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TOP STORY
Singapore parliament approves carbon tax
Singapore’s parliament on Tuesday approved the government’s new tax on carbon emissions, meaning from next year the city state will be the first Asian nation to implement a national tax on CO2 emissions.
AMERICAS
Cap-and-trade should take priority in California’s climate policy -industry
California should place more emphasis on its cap-and-trade system to guide the state’s climate policy and move away from complementary measures, industry representatives said Tuesday.
Alberta UCP leader floats bringing back province’s old carbon pricing system if elected next year
The leader of Alberta’s United Conservative Party (UCP) said that while he’s dead set on eliminating the province’s carbon tax and dismantling its new hybrid trading scheme, he’s open to relaunching the market-based system that was in place for most of the last decade.
Connecticut officials encourage legislature to progress emissions reduction, RPS bills
Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy (D) and Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Commissioner Rob Klee on Monday encouraged the state legislature to pass a pair of climate change and energy-related bills.
“Limited edition”: Developer seeks buyers for Newfoundland’s first CO2 credits
A project developer in Newfoundland is seeking buyers for the Canadian province’s first carbon offsets, which he calls “limited edition” and is selling at a big mark-up.
Green groups join Sierra Club lawsuit against San Diego carbon offset plan
A number of environmental organisations on Monday signed on to a lawsuit against the County of San Diego’s revised Climate Action Plan (CAP), alleging that the programme relies on offsets imported from out-of-state or abroad to counteract local, potentially environmentally-damaging development.
EMEA
EU Market: EUAs climb to new 6.5-year high on strong auction with record turnout
European carbon surged to a new 6.5-year high on Tuesday, boosted by bullish sentiment after the day’s auction cleared at the largest premium since early January and attracted a record number of bidders.
EU power sector and traders unite in plea to guard ETS against overlapping policies
The EU ETS risks another period of low prices unless EU lawmakers take steps to shield the market from the impact of overlapping policies, three energy sector associations said on Tuesday.
CEZ ups Q4 hedging to maintain overall rate
Czechia-based utility CEZ upped its hedging rate over Q4 to ensure its ratio was roughly in line with previous years amid an 8% drop in ETS-based generation, it said in full-year financial results on Tuesday.
ASIA PACIFIC
China’s HFC-23 producers gear up for annual pay-out, as subsidies continue to eclipse lost CER revenues
Carbon credits from HFC-23 projects were banned from most of the world’s carbon markets in 2013 amid concerns over market manipulation, but Chinese HFC-23 projects still earn almost twice as much as projects still selling UN-issued offsets thanks to a government subsidy programme.
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BITE-SIZED UPDATES FROM AROUND THE WORLD
As expected – Virginia Governor Ralph Northam (D) will veto a bill that prohibits the state from creating or linking to a cap-and-trade programme, according to a spokesman. HB-1270, which requires majority legislative approval for the state to start its own carbon market or join a regional scheme, was narrowly passed along party lines in the Republican-controlled House and Senate in recent weeks. Northam has until Apr. 9 to formally act on the bill, and Republicans need a two-thirds vote in both chambers to override any veto. (Richmond Times-Dispatch)
Still in reach – German’s domestic 2020 climate target can still be attained by combining a western European carbon floor price of €25 with a shutdown of 7 GW of the dirtiest lignite plants in Germany, according to a study conducted by researchers Oeko-Institut and commissioned by green group WWF Germany. The concept of a western European carbon price floor has gained limited ground in recent months and could potentially be raised as part of Germany’s internal talks this year on a coal phase-out date. The German Association of Energy and Water Industries (BDEW) oppose this, and point out that the goal should be met by other sectors. (Clean Energy Wire)
Shipping offsets – Chemicals firm IPL has offset its indirect shipping emissions as part of a voluntary carbon neutrality goal using an emissions calculation tool from shipping verifier Rightship and carbon exchange platform CBL Markets. IPL has offset some 150,000 tonnes of CO2 to cover its past two financial years of shipping activity by buying carbon credits from clean energy projects in China, where much of its shipping activity is based.
National stain – US Republicans are beginning to worry about the surprise rise of coal baron and recent federal prisoner Don Blankenship, Politico reports. Blankenship has skyrocketed in the West Virginia Republican Senate primary and has hit the airwaves with ads assailing his field of rivals as career politicians, leaving senior party officials wrestling with how, or even whether, to intervene. Many of them are convinced that Blankenship, who served a one-year sentence following the deadly 2010 explosion at his Upper Big Branch Mine, would be a sure-fire loser against Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin – and potentially become a national stain for the party.
Fleeing frenzy – Climate change could cause as many as 143 million people in three regions of the world to be displaced by 2050, according to the World Bank. The Bank estimates that 2.8% of the population of Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, and Latin America could be forced to move if emissions continue unchecked, though keeping Paris Agreement targets could lower the number of migrants in these three regions to 40 million people in the same timeframe. (Thomson Reuters Foundation)
And finally… I’m cuttin’ it – McDonald’s has announced the company’s inaugural climate change mitigation target, seeking to cut GHG emissions in its offices and restaurants over the next 12 years by 36%. The company’s commitment will also feature a goal of lowering the emissions intensity of its supply chain to the tune of 31% by 2030. It also identified three areas where it will concentrate its emissions reduction and renewable energy efforts: energy use at restaurants, packaging and product waste, and beef production. McDonald’s has yet to lay out plans for how it will meet these targets. (Axios)
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