The European Emission Trading System (ETS) is an utterly ineffective attempt to prompt a “market” response to rising carbon emissions. It is ineffective because it has not prompted the allegedly intended market response, and that is because the market has…
Category: Cap and trade
Oilsands and airplanes, pots and kettles: are climate agreements a waste of time?
“If Congress won’t act soon to protect future generations [by reducing greenhouse gas pollution], I will.” Thus spake the U.S. president on February 12 of this year, in his 2013 state of the union speech. Only 77 days earlier, he…
The political economy of climate funding: the case of the atom
How well is “The Climate” represented when it comes to government spending, organized lobbies, and media coverage? Since its inception in 2006, this blog has covered the issue of carbon pricing—through cap and trade or an outright tax. I have…
Carbon pricing and nuclear power: how to fix cap and trade
Since beginning this blog, I have called for some kind of price on carbon dioxide (CO2), either through a tax or a cap-and-trade system. My reasoning is that this would spur investment in nuclear power, which is, demonstrably, the cleanest…
U.S. zigs on climate, Canada zags
The Canadian government’s follow-the-U.S. strategy on climate policy is still paying off, in petro-dollars. As I mentioned back in December, Canada gambled that the U.S. won’t make any environmental moves that hurt Canada’s oil industry. Of course that is a safe bet:…