Just off the PM’s plane in sunny Rome.
Brown relaxed and on good form. The worst month of his premiership behind him? Though of course this could be his last G8, with election next year.
Downing St is seemingly determined to combat any sense of complacency that the worst of recession is over and wants G8 to send message to oil producers not to get greedy and choke off growth.
Will there still be tremors when our bus gets to earthquake zone? A BBC colleague says the Beeb has offered him this advice: if you are in bed during an earthquake, stay there, only put a pillow over your head.
Let’s hope the G8 exceeds expectations, as there is already an impending sense that the appearance of progress on climate change and helping Africa will matter more than progress itself.
I know earthquakes are terrible things, but we could do with something – new photos of goings on at Berlusconi”s villa perhaps? – to shake this summit up.
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Jonathan:
RE “the appearance of progress on climate change”
exactly – it’s made too complex too easy to evade, and too many trade problems that would be associated with it.
Instead:
Emission reduction made simple:
Sufficient first phase 2020/2030 emission reduction is achieved by acting on ELECTRICITY generation (coal, gas) and TRANSPORT (mainly automobiles) alone, since these 2 sectors typically (as in the USA) account for 80% of greenhouse gas emissions.
The focus on electricity and transport gives several advantages – apart from lowering CO2 emissions:
1. Local environmental benefit from less pollution of sulphur and all else that’s in the emissions, regardless of the less certain or immediate global benefit from CO2 reduction.
2. Electricity supply alternatives which together with improved grid distribution gives better competition and keeps down electricity bills for consumers.
3. Transport alternatives (using electricity, hydrogen and other energy sources), which give variety of choice and competition advantages for consumers, additionally reducing the dependency on oil imports.
4. No trade problems: Unlike Cap and Trade, which involves cement, steel and other industries having to face imports from unregulated countries, the here suggested electricity and transport changes are not just more limited, but also largely local. Since there is little competition between say utility companies internationally, “best practice” results can be compared and shared.
Funding and Impact
Equity and long term loan finance can be used: Long term industrial loans from financial institutions, particularly if federal/state guaranteed, give low yearly interest repayments and lessen the effect on electricity bills or transport cost.
Compare with
today’s all-encompassing Cap and Trade (emission trading) suggestions, with unpredictability, expense, and needless disruption from normal business practice on one hand, or unnecessary profiteering from free allowance handouts with little actual emission reduction on the other hand – together with extensive regulation on what people can or can’t buy and use.
Understanding why proposed Cap and Trade is bad, in USA and elsewhere
http://www.ceolas.net/#cce5x
Basic Idea — Offsets — Tree Planting — Manufacture Shift — Fair Trade — Surreal Market — Real Market — Allowances: Auctions + Hand-Outs — Allowance Trading — Companies: Business Stability + Business Cost — In Conclusion
The Way Forward
http://www.ceolas.net/#cc10x
Introduction — Funding and Impact —No Energy Efficiency Regulation — A New Electric World
Electricity Generation — Distribution
Transport Power Generation — Regulation — Taxation
Great idea, but will this work over the long run?
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