climate change and carbon trading

Climate change and carbon trading

ByJayappaPALB6084Dept. of Plant Pathology

22/12/2016Dept. of Plant Pathology

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Flow of presentation Introduction Climate change: causes and effectsCarbon tradingCarbon trading in IndiaAdvantages & disadvantages of CTConclusion

22/12/2016 Dept. of Plant Pathology 2

Introduction

• India is the largest growing economies in South Asia• India’s growing population and economic development put

enormous strain on environment. • Environmental degradation and climate change is one of the

greatest challenges of 21st century• India is the second largest in population, fourth largest

in energy consumption and third largest in green house gas producer and burns ten folds fuel wood as compare to United State

• In India, Coal fired power generation is the biggest polluter and the biggest opportunity for emission reduction


First of all, you should know that weather and climate

are not same


WEATHER• Short term• Limited area• Can change rapidly• Difficult to predict

WEATHER is what’s happening outside your

window right now.22/12/2016 Dept. of Plant Pathology 5

• Long term• Wide area • Seasonal

changes• Measured over

long spans of time

CLIMATE is the average of many years of weather observation.


Climate is affected by many factorsABIOTIC FACTORS:

LatitudeAltitudeOcean CurrentsTopographySolar RadiationEvaporationOrbital VariationsVolcanic Activity

BIOTIC FACTORS:TranspirationRespirationPhotosynthesisDecompositionDigestion


Contribution of different sectors in world to climate change.

(Sources of Greenhouse Gas emissions)


Greenhouse gases

Rising

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Carbon Dioxide Carbon dioxide enters the atmosphere through burning fossil fuels (coal, natural gas, and

oil) solid waste trees and wood products result of certain chemical reactions (e.g.,

manufacture of cement)


Estimates of Future Levels of CO2

Year CO2, ppm 2000 369

2010-2015 388-398

2050/2060 463-623

2100 478-1099


Per capita emission of green house gas emission

(Nair et al., 2013)22/12/2016 Dept. of Plant Pathology 14

MethaneMethane is emitted during the • production and transport of coal, natural gas, and oil• livestock and other agricultural practices and• decay of organic waste in municipal solid waste landfills


Nitrous Oxide

Nitrous Oxide is produced by cars, by fossil fuels used for heat and electricity, and by agriculture.


Global Average Abundances of Major, Long-Lived Greenhouse Gases


Other…• Chlorofluorocarbon (CFC)• Carbon Tetrachloride (CCl4)• Hydrobromofluorocarbon (HBFC)• Hydrocarbon (HC)• Hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC)• Hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) • Methyl Bromide (CH3Br)


The greenhouse gas content of the atmosphere is being altered by human activity.The result of this change is

global warming.


Global warming???Global warming is when the earth heats up and the temperature increases

Causing more dangers for people, animals, plants and our environment


Glaciers are melting away worldwide

Agassiz Glacier, Montana, in 1913…

Pasterze Glacier, Austria, in 1875…

…and in 2005

…and in 2004


Animal and plant life is changing

2/3 of European butterfly species studied have shifted their ranges northward by as much as 150 miles. (Parmesan, 1996; Parmesan et al., 1999)

An analysis of the distributions of British birds found that many species have moved

north by an average of 18.9 km. (Thomas et

al., 1999)

At Boston's Arnold Arboretum, plants are flowering eight days earlier on average than they did from 1900 to 1920. (Primack et al.,2004)


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• Longer summers can disrupt animal habitation• A Warmer World Will Mean More Pests and

Pathogens for Crops• Damaged crops due to sudden climate change • Floods, Droughts, heat waves, extreme winters

and storms, hurricanes, typhoons• More wildfires• Changes in El Niño–Southern Oscillation


Tsunami

Tornado

Hurricane

New diseases and pests

Changed habitation

Forest fires22/12/2016 Dept. of Plant Pathology 24

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:SH-60B_helicopter_flies_over_Sendai.jpg

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Low_pressure_system_over_Iceland.jpg

Changes in El Niño–Southern Oscillation


UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)

• 165 nations signed the in 1992, UNFCCC at Rio de Janeiro• The Convention divides countries into two main groups -

Annex I & Non-Annex I Countries• Annex I (developed countries) agreed to reduce their GHGs

by 5.2 % below 1990 levels in 1st commitment period 2008 – 2012


• Convention is based on three principles– Common but differentiated responsibility– Precautionary approach– Sustainable Economic Growth and Development

• The Kyoto protocol defined how to bring down the emissions in COP 3 in 1997

(COP-conference of the parties)


Highlights of KYOTO Protocol:• An United Nation- led international agreement reached in 1997 in

Kyoto, Japan under UNFCCC Put to force on 16th February 2005 To address the problems of climate change and the reduction of

greenhouse gas emissions • Results Commitment to move away from fossil fuel energy sources (oil, gas

and coal) to renewable sources of energy viz. hydro, wind, solar power by 38 signatory countries

Targets for greenhouse gas emissions reduction were established for each industrialized country

Developing countries including China and India were asked to set voluntary targets for greenhouse gas emissions

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Carbon trading

In India, Coal fired power generation is the biggest polluter and the biggest opportunity for emission reduction and hence can be the biggest carbon credits producer Presently, next to china India is generating the highest number of carbon credits in the world In comparison to the developed nations the carbon emission level in India is much less



HISTORY

Carbon Credits

• A carbon credit is a financial instrument that represents a tonne of CO2 or CO2e (carbon dioxide equivalent gases) removed or reduced from the atmosphere from an emission reduction project

• Carbon credits are measured in units of certified emission reductions (CERs).

• Each CER is equivalent to one ton of carbon dioxide reduction (1 credit= reduction of 1 ton of CO2)

• Such a credit can be sold in the international market at a prevailing market rate


CT Types1. Carbon cap-trade program2. Carbon offsetting

1. Carbon cap-trade program CAP- Assignment of an upper threshold limit on the amount of pollutant

that can be emitted (measured in Assigned Amount Units or AAUs) by a country

Emission permits or credits are issued to emit a specific amount of carbon dioxide (cap) to the country

TRADE- the transfer or trade of allowances Excess or unused credits can be traded to the countries whose

emissions have exceeded their assigned cap


Carbon cap and trade


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2. CARBON OFFSETTING Offset Credits for eco-friendly technologies are purchased by developed

nations to avoid or substitute reduction in their own emission Investments in green technologies and harness alternative forms of energy

in the developing nations

Example :• A landowner plants an acre of field and can generate credits for how much

Carbon Dioxide is reduced as a result of the plantation• The credits are known as Offset Credits• The landowner can sell the offset credits to the potential investors or

industrial facilities• The facility can buy the offset credits and count it in favor of its emission

responsibilities• It attests that the same amount of carbon dioxide is reduced in the

atmosphere as a result of the plantation process



How it works??

Carbon Trading Implementation Mechanisms


• Emission Trading (ET) Countries whose emissions are less than their assigned amount can sell the

excess amount to countries whose emissions have exceeded their assigned amount

The Assigned amounts can be defined as a tradable allowances, or commodity, and this free market is known as the “CARBON MARKET"

• Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) Developed countries can fund emission reduction projects (e.g. Solar energy,

wind energy and other green technologies) in developing nations that did not sign Kyoto Protocol

In exchange, the developed countries earn legally recognized emission credits called CERs (Certified Emission Reduction) to offset their emission obligations

• Joint implementation (JI) Developed countries can implement emission reduction projects in another

developed or developing country and earn Emission Reduction Units (ERUs) ERUs can be used to meet the carbon allowance or can be sold in the market


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The Indian Scenario• India forms a part of Non-Annexure country of the Kyoto

Protocol with no compulsion to abide by emission targets but has a large potential for carbon trading

• Currently, the value of one CER (Carbon Emission CO2e) Reduction) or Carbon Credit in Indian Rupees is about Rs.1400

• Capital investment in CDM projects has also increased from 358 crores in 2003 to 64443 crores in 2007


The Indian infrastructural agencies, agreed to adopt the following concepts in making Clean Development Mechanisms (CDM) projects:


Delhi Transco LimitedDelhi Metro Rail CorporationDelhi Jal BoardDelhi International AirportDelhi Transport CorporationNew Delhi Municipal Council

EXAMPLES OF CARBON TRADING IN INDIA

1. Jindal Vijaynagar Steel: Yearly it will be ready to sell $225 million worth of saved carbon. This was made possible since their steel plant uses the Corex furnace technology which prevents 15 million tonnes of carbon from being discharged into the atmosphere.

2. Powerguda in Andhra Pradesh: The village in Andhra Pradesh was selling 147 tonnes equivalent of saved carbon dioxide credits. The company has made a claim of having saved 147 MT of CO2. This was done by extracting bio-diesel from 4500 Pongamia trees in their village.

3. Handia Forest in Madhya Pradesh: In Madhya Pradesh, it is estimated that 95 very poor rural villages would jointly earn at least US$300,000 every year from carbon payments by restoring 10,000 hectares of degraded community forests.22/12/2016 Dept. of Plant Pathology 40


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Advantages• Reduction in green house gas emission

Stringency in the cap or the upper threshold limit is contributing to lower emission over the years

• Source of revenue for developing nationsDeveloping nations can earn revenue by selling carbon credits to countries with more fossil fuel demand

• Supports a free market systemThe carbon trade market is without any economic intervention and regulation by government except to regulate against force or fraud

• Alternative sources of energy or green technologyThreshold limits encourages industries to harness alternative sources of energy and invest in green technology globally or in indigenous research22/12/2016 Dept. of Plant Pathology 42

Disadvantages• Right to pollute

Industries in the ratified nations are purchasing legal rights to pollute the atmosphere

• Slow processIndustries are opting the easy way– purchase more allowances than implementing greener technologies

• Lack of centralized system or global frameworkAbsence of a centralized and accepted global standards/act are missing

• No effective carbon reduction in the atmosphereLeads to carbon reduction in one place and results in carbon emission in some other place22/12/2016 Dept. of Plant Pathology 43

Here’s what you can do…

What can be done?

• Heating and Cooling• Conserve Hot Water• Conserve in the Car• Conserve Electricity• Reduce waste


There’s no place like home…

…and there may never be again. Do your part.22/12/2016 Dept. of Plant Pathology 45

Referenceswww.ucsusa.org/global_warming/www.epa.gov/climatechange/www.climatehotmap.org/www.stopglobalwarming.orgParmesan, C., 1996. Climate and species range. Nature 382, 765-

766Parmesanet al., 1999. Poleward shifts in geographical ranges of

butterfly species associated with regional warming. Nature 399, 579-583.

Primack et al., 2004. Herbarium specimens demonstrate earlier flowering times in response to warming in Boston. American Journal of Botany, 91, 1260-1264.



Go green…


THANK YOU