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TOP STORY
UN panel flags potential role for land-use carbon incentives, warns on BECCS
Paying landowners to protect their land could play a vital role in tackling climate change, though large-scale bioenergy use and storage could worsen the effects without careful management, according to UN-backed scientific panel IPCC in a landmark report.
ASIA PACIFIC
SK Market: Korean CO2 permits hit record highs amid supply shortage
South Korean CO2 allowances rose to all-time highs in Thursday trade as demand continued to outweigh the slow trickle of supply in a market deemed short overall, forcing emitters to consider borrowing from future allocation.
Chevron finally launches carbon capture at Australian Gorgon LNG project
Energy major Chevron on Thursday announced it has started injecting CO2 underground from its Gorgon LNG plant in Western Australia, nearly three years after the project was meant to commence, likely limiting its demand for carbon credits to offset emissions.
China’s Hainan pushes on with plan for international carbon exchange
Hainan province in southern China is working with state-owned power companies and others to establish itself as a carbon trading hub, pulling together domestic as well as international carbon traders.
AMERICAS
TCI states will see transport emissions drop without cap-and-trade scheme -analysis
The Transportation and Climate Initiative (TCI) jurisdictions in the Northeast US and Mid-Atlantic are likely to see transport sector emissions decline from more stringent federal fuel economy standards and greater deployment of electric vehicles, according to initial reference case results.
NA Markets: WCI steps down as RGGI hits five-month low
California Carbon Allowance (CCA) prices dropped on the secondary market this week ahead of the quarterly WCI auction, while RGGI allowances (RGAs) plumbed a five-month low as compliance entities took advantage of the price drop.
British Columbia finance committee calls for review of carbon tax
The British Columbia Assembly should review its C$40 carbon price as part of a comprehensive evaluation of the Canadian province’s taxation system, a legislative committee said on Wednesday.
INTERNATIONAL
World Bank extends carbon credit eligibility ahead of N2O auction
The World Bank’s Nitric Acid Climate Auction Program (NACAP) has extended the emission reduction generation period that eligible CER and VER carbon credits can be delivered into the programme.
EMEA
EU Market: EUAs again climb back from sub-€28 test, as market seeks direction
European carbon continued to show little direction on Thursday, with traders holding prices between €28 and €29.
Utility Uniper sees H1 earnings slide as higher CO2 costs limit coal burn
Germany-based utility Uniper saw its earnings almost halve over H1 as higher CO2 prices increased hedging costs and reduced the operating hours of its big-emitting coal generators.
Low-cost EU airlines see flight emissions take off in July
Carbon emissions from two of Europe’s biggest low-cost airlines rose considerably in July, putting both on track to record higher CO2 output and face costlier EU ETS bills this year.
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BITE-SIZED UPDATES FROM AROUND THE WORLD
There won’t be anything to spend it on – An increasing number of MPs from Germany’s governing parties are in favour of abandoning the target of a balanced budget in order to finance the fight against climate change, reports Handelsblatt. “There is a growing conviction within the Social Democrats (SPD) to take on new debt to save the climate,” the outlet reports, adding that a balanced budget is no longer considered “sacrosanct” in parts of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU). Various candidates for the leadership of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) have openly called to take on new debt at a time when the budget is already strained by the economic slowdown.
Back on track – A Papua New Guinea-based pilot REDD+ project slated to generate around 96 mln carbon credits is ready to move forward after stalling for years over landowner disputes, according to EMTV Online. Involved parties had been arguing about who was the correct umbrella landowner to operate the April Salumei project. However, with assistance from government officials, the conflicts have now been solved, pending legal approval, said PNG environment minister Geoffrey Kama.
Farmland funds, part 2 – Following US senator and Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren’s policy announcement on Wednesday, fellow senator and 2020 presidential hopeful Cory Booker today introduced legislation to fight climate change in the agricultural sector. Booker’s Climate Stewardship Act would authorise up to $25 bln annually for federal agencies to hire new workers and expand grant programmes that encourage farmers to reduce emissions through practices like rotational grazing and improved fertiliser efficiency. The plan also calls for planting over 4 bln trees by 2030 and 15 bln by 2050, en route to either reducing or offsetting agricultural emissions by one-third by 2025. Representative Deb Haaland (D) will carry the bill in the House of Representatives once Congress returns in September. (Politico)
Transition talk – Canadian Green Party leader Elizabeth May on Wednesday unveiled a multi-pronged plan to help workers in the oil and gas sector transition to a renewable energy economy. The Green worker transition plan includes skills retraining programmes and massive retrofit and cleanup projects designed to create employment. May, who in a recent poll was tied with the left-wing NDP for third place ahead of Canada’s autumn federal election, will also see her campaign offset their commercial flights and use electric vehicles on the ground. (CBC)
And finally… Fly the bumpy skies – Incidents of flight turbulence are becoming more common above the North Atlantic due to changes in wind shear from human-caused climate change, according to new research reported on by The Washington Post. The authors said the research it is the first study to document a significant increase in wind shear associated with the North Atlantic jet stream, which is a primary cause of clean air turbulence. As wind shear over the region has increased by 15% since 1979, the rate of serious injuries due to in-flight turbulence globally has doubled over that eriod. (Carbon Brief)
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