Another nice review, this time from the Howick and Pakuranga Times, by Barbara Weil: “[…]this book’s value lies not only in what he says, but how – in terms that we can all understand quite clearly.
Home grown electrics
Electric vehicles are becoming more newsworthy, following the government’s announcement that EVs are likely to be part of NZ’s answer to reducing vehicle emissions. The Dominion Post dealt with the subject over the weekend, but the online version is considerably shorter than the print version – at least the one that appeared in Saturday’s Press – and it’s much more positive about the potential for EVs. The print version gave Toyota NZ MD Bob Field the chance to plug hybrids as the answer, and to assert that the future lies with hydrogen as fuel – something that I’m resolutely sceptical about. It also quoted my least-favourite motoring journalist, Jeremy Clarkson, who recently slammed the Reva G-Wiz as a “stupid little car
Full IPCC reports now available
The full text of the Working Group One, Two and Three sections of the IPCC‘s Fourth Report are all now available for free download:
- WG1 – The Physical Science Basis of Climate Change
- WG2 – Climate Change Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability
- WG3 – Mitigation of Climate Change
The final section, the Synthesis Report, is in the final stages of government review, and will be adopted at a meeting in Valencia in mid November. Put together, the three reports amount to a compendium of the state of our knowledge about climate change, and our options for dealing with it. The WG2 chapter on impacts in Australia and New Zealand [PDF] is particularly important reading.
Friday roundup
The Arctic sea ice has begun its autumn freeze after setting a new record for a summer low – a million square kilometres less than the previous record, set in 2005. The NSIDC updates are very interesting, while scientists working in the field described the summer as “remarkable
The business of climate change
New York-based merchant bank Lehman Brothers have produced an excellent overview of the business and economics of climate change (PDF). If you have any interest in the economics of dealing with climate change, and want an informed overview of the drivers of political and commercial change, this is a very good place to start. I don’t agree with everything they have to say (they’re far too dismissive of electric vehicles, for instance – I reckon EVs have the potential be a disruptive technology), but the sectoral and country by country analysis of investment opportunities is fascinating, and their general take on the issue is very close to my own. From the conclusions:
The size of the carbon market globally, as measured by the value of permits issued, could, on a conservative estimate, be over $100bn by 2020 or thereabouts. This assumes that the United States, Japan, and China join the EU in moving to an emissions trading scheme covering around 50% of their total emissions. Annual turnover would be a multiple of that figure. This compares with the US Treasury market which currently stands around $2 trillion.
They put the chances of an international deal including China and India at 75% (up from 50% in an earlier report), and expect share prices to begin to track relative carbon intensity – with carbon-light companies doing better. Recommended reading.