trading system or similar market mechanism ready for launch as early as 2021, a government official has said.

EMEA

Appearing to back down from intervention calls, Poland says current EUA price “acceptable”

Current EU carbon prices around €16-17 per tonne are “acceptable” to Poland, the country’s energy minister said this weekend after urging for the European Commission over the past two months to intervene and cool the market.

EU Market: EUAs hold above €17 following weak auction

European carbon prices held above €17 on Monday, recovering from an earlier drop spurred by a weak and somewhat peculiar auction result.

ICIS adds to analyst roster with EU ETS veteran hire

ICIS has added to its growing roster of analysts by hiring a veteran EU ETS expert.

ICYM

FEATURE: Washington state voters take another stab at passing first US carbon tax

Following numerous unsuccessful attempts to put a price on Washington state’s GHG emissions, a broad coalition of stakeholders is again rallying voters to overcome industry lobbying and make the state the first in the US to introduce a carbon tax.

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Job listings this week

• Director, US Corporate Partnerships and Business Development, Gold Standard Foundation – US
• Forest Carbon Solutions Analyst, Bluesource – Calgary
• Director, Climate Change, Environment & Natural Resource Management Division, UN ECA – Addis Ababa
• Senior Climate Change and Environmental Consultant, C4 EcoSolutions – Cape Town
• Sustainability Manager, The Carbon Consulting Company – Colombo
• Energy and Environment Internship, Energy and Climate Policy, Center for American Progress – Washington DC

Or click here to see all our job adverts

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BITE-SIZED UPDATES FROM AROUND THE WORLD

Back on the Oregon trail – The US Supreme Court on Friday rejected the Trump Administration’s request to block a youth-led lawsuit against the federal government for failing to act on climate change. In an unsigned order, the Supreme Court suggested the administration instead take their request to the US Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, which has refused to intervene in the past. The nation’s highest court had previously halted the legal challenge from 21 young people, which was scheduled to begin in Oregon last week, while it considered the administration’s request. (Climate Nexus)

Two-tonne challenge – Bavarian conservative parties Christian Socialist Union (CSU) and Free Voters have signed a coalition treaty for the coming five years in Germany’s southern economic power house and largest federal state. The alliance aims to make climate protection a “constitutional goal” and introduce a climate protection law which will include concrete CO2 targets to reduce GHGs to under two tonnes per citizen annually by 2050. (Clean Energy Wire)

ACE affinity – New chairman of the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Neil Chatterjee filed comments last week praising the White House’s Affordable Clean Energy (ACE) rule as the less stringent replacement to the stayed Clean Power Plan (CPP). Chatterjee wrote the Obama-era CPP would have threatened electricity reliability as originally proposed and overstepped the EPA’s authority to regulate GHG emissions, while the ACE rule “cure[s] some of the potential deficiencies.” Chatterjee’s comments are unusual for a regulator at FERC, and they were filed the same day that he held a press conference with reporters pledging to keep the commission independent of political concerns. Formerly, Chatterjee worked a staffer for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of prominent coal state Kentucky, where he helped coordinate resistance to the CPP.

REC auction – US brokerage Evolution Markets on Monday announced it will conduct an auction of 7,275 Vintage 2018 Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) on Thursday, Nov. 15. The sale, conducted on behalf of the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center, features Class I RECs approved by the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources and stemming from five different wind and solar energy projects. The auction will take place from 1030-1200 EST (1530-1700 GMT).

A-I-A-I-Oh! – The Poseidon Foundation, a non-profit that empowers everyone to participate in climate action, has introduced two artificial intelligence (AI) engines – Footprint-AI and Offset-AI – to its blockchain-based reduce platform that will significantly improve its efficiency and scalability. The platform has been successfully trialled over the past six months and makes it possible to reduce the climate impact of a product or service by embedding carbon credits into transactions at the point of sale. Footprint-AI will automate carbon footprint analysis for products, services, and organisations. This will result in a faster and more cost-effective onboarding of new customers, which will enable reduce to scale globally more effectively. Offset-AI will ensure carbon credits are taken from projects that are most appropriate for each case. For example, consumers can choose to share their preferences with reduce and allow for a tailored offering.

Keep up please – A team of more than 100 scientists has assessed the impact of global warming on thousands of tree species across the Amazon to discover the winners and losers from 30 years of climate change. Their analysis found the effects of climate change are altering the rainforest’s composition of tree species but not quickly enough to keep up with the changing environment. The team, led by University of Leeds in collaboration with more than 30 institutions around the world, used long-term records from more than a hundred plots as part of the Amazon Forest Inventory Network (RAINFOR) to track the lives of individual trees across the region. Their results found that since the 1980s, the effects of global environmental change – stronger droughts, increased temperatures and higher levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere – has slowly impacted specific tree species’ growth and mortality. In particular, the study found the most moisture-loving tree species are dying more frequently than other species and those suited to drier climates were unable to replace them.

London calling to the faraway crowns – The Commission on Human Rights of the Philippines will hold hearings in London on Nov. 6-7 as part of its National Inquiry on Climate Change. The Inquiry is being held “to determine the impact of climate change on the human rights of the Filipino people and if the top fossil fuel producers of the world, or the so-called Carbon Majors, are fuelling climate change”. Witnesses will give evidence to the Commission at the hearing on the campus of the London School of Economics and Political Science.

And finally… Too long, didn’t read – President Trump last week reiterated his recent comments that the effects of climate change will “change back”, despite having not read the US government’s most comprehensive and up-to-date assessment on climate science and its anthropogenic causes describing exactly the opposite. During an interview with “Axios on HBO”, the news organisation showed him a copy of the federal government’s National Climate Assessment published last November that concluded that “there is no convincing alternative explanation” for the global warming observed other than human causes, and that only steep GHG reductions can alter the upward trend in temperatures. However, Trump said he hadn’t read the report and dismissed the information contained in it. “Is there climate change? Yeah. Will it go back like this, I mean will it change back? Probably,” Trump said, making a wave motion with his hand. (Axios)

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