California gives final OK to cap and trade (xpost)

[bananas]

From LBN Thursday:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x5033160

California gives final OK to cap and trade
Source: SF Chronicle
(10-20) 19:33 PDT Sacramento --

California's plan to cap greenhouse gas emissions and put a price on carbon is set to take effect on Jan. 1 after the Air Resources Board voted Thursday to make final adjustments in the regulation.

The state board first passed the cap-and-trade program last December. But the board, which normally allows its staff to finalize details, took the unusual step of personally tying up the loose ends of the nation's only comprehensive limit on greenhouse gases. It is the last major regulation the board considered to meet the requirements of AB32, California's greenhouse gas reduction law passed by the Legislature in 2006.

The law requires the state to reduce carbon dioxide emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. The cap-and-trade element covers about 20 percent of that goal, with the majority of the other reductions coming from limiting the amount of carbon in fuel and requiring more efficient vehicles, renewable energy mandates and energy efficiency requirements.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/10/20/BA901LK83V.DTL&ao=all

[bluestateguy]

1. The Cap part sounds reasonable, it's the Trade part I don't like

And I question whether this can be done at the state level.

[bananas]

2. California is part of the Western Climate Initiative.

"The Western Climate Initiative plans to lay the foundation for an international cap and trade program that would involve both the United States and Canada."

There are other regional initiatives across the the continent.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Climate_Initiative

The Western Climate Initiative, or WCI, is an initiative—started by states and provinces along the western rim of North America—to combat climate change caused by global warming, independent of their national governments.

The stated purpose of the WCI is to identify, evaluate and implement ways to collectively reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the region. The initiative requires partners to set an overall regional goal to reduce emissions, develop a market-based, multi-sector mechanism to help achieve that goal, and participate in a cross-border greenhouse gas registry.

The Western Climate Initiative plans to lay the foundation for an international cap and trade program that would involve both the United States and Canada.

<snip>

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_climate_change_initiatives#North_America

North America Region Name of Initiative Since

Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Massachusetts, Maryland, Rhode Island with other eastern states and Canadian provinces as observers
Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative 2009

Washington, Oregon, and California
West Coast Governors’ Global Warming Initiative November 2004

New England and Eastern Canadian provinces
New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers (NEG-ECP) Climate Change Action Plan 2001 28 August 2001

Arizona and New Mexico Southwest Climate Change Initiative
Mid-western states of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Kansas, and the Canadian province of Manitoba. Observers include Indiana, Ohio, South Dakota, and the Canadian province of Ontario.
Midwest Governors' Accord, the Midwestern Greenhouse Gas Reduction Accord 15 November 2007

Western states of Arizona, California, Montana, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario, and Québec of Canada, with various Indian nations, US and Mexican states, and Canadian provinces as interested observers
WCI, the Western Climate Initiative (formerly Western Regional Climate Action Initiative) 24 April 2007

[kristopher]

3. Note that those initiatives predate the rise of TeaBagger activism

Since they took control of the political dialogue and Republicans took so many state govts, the regional initiatives have been floundering. I hope this move by California and the OWS protests are signs that we are moving back in the right direction.

[fegi052li]

4. I'm skeptical as well

[kristopher]

5. Do you understand what cap and trade is and how it works?

The cap limits total emissions and emissions per polluter.

Both caps are reduced on a predetermined schedule.

Total emission caps are not allowed to be exceeded.

Caps for each polluter are able to be increased by buying the allowance given to another polluter who has invested in reducing their emissions.

This does three things:
1) it raises the cost of polluting; this pushes the undesirable technologies out of the market.
2) it provides money to those who invest in non-polluting technologies; this funding spurs research, development and deployment of the desirable technologies
3) it is extremely effective, fast and inexpensive; both in program administration costs and cost of change.

It is better at the regional level, better still at the national level, and most effective as a unified global program. BUT... Yes, it can be done at the state level.