EMISSIONS TRADING UPDATE

Why are all these trading programs called SCHEMES? (Makes it sound a little “iffy” doesn’t it?

Carbon Emissions Trading News
Charles Morand, May 9, 2007 (Seeking Alpha via Yahoo Finance)

WHO
The World Bank Carbon Finance Unit

WHAT
State and Trends of the Carbon Market 2007 (PDF document)

WHEN
Released May 2.

WHERE
The report describes global carbon trading, with chapters on the European and UK Emissions Trading Schemes, the Chicago Climate Exchange and the New South Wales Greenhouse Gas Abatement Scheme.

WHY
The report describes a large increase in volumes of CO2 traded (131%) and dollar value (177%) of the global emissions market in 2006 over 2005. The EU ETS (European Union Emission Trading Scheme) remains the biggest volume and value market.

QUOTES
- “The carbon markets are a prominent part of the response to climate change and have an opportunity to demonstrate that they can be a credible and central tool for future climate mitigation.”
- “…the market does not set the level of a cap, policy-makers do. The market can only be a tool to help achieve that target. It cannot be a surrogate for a target and policy makers should not expect to be let off the hook from their jobs – making sensile policy.”
- “…there is no free lunch. The exuberance of creating value – and enormous wealth – in a new market should not mask the fact that there are costs for mitigation.”