Climate Change and European Emissions Trading

Article Type: Books and resources From: International Journal of Climate Change Strategies and Management, Volume 1, Issue 3

Edited by Michael Faure and Marjan Peeters,Edward Elgar Publishing,Cheltenham, December 2008,£95.00,114 pp.,ISBN 1847208983

This book focuses on the EU-wide greenhouse gas emissions trading scheme for major industries. It combines legal and economic approaches and reviews the major revision of this scheme. In this book, a distinguished range of authors assess the experiences thus far and also consider future development from both theoretical and practical perspectives. They also discuss many design options,including auctioning, credit and trade, the inclusion of aviation emissions, and linking possibilities. Moreover, attention is paid to the role of legal principles, the role of case law, and to aspects of democratic accountability within an emissions trading scheme.

Ways to avoid carbon leakage and the role of national climate policies are also discussed. This book makes clear that the economic efficiency and effectiveness of an emissions trading scheme depend to a large extent on the specific legislative choices, and hence the legislative design of such a scheme deserves meticulous attention. Discussing legal and economic aspects of emissions trading, this book offers new insights to academics and policy makers both in the public and private sector. Those insights are not only relevant for understanding the past, but moreover for guiding the future design of emissions trading for greenhouse gases.

IUCN report “Energy Ecosystems and Livelihoods: understanding the linkages in the face of climate change impacts”

Energy is a fundamental part of our lives and a critical development issue. Currently, 1.6 billion people in the world lack access to electricity and over 2.5 billion people depend on biomass fuels for cooking and heating. Energy issues are particularly challenging for developing countries where high-energy costs exert significant pressure on fragile economies that have little capacity to adapt to change. The effects of climate change will further challenge the resilience of these communities. Ensuring energy security, while maintaining ecosystem integrity in the face of anticipated climate change, must therefore be a top priority.

Despite its importance, there is relatively little information on the inter-linkages – and the implications of these inter-linkages –between these three issues. The aim of this report, developed to inform an interactive workshop at the Fourth World Conservation Congress, is to begin to identify central issues and connections. Feedback from discussion groups at the workshop has been incorporated into the report, focusing on five ecosystems;marine and coastal, islands, drylands, forests, and freshwater. Further information can be seen at: www.cmsdata.iucn.org/downloads/iucn_helio_energy_eco_lhood_report_final.pdf

IED briefing “Against the Tide: climate change and high risk cities”

In the world’s poorest and most vulnerable nations, most cities and towns face a distinct dual pressure: rapidly growing population and high vulnerability to the impacts of climate change. Drought, storms, flooding, and sea-level rise are likely to hit hardest there. These climate change impacts in turn put water supplies, infrastructure, health, and livelihoods at risk in the very cities already struggling to provide or safeguard such key needs.

This briefing explores this dual pressure and suggests that an effective response will demand capable local and national government and support from strong international networks in building capacity to cope; resources currently lacking in most of the least developed countries. Details are available at: www.iied.org/pubs/display.php?o=17042IIED