Watch This! NGO Voices on Carbon Markets #7

by Miriam Vicente MarcosUncategorizedPosted on Comments are Disabled

COP-19 is just around the corner. Although Poland is not expected to deliver on concrete climate targets for the 2015 climate agreement, there are a number of important topics at stake that need to be addressed to pave the way for a comprehensive, far reaching future climate deal in 2015. If you have not yet done so, sign-on to our Open Letter demanding Environment Ministers around the world first and foremost to increase ambition and stop carbon markets from undermining mitigation commitments at COP-19.

WATCH THIS! NGO Newsletter #7: Voluntary carbon market approves wind farm project on occupied land previously turned down by CDM

by Miriam Vicente Marcos2050 climate strategiesPosted on Comments are Disabled

The Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) has just registered a wind farm project in the occupied territory of Western Sahara. Earlier attempts by the project proponent to have the farm registered at the UN Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) had backfired precisely because of its location in a politically controversial area.

WATCH THIS! NGO Newsletter #7: ICAO promises global aviation deal in 2020

by Miriam Vicente MarcosAviationPosted on Comments are Disabled

The International Civil Aviation Organisation’s (ICAO) long awaited Triennial Assembly meeting in late September 2013 agreed to agree on a global market based measure (MBM) by 2020. Seemingly a good progress, the forthcoming agreement fails to put something tangible on the table. Little aspects about how such an MBM would look like are known while the airline industry strongly pushes for a global offsetting mechanism that would enable it to reach a carbon neutral growth goal. Global aviation emissions are set to rise dangerously and an offsetting mechanism by 2020 is too little and too late to ensure that the aviation sector reduces its emissions in line with the 2° degree Celsius goal.

WATCH THIS! NGO Newsletter #7: Reality Check: Offsets in EU’s Climate Legislation

by Miriam Vicente MarcosUncategorizedPosted on Comments are Disabled

The European Union will easily meet its Kyoto climate targets for 2020, the annual report of the European Environment Agency (EEA) shows. While this is good news on the one hand, the report also shows that the EU has missed on a huge opportunity to boost domestic action. As EU policy makers are currently debating the design of EU’s Climate Framework for the period 2020-2030 it is time to draw the line and take stock of EU’s offsetting experience.

WATCH THIS! NGO Newsletter #7: Golden landscapes?

by Miriam Vicente MarcosUncategorizedPosted on Comments are Disabled

The Gold Standard Foundation (GFS) is expanding its project scope to land use and forestry projects. This raises many questions even if we assume that this standard may ensure a high social integrity and provides funding for development and preservation of local ecosystems. There is a severe risk that this development opens the box of the Pandora and stipulates the inclusion of land based activities into more regional or even international compliance markets if not communicated carefully.

WATCH THIS! NGO Newsletter #7: Agriculture mitigation and carbon markets – unknown territory

by Miriam Vicente MarcosLand use and forestryPosted on Comments are Disabled

Climate change remains a real threat to the humankind, and while this will not be limited to any specific sector, agriculture will also be threatened by climate change. However, because of agriculture’s potential for mitigation and carbon trading any move to bring this into the carbon credit markets will be a dangerous move for small and marginal farmers.

WATCH THIS! NGO Newsletter #7: Bonyic: an opportunity to comply with CDM rules and international law

by Miriam Vicente MarcosGlobal markets, Human rights in climate actionPosted on Comments are Disabled

In the next few days, review of the Bonyic Hydroelectric Project’s request for registration will start. If rejected, the CDM Executive Board would be sending a strong message to the world for the need to  comply with CDM rules and international law. The Bonyic Hydroelectric Project is a 31.8 MW hydroelectric power plant located on …

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WATCH THIS! NGO Newsletter #7: Barro Blanco: A clear illustration of why CDM reform is needed

by Miriam Vicente MarcosGlobal markets, Human rights in climate actionPosted on Comments are Disabled

As we gear up for another round of climate talks, it is apparent that the time for CDM reform is now. At the upcoming climate talks in Warsaw, the UNFCCC’s Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI) will present its recommendations for revisions to the CDM’s “Modalities and Procedures”. The Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), Carbon Market Watch and others made our own recommendations, focused on establishing human rights safeguards that would help to prevent social and environmental harm, promote greater accountability, and ensure the effective participation of ALL stakeholders.

WATCH THIS! NGO Newsletter #7: The Mundra coal project in India, another battle against coal power in the CDM

by Miriam Vicente MarcosGlobal marketsPosted on Comments are Disabled

Coal projects inflict a toxic burden on local peoples’ health and ecosystems while levels of greenhouse gas emissions remain very high for many years to come. The UNFCCC has yet to address this highly contentious form of climate finance. Under increased pressure from buyers of carbon credits, governments and civil society organizations, coal climate finance under the CDM must come to an end.

WATCH THIS! NGO Newsletter #7: Violence and Intimidation Don’t Stop Indian Activists Fighting Deadly Coal Plant

by Miriam Vicente MarcosGlobal markets, Human rights in climate action, Sustainable developmentPosted on Comments are Disabled

What would you do if a massive coal plant that would poison your air and water broke ground adjacent to your home? What if your neighbors were forcibly removed to make room for the project? What if friends who attempted to protest the plant disappeared mysteriously? And what if this was not a new occurrence, but rather a story that has been repeated again and again for over 50 years? If you live in Singrauli, India this is your reality, and amazingly, the answer is you would still fight back.