Tankage 2

If you hadn't heard, the carbon-trading market tanked the other day. Economists are not sure if it did so because industries were able to limit emissions better than anticipated, or because the limits on emissions were too lenient and the industries just didn't need to buy many carbon credits:

"But the latest figures ... revealed that 21 of the 25 member states produced 2.5% less CO2 in 2005 than participants had forecast."

It looks to me like companies are finding ways to limit CO2 without having to buy carbon credits. You would think economists could have predicted this. It will get harder to reduce CO2 as time goes by, as the easy, inexpensive ideas (like conservation) run out. What they will probably do next is make the restrictions too severe instead of too lax, because it will be harder and harder to limit CO2 now that the low-hanging fruit has been picked.

In any case, a lot of people who borrowed millions to create things like tree farms to sell carbon credits to European industries are now looking for a way to avoid bankruptcy. It is anticipated that the market will bounce back once adjustments are made for allowable emissions -- or so say the same economists who couldn't predict this would happen. The idea isn't dead yet and I hope it bounces back soon.

My real name is Russ Finley. I live in Seattle, married with children. Suffice it to say that although I am trained and educated as an engineer, my passion is nature. I very much want my grandchildren to live on a planet where lions, tigers, and bears have not joined the long and growing list of creatures that used to be. In an attempt to minimize the workload on Grist editors responsible for turning my submissions into intelligible articles, I will also be posting on a seperate blog called Biodiversivist, which will contain articles in addition to those submitted to Grist.

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  1. gerald spezio Posted 2:37 am
    29 May 2006

    Changing minds and hearts too, I guess.Nobody has advanced a program of "offsets," trading schemes, or credits for COMPOUND INTEREST. Too tough, unmentionable, or impossible?
    What "drives" the continually expanding economy, you ask? It's all about linguistics and words - IDEAS AND VALUES. Right? So, we'll just change the silly and stupid ideas about investors' money growing and growing forever. SHAZAM!
    I'll  collar my local bankers, investors, and finance folks tomorrow and clue them in. They will promptly change their values and adopt new ethics - yes ethics. Ethics is like values but deeper! New ethics will replace the old stupid ethics. We know the right ideas, values, and ethics.
    Doan you worry.

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  2. Rob Posted 4:20 pm
    02 Jun 2006

    Huh?>>In any case, a lot of people who borrowed millions to create things like tree farms to sell carbon credits to European industries are now looking for a way to avoid bankruptcy.>>
    Could you cite examples to support this statement?
    I have a hunch the businesses planting tree farms for CO2 credit trading have a longer term view than the blog/web/video game crowd.

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