The Billion-Dollar Kyoto Botch-up: Climate Change Communication in New Zealand

2008 ◽  
Vol 127 (1) ◽  
pp. 138-151
Author(s):  
Chris Russill
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ◽  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Kyoto Protocol ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
Public Discourse ◽  
Climate Change Policy ◽  
Gas Emissions ◽  
Change Policy

New Zealand's greenhouse gas emissions have increased significantly since 1990. This article examines how the fact of increasing emissions is discussed and given significance in New Zealand's national public discourse on climate change. Greenhouse gas emissions became a serious public concern on 17 June 2005, when the New Zealand government estimated a $307 million Kyoto Protocol liability in its 2005 financial statements. Conservative media coverage of this report emphasised governmental miscalculation, the financial liabilities generated by Kyoto Protocol regulations and a struggle between Climate Change Minister Peter Hodgson and industry voices over how to define the problem. This article links the arguments and discursive strategies used in the 17 June 2005 newspaper coverage of increasing greenhouse gas emissions to the institutional actors shaping New Zealand climate change policy. The increased effectiveness of industry challenges to government climate change policy is noted and discussed.

scholarly journals Norwegian Tax System from the Point of View of Climate Change Policy

Equilibrium ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-92
Author(s):  
Michał Ptak
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ◽  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Carbon Tax ◽  
Climate Change Policy ◽  
Environmental Taxes ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Tax System ◽  
Gas Emissions ◽  
Change Policy

Norway was the first country in the world to fix a carbon dioxide target. Norway was also one of the first countries to implement taxes to increase incentives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The aim of the paper is to analyse the role of environmental taxes in Norwegian climate policy. The author also examines the differences between the climate change policy measures in Norway and in the European Union countries, especially Poland.The first part of the paper contains an analysis of data on greenhouse gas emissions in Norway in the years 1990-2011. In the further sections of the paper the discussion is focused on the characteristics of Norwegian tax system and design of taxes used in Norway as instruments for addressing climate change. Particular attention is paid to the carbon tax, in force since 1991. The tax is responsible for large CO2 emission reductions. The paper is largely based on review of various reports, literature and websites on climate change policy, energy policy and transport policy in Norway.

Developing Green Cities: Explaining Variation in Canadian Green Building Policies

2016 ◽  
Vol 49 (4) ◽  
pp. 621-641 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Schwartz
Keyword(s):  
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ◽  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Urban Politics ◽  
Climate Change Policy ◽  
Organizational Capacity ◽  
Green Building ◽  
Gas Emissions ◽  
Local Climate ◽  
Change Policy ◽  
Local Climate Change

AbstractBuildings produce a large proportion of Canada's greenhouse gas emissions and municipalities control a number of policy levers that can help to reduce those emissions. This article explains variation among Canadian cities regarding policies adopted to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, with a particular focus on green building standards. By applying insights from the study of the politics of public policy to urban politics, this article finds that while electoral disincentives prevent most cities from enacting high impact green building policies, the success of some cities can be attributed to the influence of independent municipal environment departments. These departments facilitate policy learning by providing information and resources. The findings suggest that policy makers could improve the effectiveness of local climate change policy by creating municipal environment departments that have organizational capacity—funding, staff, and a cross-cutting mandate—and are insulated from interference from politicians and line departments.

scholarly journals The policy process on climate change

2012 ◽  
Vol 51 (No. 3) ◽  
pp. 108-114 ◽  
Author(s):  
Z. Sarvašová ◽  
A. Kaliszewski
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ◽  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Kyoto Protocol ◽  
Policy Process ◽  
Gas Emissions ◽  
United Nations Framework Convention ◽  
The Earth ◽  
United Nation

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change accepted in 1992 at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro provides principles and framework for cooperative international action on mitigating climate change. But it soon became clear that more radical targets were needed to encourage particular countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In response, countries that have ratified the United Nation Framework Convention on Climate Change accepted the Kyoto Protocol in 1997. The rulebook for how the Kyoto Protocol will be implemented – the Marrakech Accord, was agreed in 2001. This paper describes political instruments and facilities of mitigating climate change by forestry proposed in those political documents.

scholarly journals Flexible Mechanisms of the Kyoto Protocol: Emissions Trading

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Müslüme Narin
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ◽  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Kyoto Protocol ◽  
Emissions Trading ◽  
Debt Crisis ◽  
Carbon Markets ◽  
Gas Emissions ◽  
Trading Systems ◽  
The World

The growth of the world economy, rapid population growth and urbanization increased the demand for energy. Nowadays, a large part of the growing demand for energy provided by fossil fuels, carbon dioxide and greenhouse gas emissions resulting from the burning of these fuels leading to climate change and global warming. Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in 1994 to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Kyoto Protocol entered into force in 2005. The Kyoto Protocol, emission volume of the three market-based flexibility mechanisms have to be considered. One of these mechanisms is emissions trading. This study will focus on emissions trading systems and carbon markets. All over the world in recent years, based on the spot and futures contracts are traded on the carbon. In this direction of the world's carbon stocks and its activities will be discussed. Also in 2008, in the aftermath of the global crisis and European Debt Crisis its effects on carbon markets will be investigated.

A NEW CLIMATE STRATEGY BEYOND 2012: LESSONS FROM MONETARY HISTORY

2012 ◽  
Vol 57 (03) ◽  
pp. 1250016 ◽  
Author(s):  
WARWICK J. MCKIBBIN
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ◽  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Kyoto Protocol ◽  
Gas Emissions ◽  
Multilateral Negotiation ◽  
Climate Policies ◽  
Political Compromise ◽  
Change Framework ◽  
Dangerous Climate Change

The Kyoto Protocol was the outcome of many years of multilateral negotiation and political compromise with the ultimate aim of reducing the risk of dangerous climate change. Unfortunately, most of the countries that ratified the Kyoto Protocol have not taken effective action to curb greenhouse gas emissions, with many Kyoto countries not looking likely to reach their targets. There is also a lack of enthusiasm from major developing countries to take on the binding targets that form the basis of the Kyoto Protocol Approach. This has raised serious doubts about the viability of the Kyoto policy of committing countries to targets and timetables especially as a model for the current negotiations. As the science becomes more compelling that action is needed to curb greenhouse gas emissions, countries are beginning to look for more sustainable alternatives for the period beyond 2012. This paper outlines the key features that are needed in a new climate change framework beyond Kyoto drawing on lessons from monetary history. Using the analogy to the way modern central banks run monetary policy, it outlines an alternative to the Kyoto Protocol, which is a system of national climate policies coordinated around a common global price for carbon.

scholarly journals Synthesis of Climate Change Policy in Judicial, Executive, and Legislative Branches of U.S. Government

2011 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Brinkmann ◽  
Sandra Jo Garren
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
United States ◽  
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ◽  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Environmental Protection Agency ◽  
Climate Change Policy ◽  
The United States ◽  
Court System ◽  
Gas Emissions ◽  
The U.S

In recent years, the United States has struggled to develop a comprehensive policy for climate change and concomitant greenhouse gas emissions that addresses the current scientific thinking on the topic. The absence of any clear legislative or executive approach dominated national discussions and the court system was used to litigate a variety of issues associated with global warming. This paper synthesizes actions taken in the three branches of government prior to and immediately following the Obama election. In the Judicial branch, several branches of law have been used to force government and private parties to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Based on the historic greenhouse gas lawsuit, Massachusetts et al. v. the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA), and under the direction of the Obama administration, the U.S. EPA has taken significant action to regulate greenhouse gases. In the legislative branch, a comprehensive energy and climate bill passed the House of Representatives and comparable and alternate energy and climate bills were debated in the Senate indicating hope for legislation in the 111th Congress. However, these bills proved to be unsuccessful, therefore leaving the U.S. EPA and the courts the only options for national climate policy in the near future.

The Kyoto Protocol: Some Considerations About Its Applications in Italy

2007 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marco Gambini ◽  
Michela Vellini
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ◽  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Kyoto Protocol ◽  
Human Activities ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Electricity Production ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Gas Emissions ◽  
Economic Implications

Climate change is a very important environmental, social and economic global problem. During the last century, the Earth’s average surface temperature rose by around 0.6°C. Evidence is getting stronger that most of the global warming that has occurred over the last 50 years is attributable to human activities. Human activities that contribute to climate change include the burning of fossil fuels because it causes emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), which is the main gas responsible for climate change. In order to bring climate change to a halt, global greenhouse gas emissions would have to be reduced significantly. The European Union (EU) is engaged in international efforts to combat climate change. The EU is also taking serious steps to address its own greenhouse gas emissions. In March 2000 the Commission launched the European Climate Change Programme (ECCP). The ECCP led to the adoption of a range of new policies and measures, among which the EU’s emissions trading scheme, which started its operation on 1 January 2005, will play a key role. In this paper, we want to shortly explain the mechanisms of the Kyoto Protocol, paying particular attention to the Emission Trading. We want to illustrate the European directive and the consequent Italian one: we will explain the Italian implementing norms that have been emitted for the period 2005–2007 and 2008–2012. Limiting then the analysis to the sector of electricity production, we want to show some examples of Italian power plants: we will illustrate them and we will estimate their CO2 emissions (according to a typical annual operation). The emission levels will be compared with CO2 quotas assigned in the period 2008–2012: these results will be commented in terms of the unavoidable economic implications that such allocation will involve. The CO2 quotas, assigned to Italy already for the period 2005–2007, involve a large control of these emissions: such situation will be reflected unavoidably on the increase of the kWh cost (it is already particularly high in comparison with the European average because of the particular energetic mix on which our electricity production is based): these effects could be particularly heavy for the competitiveness of our production system and for the modernization and the widening of our power plant park.

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