Post from Seton Stiebert in Copenhagen….
I’ve just arrived with a train load of protesters to bear witness to the crazy zoo that will be COP15. My journey comes via Germany where I’ve spent the last week travelling around and thinking about what COP15 means for Canada. Not surprisingly, Canada is already in [...]
FCM released a report completed by myself and Seton Stiebert today on opportunities and costs for reductions from municipalities. See the report here and coverage here.
Below are some summary points from the report.
There are important reasons that suggest there are strong rationales to focus our climate policy efforts at the municipal level. [...]
Lots of traffic on climategate, but the New York times has some good stuff,
The Copenhagen conference itself reflects increasing acceptance of the scientific arguments: the negotiations leading to the talks were conducted by high-ranking officials of the world’s governments rather than the scientists and environment ministers who largely shaped the 1997 Kyoto Protocol. Late last [...]
McKinsey curves pop-up all the time, as in here today. And I am often asked to produce similar ones (see picture).
But the McKinsey curves have some important flaws, and drive me nuts for a couple of reasons.
First, they assume no baseline. In time technologies will be deployed in response to rising [...]
Tax interaction is where taxes add distortions to the economy (economist raises hands to checks, gasps “inefficiency!” and moans “ooooohhhhh”), and either reinforce each other as bads, or can be used to offset existing bads. The double dividend theory instructs that the hit from abatement costs and payments on emissions (tax on remaining emissions or [...]
This is a must read leading up to Copenhagen. Not a lot to disagree with. Essentially, economic obesity and Mr Harper have turned Canada into the North Korea of the climate world.
Canada’s image lies in tatters. It is now to climate what Japan is to whaling
The tar barons have held the nation to ransom. [...]
Twitter: nree_alberta