Can Sustainable Development Be Clean AND cheap? A Promising 'Carbon Credits' Case Study
- Author Daniel Lafleche
- Published February 23, 2008
- Word count 598
Must the costs of clean development necessarily be prohibitive for developing nations?
Let's take a closer look at exactly how this is called into question.
There is a common belief that the most efficient way to rein in greenhouse gas emissions is to implement a two-tiered regime in which developed nations will shoulder a much greater burden. The justification for this belief is that because it is wealthier, the necessary foregoing of present consumption will be much less as a proportion of national income. The hardship endured will therefore be substantially less.
There are a number of arguments as to why the nominal costs of developing green infrastructure and power generation should be greater or lesser in developing countries. Those who suggest the costs are greater point to the need to import (often expensive) hardware and foreign technical expertise. Those who argue that it can in fact be less costly point to lower labor costs in developing countries and, sometimes, cheaper domestic inputs. The true answer of course is case- and industry-specific. For simplicity, let's assume that the costs are broadly the same at the aggregate level.
But what if the costs of "green investment" in developing countries could be defrayed or even offset entirely, and this without increasing tax strains or calling for foreign donors to foot the bill? Innovating intermediaries such as UK-based EcoSecurities have been so bold as to make this seemingly improbable end a reality. The concept is delightfully simple; as allowed for under the Kyoto Protocol's Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), developing nations which reduce their greenhouse gas emissions are entitled to carbon credits which can in turn be sold on an open market. These credits are readily purchased by developed-world producers that need them to be in compliance with emissions caps. And the developing-nation party has found an essentially zero-cost avenue to sustainability.
For a better understanding of the mechanism and the championing role played by the intermediary, let's take a look at an EcoSecurities case study. The process begins with an assessment of a company's assets to determine the emission reduction that can be achieved. In the project development phase, the necessary "green investment" is implemented with zero capital investment by the contracting company. Finally, EcoSecurities guarantees that it will purchase the carbon credits generated after implementation. The Celulose Irani biomass-to-electricity project in Brazil is an exemplary case. With the help of EcoSecurities, this paper producer was able to find a clean and renewable source of energy by utilizing the biomass that is a by-product of its production process. EcoSecurities provided financing for the project, and lent its technical know-how of biomass energy production to Irani through the implementation of the project. After completion, EcoSecurities purchased Irani's new carbon credits for resale. Without this involvement, Irani's expanding production would have continued to apply pressure to the traditional fossil fuel-derived grid.
There are currently more than 900 registered CDM projects underway around the world, about 60% of which are to be found in Asia and the Pacific. The viability of these projects is, of course, dependent upon the continuing ability to sell the acquired carbon credits. This means that the project would become unsustainable if the market for those credits were ever to dry up (for example if developed nations, pursuing their own green projects, no longer needed to purchase carbon credits to comply with emissions caps).
In a world where the United States alone accounts for a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions, provided that some permutation of the two-tiered international agreement can be reached, this seems rather a distant scenario.
Copyright (c) 2008 Daniel Lafleche
Daniel Lafleche is the co-founder of Alternative Channel, a website dedicated to giving non-profit organizations concerned with issues of sustainable development, environmentalism, and humanitarian issues an online forum for their video content. You can learn more at http://www.alternativechannel.tv
Article source: https://articlebiz.comRate article
Article comments
There are no posted comments.
Related articles
- Out with Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael: 230,000 Irish Children Living in Poverty
- Why Women of Color Need to Support Kamala Harris
- The Dark Reality of Forced Prison Labor: Why I Stand Behind Proposition 6
- Analyzing the Leadership Qualities of Abraham Lincoln during Crisis Situations and Racial Legal Issues: Studies
- Exploring the System of Checks and Balances Among the Three Branches of Government Machinery
- An Analysis of the Political Landscape in Guatemala and Its Impact on Regional Stability
- Gossip! How Caryma Sa'd convinced Jeremy Mackenzie to work for the RCMP
- Analyzing the Cultural and Historical Significance of Mongolia in Relation to Its Socio-Political Context
- Left, Right, and Ridiculous
- The Effect of Brexit on the UK Fishing Tackle Industry
- A Visionary Leader for Somalia's Future: Mohamed Said Deni's Path to the Presidency in 2026
- Potential 2024 Padang Pariaman Regent Candidates Form Three Axes: High Chances of Fierce Competition
- Russia Gate-How It Happened
- How the Manhattan D.A. is changing Politics in America
- How Corruption is Destroying Development in Africa
- What Happens if Houthi vs US Led Operations takes another turn involving Russia and China? Regional wide impact.
- Why America Needs More Moderate Republicans
- From Importer To Exporter: The Shifting Geopolitics Of U.S. Energy Policy
- The Dark Side of Globalization: Inequality, Conflict, and the Struggle for Resources
- Escalation in the Israel-Palestine Conflict: Unpacking the Recent Hamas Attack
- What Frosts My Nuts: The End Time Has Come
- What Frosts My Nuts: Nixon had Big Balls but not P.B.J.
- The 2024 presidential election is already over.
- The Clown King of East Africa
- The Concerning Power Play of New York's Attorney General: A Threat to Its Politician and New Yorkers
- Who has the Right to Control another Adult's Life Without their Consent?
- Can the Charter of Democracy Save Pakistan’s Imperiled Democracy?
- Is Iran in a revolutionary situation?
- Why We Must Be Masters of Our Counter Culture
- It is more Important than Ever that we Guard against Selfish and Criminal Charismatic Leaders.