Comments on: Germany Pushes (Again) for Stronger EU Carbon Emissions Cuts

By: Zachary Shahan

Zachary Shahan — Tue, 05 Jun 2012 00:19:00 +0000

I know. Very embarrassing to be living in PL right now with this nonsense. And the ridiculous thing is that increasing the target would BENEFIT Poland: http://cleantechnica.com/2012/05/01/report-stronger-eu-co2-target-would-benefit-country-that-blocked-it-cost-eu-citizens-a-few-cups-of-coffee-on-average/

but PL electricity is dominated by coal, and i have a feeling the industry had something to do with the country blocking this push.

By: anderlan

anderlan — Tue, 29 May 2012 04:34:00 +0000

We need an all-of-the-above strategy when it comes to de-fossilization. Emissions trading (with NO offsets, and with a market for *each* pollutant, since they each have different effects), plus a rising fossil fuel production/import tax, plus green energy and efficiency subsidies.

By: Ross

Ross — Sun, 27 May 2012 07:53:00 +0000

It isn’t just Germany that wants this. Poland is the only EU country that’s blocking it.

By: Captivation

Captivation — Fri, 25 May 2012 13:02:00 +0000

Zach, thanks for posting this. The fact that Clean Energy investment can be thwarted by price wobbles in the carbon market shows that carbon pricing is an insufficient mechanism by itself. It needs to be accompanied by trade restrictions. Of course, we would all like to see the soft hand of economics win the day, but the strong hand of politics will have to play a role too. World leaders need to drive with both hands on the wheel as they navigate the treacherous landscape ahead.