Carbon in the news week 45

CARBON IN THE NEWS 

WEEK 45 2011

Global carbon intensity on the rise for first time in a decade

Global emissions output is now outpacing economic growth, meaning that the world's carbon intensity has increased for the first time since 2000. A PwC report to be published today will say that while carbon emissions fell along with the recession-inspired dip in industrial output the trend was reversed in 2010. Last year, global GDP increased 5.1 per cent but emissions grew 5.8 per cent, resulting in a 0.6 per cent rise in carbon intensity, the figure that reflects the level of emissions per unit pf production. The combination of strong growth in the emerging economies of China, Brazil and South Korea, unusually cold winters in the northern hemisphere, a drop in the price of coal relative to gas, and a slowdown in renewable energy deployment was credited with driving the increase in emissions. To read this article in full click here

Chinese economic miracle fuels surge in carbon emissions

Soaring carbon dioxide emissions from China and the US have driven the world's output of greenhouse gases to its highest level, alarming new figures reveal. Global CO2 emissions in 2010 reached 33.51 billion tonnes, up from 31.63 billion tonnes in 2009 – an increase of nearly 6 per cent. This is believed to be the highest-ever percentage increase year on year, despite growth in many industrial economies being sluggish or non-existent. However, the figures from the US Department of Energy show clearly that it is the surging Chinese economy that is driving the growth: China's emissions in 2010 were 8.15 billion tonnes, up from 7.46 billion tonnes the year before – a 9.3 per cent increase in 12 months. To read this article in full click here

High street names ranked for carbon reduction

Major supermarkets, shops, hospitals, government departments and councils have been ranked according to what they have done to measure energy use. The Carbon Reduction Commitment Energy (CRC) Efficiency Scheme is the UK’s first mandatory carbon trading scheme aiming to improve energy efficiency and reduce carbon emissions. It is compulsory for all public and private organisations that use over a certain amount of electricity (6,000 MWh - approximately £500,000 per year). These organisations represent around 10% of the UK’s emissions. There are 22 organisations sharing the top spot, including energy watchdog Ofgem and the Department of Energy and Climate Change. Manchester United football club and Center Parcs also shared the top spot. Energy companies did less well. Scottish Power was the best-performing major energy company, coming in at position 27. Scottish Power is followed by Eon (101), Npower (127), British Gas parent company Centrica (229), SSE (266) and EDF Energy (330). The highest scoring-supermarket chain is Asda (37), which was trailed by quite some way by Iceland, which as the lowest-scoring supermarket came in at 1097. The Greater London Authority (34) scored the highest of all local authorities. To read this article in full click here

G20 carbon emissions outpace economic growth

G20 economies have reversed recent reductions in carbon emissions, as emissions growth exceeds economic growth among the worlds strongest economies, PwC research confirms. The findings, from new analysis in the PwC Low Carbon Economy Index released today, show that for the first time since 2000, no improvement has been made in reducing the carbon intensity (which reflects the fuel mix, energy efficiency and the balance of industry and services) of the G20, despite modest economic recovery globally. The results call into question the likelihood of global decarbonisation ever happening rapidly enough to limit global warming to 2 degrees Celsius. With three weeks to the UN Climate Summit in Durban, the report also highlights the scale of the low carbon financing challenge yet to be resolved. To read this article in full click here

World headed for irreversible climate change in five years

The world is likely to build so many fossil-fuelled power stations, energy-guzzling factories and inefficient buildings in the next five years that it will become impossible to hold global warming to safe levels, and the last chance of combating dangerous climate change will be "lost for ever", according to the most thorough analysis yet of world energy infrastructure. Anything built from now on that produces carbon will do so for decades, and this "lock-in" effect will be the single factor most likely to produce irreversible climate change, the world's foremost authority on energy economics has found. If this is not rapidly changed within the next five years, the results are likely to be disastrous. "The door is closing," Fatih Birol, chief economist at the International Energy Agency, said. "I am very worried – if we don't change direction now on how we use energy, we will end up beyond what scientists tell us is the minimum [for safety]. The door will be closed forever." To read this article in full click here

Blame The Boomers? They Have the Highest Carbon Footprint

Wendy Koch at USA today looks at a new study by demographer Emilio Zagheni of the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, which finds that Individual CO2 emissions decline in old age. Wendy starts her article with: Much has been written about the economic impact of an aging population in which fewer workers exist to support retirees. Now, a new study looks at how it could affect climate change, finding that individual carbon dioxide emissions decline in old age as the elderly drive less and buy fewer carbon-intensive goods. But I think Wendy is reading the wrong thing into this story, and is reading the wrong side of the graph. First of all, when one looks at it in a little more detail, only gasoline usage significantly falls off after age 65; natural gas and electricity just keep rising until they are 80, I suppose because they are all turning up the thermostat and sitting at home listening to Rush. But the real demographic elephant in the room, or pig in the python, is that we’re just getting started. The first American baby boomers just turned 65 this year, and the biggest bump in the boom, 1957, doesn’t hit age 65 until 2022. Any silver lining in this cloud isn’t visible for decades. To read this article in full click here