House climate bill full of sweetening provisions - Los Angeles Times

Reporting from Washington -- Less than 24 hours before the House approved its landmark energy and climate bill last month, sophomore Democrat Ed Perlmutter from Colorado got several paragraphs added to the 1,200-page measure -- additions expected to be worth millions of dollars to companies that install solar panels.

At about the same time, Rep. Melissa Bean (D-Ill.) took the lead in adding another little-noticed provision to the bill -- a section designed to prevent regulatory action she said could shut down the multitrillion-dollar market for over-the-counter derivatives, a complex type of financial instrument.

These narrowly focused amendments were part of a torrent written into the bill during the wheeling and dealing that took place as Democratic leaders rounded up the votes needed to squeak out a narrow victory.

Council wasting time with CO2 [swindle] | Environment | Bundaberg News Mail

If we hit the cap and trade scheme and credits go up to $80 or $100 a tonne, we're talking about $18.4 million a year in permits for landfill,” Mr Stanfield said.

He said the council had two options - to burn off the excess methane, converting it back into CO2, or to reduce the level of organic waste put into the landfill, by using a three-bin system.

Carbon emissions trading system 'seriously flawed' | Business | guardian.co.uk

Carbon trading will also be at the heart of the global climate change treaty negotiated in Copenhagen to succeed the Kyoto protocol.

The world's top climate change expert, Rajendra Pachauri, told the Guardian that he shared concerns that the ETS was not being effective in tackling global warming. As the most mature trading system, it is seen as a model for newer markets around the world, which will need to be integrated for a truly effective global system of cutting emissions.

But Pachauri, head of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, said a strong Copenhagen agreement could lead to a substantial shift in the carbon market, lifting the price: "It may change the whole dynamic. That is my feeling, though I may be wrong."