California Dream 2.0

California and Quebec’s Carbon Auctions Sail into 2016

By / Bio / Published: February 24, 2016

The results of California and Quebec’s carbon market auction released today show that the market can operate as designed and continue sailing along.

Participants in the Feb. 17th auction, California and Quebec’s 6th joint auction, had an opportunity to bid on over 81 million carbon allowances. Of those:

  • 71.5 million of those allowances were current vintage allowances (2016 and earlier), which regulated businesses can use this year or in any future year for compliance. 95% of current vintage allowances sold at the minimum floor price of $12.73. In the November 2015 auction, prices anticipated the 2016 floor price and sold at $12.73 although the floor price was about 60 cents less.
  • Just over 10 million of those allowances are only available for use in 2019 and after. 93% of the 2019 vintage allowances sold at the floor price of $12.73.

These results show steady prices and average participation by regulated businesses. It is somewhat unusual that some current allowances did not sell at this auction. However, these auction results demonstrate an important feature of the California-Quebec market that safeguards against large price swings like those seen in other commodity markets: a minimum price floor in every auction that increases steadily each year. Read More »

Posted in General / Comments are closed

6 successes from California and Quebec’s third year of cap and trade

By / Bio / Published: February 17, 2016

CA sunsetThe joint carbon market in California and Quebec holds its first carbon market allowance auction of 2016 today.

The auction offers a good opportunity to reflect on some of the notable successes of the market in 2015.

The California-Quebec market is one of the prime examples of a successful carbon market that many countries will look to as they consider how to meet the commitments made in Paris, where countries successfully negotiated an ambitious climate deal that outlines multiple pathways for nations to use markets to meet their long-term goals.

Here are the top six successes of California and Quebec’s carbon market in 2015, in no particular order. Read More »

Posted in Cap and trade, Cap-and-trade auction results, Climate, General, Global Warming Solutions Act: AB 32 / Comments are closed

A Secret Ingredient in the Climate Action Arsenal

By / Bio / Published: August 4, 2015

Erica Morehouse photoIt’s summer time and many Americans are perfecting their grilling techniques and outdoor recipes. This week, EPA’s final Clean Power Plan rule is giving states a cupboard-full of ingredients to create signature recipes for climate action. The rule signals what the finished product must look like – the nation’s first limit on power plant pollution – but states can pick and choose elements that deliver the right combination of energy bill savings for customers, cleaner air, and clean energy investments. Fortunately, California and nine New England states (known as the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative or RGGI) have cooked up successful solutions in the past decade, implementing effective cap-and-trade programs that limit total pollution and demonstrate how strong climate action can stimulate economic growth.

California and RGGI have added a secret ingredient to their climate recipes, a catalyst that can not only drive further pollution reductions but can strengthen communities, create jobs, boost local economies, and improve health. Both programs are reinvesting dollars from the sale of carbon allowances (the currency of cap-and-trade that polluters must hold for every ton of pollution they emit) into further efforts to reduce climate pollution. Read More »

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Results: The Bright Side of Getting Into a Routine

By / Bio / Published: May 28, 2015

By: Erica Morehouse, Senior Attorney, and Katie Hsia-Kiung, High Meadows Research Fellow

1440893210_4bf8520f5c_zWhat do we call regularly occurring activities? A routine. Which, let’s face it, can sometimes feel tired and uninteresting. But other times, getting into a routine can mean good things. When you get an all-clear at a check-up with the doctor or dentist, you’re not disappointed, right? Well, here’s another example of a smooth routine: as of May 28, we’ve now chalked up 11 auctions that have taken place as part of California’s cap-and-trade program. And the latest results tell us yet again that a good routine is just what the doctor ordered.

The auction results released today reflect a stable and healthy carbon market, in line with results we’ve seen consistently over several of the past quarterly auctions. (Click here for background on how the auctions work under cap-and-trade). One hundred percent of the allowances offered – which can be used for compliance as early as this year – were sold in the current auction, at a price of $12.29, 19 cents above the minimum floor price set by the California Air Resources Board (CARB). This is only eight cents above the price per allowance seen at the last auction, and the lack of any significant price movement from auction to auction is indicative of the stability and maturity of the market. It also shows that companies are becoming more comfortable with the requirements of the cap-and-trade regulation. To date, none of the current vintage allowances offered in the California auctions have gone unsold.

Read More »

Posted in Cap and trade, Cap-and-trade auction results, Climate, General, Global Warming Solutions Act: AB 32, Litigation / Comments are closed

Getting From Here to There: California Thinks Beyond 2020

By / Bio / Published: April 14, 2015

rp_erica-morehouse-287x377-228x30011.jpgHollywood produces some duds, especially right after the end of Oscar season. But virtually all of the environmental scriptwriting that happens in the Golden State has four-star appeal. Californians are trailblazers in protecting the environment and our planet from harm. The state debuted the first-ever vehicle efficiency standards in the 1960s and building efficiency standards in the 1970s and government leaders haven’t slowed down since.

Today Californians find themselves ahead of schedule on meeting ambitious 2020 climate pollution goals. The state’s top leaders, from the Governor to the Legislature, are discussing ways to solidify targets, for 2030 and beyond, that would dramatically cut pollution and create a powerful script about public health and prosperity that other states could emulate.

As is fitting for deliberations involving our state’s future, these discussions are built on what could be thought of as “the dirty work” – careful research and planning, and sound analysis. California government leaders have released research they commissioned that analyzes the potential pathways for getting to a lower-carbon future. The research shows that we have the technical know-how to achieve ambitious targets for pollution reduction by 2030 while ensuring robust economic growth. Read More »

Posted in Cap and trade, Clean Energy, Climate, Energy, Energy Efficiency, General / Comments are closed

Bridging the Credibility Gap: The Oil Industry’s New Anti-Cap-and-Trade White Paper

By / Bio / Published: October 20, 2014

rp_erica-morehouse-287x377-228x3001.jpgMore Americans, these days, understand the threat climate change presents in the present and in the future, and support taking action. Over 64 percent of Americans and 67 percent of Californians support curbing carbon pollution from existing power plants which the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to do through the Clean Power Plan. The EPA’s proposal would set specific reduction targets for each state. In California and other states that are already acting to reduce climate pollution, the early assessments seem to be an upbeat “yes, we can meet those targets and probably exceed them.” You wouldn’t know that after reading a recent white paper released by Latham Watkins recently on behalf of the Western States Petroleum Association (WSPA), though.

The white paper purports to identify “design flaws” in California’s cap-and-trade program. Some of the technical adjustments to the cap-and-trade program suggested in this paper are worthy of careful consideration. In fact, some have been addressed in part or are being considered through the regulatory process at the Air Resources Board. So there doesn’t seem to be any real reason to sound the alarm bells on California’s program at this point in time. Read More »

Posted in Cap and trade, Clean Energy, Global Warming Solutions Act: AB 32 / Comments are closed