Difference between revisions of "Environmental Policies"
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(partly guest contributions from U.S. institutes ) | (partly guest contributions from U.S. institutes ) | ||
published 258 opinion pieces on environmental policy issues from 2005 to 2010, partly on questions concerning climate change; | published 258 opinion pieces on environmental policy issues from 2005 to 2010, partly on questions concerning climate change; | ||
| − | denial of scientific tenability of anthropogenic climate change; | + | denial of scientific tenability of anthropogenic climate change; is further of the opinion a liberal market economy is capable of adjusting to conditions of a potential climate change; presumes politcal motives for the thesis of the anthropogenic climate change; assaults the status of the IPCC and its scientific expertise by way of arguing that the involved state funded climate researchers are not unbiased.<br>climate change sceptical |
'''Finland''' | '''Finland''' | ||
* [[Finnish Business and Policy Forum (EVA)]] - http://www.eva.fi/en | * [[Finnish Business and Policy Forum (EVA)]] - http://www.eva.fi/en | ||
| − | + | The EVA has published an aritcle concerning the question of climate change by Pentti Vartia, the then director of its sister institute ETLA. The article originates with a talk given at the Fortum Research Seminar 2000. Vartia contemplates on the scientific assessment of the intensity of climate change and mankind's share in the same, looks at regional consequences, appropriate protective measures as being in flux. Furthermore Vartia is of the opinion that the current state of knowledge necessitates on going research. Generally he is assertive of the Kyoto protocol demands. Climate protection measures should be administered as economically flexible as possible whereby CO<sub>2</sub> schemes are considered appropriate instruments. He points to the significance of economic technological innovations for coping with climate change. In October 2008 the EVA hosted a discussion round at which among others the environment minister talked about climate policy issues.<br>climate change affirmative | |
'''France''' | '''France''' | ||
* [[Civil Society Institute (iFRAP)]] - http://www.ifrap.org/ | * [[Civil Society Institute (iFRAP)]] - http://www.ifrap.org/ | ||
| − | + | A central issue is carbon tax (10 contributions) | |
| − | ** positive | + | ** positive review of climate change sceptic book, which however is mainly concerned with efforts of reducing CO2 emissions stressing the futility of these efforts; the argument is that reduction in highly industrialized region will be compensated by increasing emissions in newly industrialized countries. (Sandrine Gorreri) |
| − | ** | + | ** carbon tax is partly considered inefficient and partly even economically harmful |
| − | ** | + | ** Europe-wide there should be a fixed carbon tax for reasons regarding competiveness and dimension |
| − | ** | + | ** has concerns about extrem expansion of wind power for energy-technological and economic reasons; no fundamental criticism however<br>rather climate change sceptical |
* [[Fondation pour l'Innovation Politique]] - http://www.fondapol.org/ | * [[Fondation pour l'Innovation Politique]] - http://www.fondapol.org/ | ||
| − | + | presupposes anthropogenic climate change<br> | |
| − | + | the "Umwelt und Wettbewerbsfähigkeit: eine globale Strategie für Europa" suggests an economically favorable path to energetically remodelling Europe; the book points out that Europe's contribution should be limited in the face of CO2 emissions by the USA, China, and India. Favorable mechanisms would be active free trade policies that imply ecological issues, mobilizing innovational strength of markets, coordination of EU climate protection policies also considering implementing of compensatory measures for states with especially energy intensive industries (edited by Elvire Fabry, director of Fondapol, and Damien Tresallet, Research Fellow)<br>climate change affirmative | |
* [[Institut Euro 92]] - http://www.euro92.com/ | * [[Institut Euro 92]] - http://www.euro92.com/ | ||
Revision as of 16:05, 23 February 2011
The think tanks within the Stockholm Network that comment on the question of climate change assume the following premise: freedom of markets limitation of state regulation. According to these think tanks, this premise should underlie all climate and environmental policy projects. However, they don't agree on the question of whether a) there is an anthropogenic climate change at all and b) which measures should be taken if there was one.
Denial of Anthropogenic Climate Change
The opinions voiced on climate change range from firm climate change sceptics to the milder form of denial - agnosticism. Think Tanks of the first category doubt the scientific legitimacy of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). They challenge the IPCC's authority with the argument the IPCC's agenda had been influenced by political interests. Further they allege climate researcher working for the IPCC are dependent on budget of predisposed circles regarding the climate change question. Moreover firm climate change sceptics consider international climate protection measures as ecologically meaningless and economically harmful. Among those think tanks some also develop scientific counter arguments challenging the thesis of the anthropogenic climate change. Agnostic think tanks argue, however, climate change cannot be completely precluded but cannot be proven either with contemporary means. Furthermore they argue currently applied models are unsound and/ or are not able to compensate for shortcomings of empirical data.
An argumentative side line points out possible from region to region different and in temperate zones even positive effects of climate warming.
Criticism of the Precautionary Principle
The Kyoto protocoll codifies the precautionary principle that has been criticized from two angles. Firstly, climate change sceptics claim it impossible to exactly project the effects of green house gas emissions on the global climate. Secondly, they assume that markets and businesses are capable of efficiently adjusting to factual climate changes whenever they might occur. The climate change sceptics furthermore allege states would use the precautionary principle to legitimize interference with market and business freedom with regard climate protection policies. While this empowers states the discovering function of free markets is curtailed. To them free discovery of business makes for their economic and technological adaptability, which is necessary to respond flexibly and efficiently to changes of environmental conditions. Climate change sceptics consider leaving ecological change, where necessary, to market processes the more efficient alternative than state regulated CO2 emission limits and public advancement of climate friendly energy sources.
Acceptance of the Anthropogenic Climate Change
A number especially ordo theoratically oriented (cf. Financial and Economic crises think tanks take the anthropogenic climate change as given and consider precautionary intervention and measures of the state as necessary.
The majority of those think tanks opts for emission rights trade considering, from a market economy perspective, it an appropriate procedure to lead the economy on a climate friendly development path.
They reject direct public funding of sustainable energy sources regarding it generally inefficient and too expensive. Like the climate change sceptics the think tanks of the ordo theoretical category rely on free markets'flexibility, adaptability and ability to generate innovations.
Authors of contributions referring to the European Union furthermore stress the importance of free trade with energy efficient technologies pointing out that contributions to CO2 economization of the EU internationally carry less weight than those of the U.S., China and in the future of India. Während also die klimaskeptischen Think Tanks ausschließlich auf die Überflüssigkeit und Kosten jeder wie immer gearteten Klimaschutzpolitik abheben, sehen die klimaaffirmativen durch regulatorische Rahmenbedingungen und die internationale Wirtschaftsentwicklung wie internationalen wirtschaftlichen Proportionen Marktchancen, die zum theoretischen auch ein praktisches Interesse an der weiteren Liberalisierung des Aussenhandels begründen.
By the By
Climate policy is one out of three thematic foci Stockholm Network (als Think Tank) that are represented by periodicals. The last issue of the periodical "Climate of Opinion" reports rather unemotionally about the failure of the Copenhagen climate change negotiations due to the international main emitters' unability to come up with an agreement. This failure reassured the author and soothes worries the state complying with internationally agreed climate protection goals would curtail market and business freedom.
Think Tanks Dealing with Climate Policy and Climate Change
Belgium
is critical of tariff and non-tariff protective measures implemented by way of EU directive for EU producers of renewable energy. (Green Protectionism in the European Union: How Europe’s Biofuels Policy and the Renewable Energy Directive Violate WTO Commitments). According to this paper, the aformentioned EU directive on renewable energies does not formulate climate policy but rather energy policy. Further the paper claims that hindering non-EU providers of non-fossil energy sources to enter the market would thwart efforts of climate protection. Free trade would also enhance efficiency of climate protection policies. Only very high import tariffs according to carbon content of energy carriers would have an effect on exporters' climate policies, which, however, would at the same time yield high welfare losses. A more reasonable alternative would be the promotion of climate friendly goods.
climate change affirmative
is of the opinion that climatology does not constitue as hard or accurate science; is also critical of the protectionist tnedency of the EU directive on renewables; opts for state regulation as measure for climate protection to support private initiative; criticizes welfare losses through climate protection measures resting upon questionable models.
rather climate change sceptical
17 opinion pieces
denies scientific legitimacy of anthropogenic climate change assumption; criticizes the IPCC as political entity, does not consider it a scientific one; on the institute's website the item Environnement lists 100 URLs connecting to mainly external articles dealing with a variaty of environmental policy issues.
climate change sceptical
questions the efficiency of promoting green technologies (especially wind and solar power)in order to generate employment; at the same doubts about reliability climate change prognosis models; opts for nuclear energy, however, more so for reasons of energy security than for climate change protection reasons; although according to the institute nuclear energy also owns up to that quality.
climate change affirmative
Bulgaria
positively acknowledges carbon trade schemes as measure for generating public revenues.
climate change affirmative (only secondary)
Czech Republic
brings into question whether the current data base is sufficient to prove a warming trend of the planet's atmosphere(distribution of measuring stations, stratosphere measurments by NASA do not back a warming trend); energy policy should be guided by efficiency considerations and by a questionable hypothesis.
Vaclav Klaus is a decisive anthropogenic climate change denier and propagates his opinion internationally.
climat change sceptical
Denmark
Centre for Political Studies (CEPOS) - http://www.cepos.dk/
criticizes the Danish wind energy policy as inefficient (Dänemark exportiert zu windreichen Zeiten Elektroenergie in der Größenordnung von knapp 50% nach Schweden und Norwegen, wo sie karbonarme Energieformen substituiert); furthermore the center considers investment in wind power a very expensive way of economizing carbon (87€ pT CO2); implicitly acknowledges the necessity of an energy turnaround; however, subsidizing of wind power is not viewed as leading to long-term growth in employment this is rather viewed as shifting employment from non-subsidized to subsidized areas.
climate change affirmative
(partly guest contributions from U.S. institutes )
published 258 opinion pieces on environmental policy issues from 2005 to 2010, partly on questions concerning climate change;
denial of scientific tenability of anthropogenic climate change; is further of the opinion a liberal market economy is capable of adjusting to conditions of a potential climate change; presumes politcal motives for the thesis of the anthropogenic climate change; assaults the status of the IPCC and its scientific expertise by way of arguing that the involved state funded climate researchers are not unbiased.
climate change sceptical
Finland
The EVA has published an aritcle concerning the question of climate change by Pentti Vartia, the then director of its sister institute ETLA. The article originates with a talk given at the Fortum Research Seminar 2000. Vartia contemplates on the scientific assessment of the intensity of climate change and mankind's share in the same, looks at regional consequences, appropriate protective measures as being in flux. Furthermore Vartia is of the opinion that the current state of knowledge necessitates on going research. Generally he is assertive of the Kyoto protocol demands. Climate protection measures should be administered as economically flexible as possible whereby CO2 schemes are considered appropriate instruments. He points to the significance of economic technological innovations for coping with climate change. In October 2008 the EVA hosted a discussion round at which among others the environment minister talked about climate policy issues.
climate change affirmative
France
A central issue is carbon tax (10 contributions)
- positive review of climate change sceptic book, which however is mainly concerned with efforts of reducing CO2 emissions stressing the futility of these efforts; the argument is that reduction in highly industrialized region will be compensated by increasing emissions in newly industrialized countries. (Sandrine Gorreri)
- carbon tax is partly considered inefficient and partly even economically harmful
- Europe-wide there should be a fixed carbon tax for reasons regarding competiveness and dimension
- has concerns about extrem expansion of wind power for energy-technological and economic reasons; no fundamental criticism however
rather climate change sceptical
presupposes anthropogenic climate change
the "Umwelt und Wettbewerbsfähigkeit: eine globale Strategie für Europa" suggests an economically favorable path to energetically remodelling Europe; the book points out that Europe's contribution should be limited in the face of CO2 emissions by the USA, China, and India. Favorable mechanisms would be active free trade policies that imply ecological issues, mobilizing innovational strength of markets, coordination of EU climate protection policies also considering implementing of compensatory measures for states with especially energy intensive industries (edited by Elvire Fabry, director of Fondapol, and Damien Tresallet, Research Fellow)
climate change affirmative
Sieht in der heutigen Klimawissenschaft mehrere Aspekte der Unsicherheit: 1. der menschliche Beitrag zur Klimaerwärmung, 2. Abschätzung der ökonomischen und ökologischen Konsequenzen der Klimaveränderung 3. betreffend angemessener Methoden zur Verhinderung der Klimaveränderung; schlägt Abkehr vom von diesen Unwägbarkeiten kontaminierten Vorsorgeprinzip vor, stattdessen Beseitigung von überflüssige Konsumtion anregenden Subventionen, Liberalisierung der für Energieproduktion und -verbrauch relevanten Märkte um Innovationspotential zu stärken; ein weiterer Punkt ist globale Ungleichverteilung der Schäden und Vorteile durch die Klimaveränderung und der mögliche Nutzen für Staaten der gemäßigten Breiten durch ihn.
eher klimaskeptisch
(zwei Publikationen unter dem Topos "nachhaltige Entwicklung")
anerkennt den anthropogenen Klimawandel (Menschheit und Klimawandel, Studie aus 2002)
Kritisiert das Windenergieausbauprogramm Frankreich als zu kostspielig und ehrgeizig, schlägt einen moderaten Ausbauweg vor.
klimaffirmativ
leugnet den anthropogenen Klimawandel, übt Kritik an den methodischen Verfahren der dominanten Klimawissenschaft, unterstellt die Politisierung des IPCC und das Fehlen wissenschaftlicher Autorität.
klimaskeptisch
Germany
Das CEP hat zum Themenbereich Klimaschutz 25 Kurzanalysen und zwei Studien publiziert.
Förderung erneuerbarer Energien nicht ausdrücklich EU-weit implementieren, stattdessen CO2-Emissionsziel festlegen und Handel mit Emissionsrechten einführen; Handel mit Emissionsrechten ist Ausstoß-Quoten vorzuziehen (gilt auch für entsprechende Festlegungen zu Nutzfahrzeugen)
Planvorgaben für technische Neuerungen stehen im Widerspruch zu marktwirtschaftlichem Findeprozess für effektive Lösungen
aus Wettbewerbsgründen sei ein globaler Konsens über CO2-Ausstoßbegrenzungen notwendig
klimaaffirmativ
Alleiniger Schwerpunkt Umweltpoltitik, wobei das Hauptgewicht wiederum auf dem Klimawandel liegt. Leugnet den anthropogenen Klimawandel, kritisiert Subventionen für klimafreundliche Industrien, leugnet den Arbeitsplatznutzen der Ökologisierung der Wirtschaft.
klimaskeptisch
keine programmatischen Positionen zum Klimawandel, betrachtet Klimapolitik allein als ein Feld der Bestimmung von Außenhandels- und Innovationschancen.
klimaaffirmativ
leugnet durch einem Beitrag von R. Nef, P. Bessard (Liberales Institut Zürich), F. Singer (NIPCC) den anthropogenen Klimawandel.
klimaskeptisch
Klimapolitik ist ein Schwerpunkt der Arbeit des Instituts.
Es leugnet den anthropogenen Klimawandel, versucht die Glaubhaftigkeit von Klimaforschern zu untermininieren durch z.B. Verweis auf ihre finanzielle Abhängigkeit von geeigneten Drittmitteln, Politisierung des IPCC, organisiert internationale klimaskeptische Kongresse mit; kritisiert das Vorsorgeprinzip und die Bindung von politischen Entscheidungen an Hypothesen
Förderung von Photovoltaik bedeutet, dass die in unseren Breiten ineffizienteste Variante der Energieerzeugung gefördert wird und durch die künstlich gesteigerte Nachfrage Volumina aus Regionen abgezogen werden in denen die Solarenergieproduktion produktiver wäre.
klimaskeptisch
- New Social Market Economy Foundation - http://www.chancenfueralle.de/
- anerkennt den anthropogenen Klimawandel
- setzt auf CO2-arme Energieproduktion als Resultat von Innovation und der Verbreitung optimaler Technologien durch Handel; Vereinbarkeit von Wirtschaftswachstum und Klimaschutz
klimaaffirmativ
aktuell: Konferenz "Anforderungen an die Energiepolitik: Versorgungssicherheit, Klimaschutz, Wirtschaftlichkeit?" (Berlin, 20.04.2010) "Marktkonforme Instrumente und umweltpolitische Zielvorgaben treten […] an die Stelle von gut gemeinter ökologischer Detailsteuerung, um den Wettbewerb als Innovationstreiber, Kostensenker und Entdeckungsverfahren für neue Technologien zu nutzen." verschiedene Standpunkte von Leugnung erheblicher Wirkungen der Treibhausgasemmissionen über die Anerkennung des IPCC-Einschätzungen und Bekenntnis zu ereuerbaren Energien im Verbund mit staatlicher Forschungsförderung Im Rahmen der Energie- und Klimapolitik optiert die Stiftung für
- die Internalisierung externer Kosten
- Anwendung marktwirtschaftlicher Instrumente wie Zertifikatehandel
- die Nutzung des marktwirtschaftlichen Konkurrenzmechanismus im Dienst der Effizienzsteigerung und beschleunigten Entwicklung klimafreundlicher Technologien.
klimaffirmativ
Zur Umweltpolitik nicht dokumentierte Veranstaltungen in den Jahren 1997 und 2000. Nähe zu in der Bundesrepublik politisch dominanten Positionen und damit eine klimaffirmative kann vorausgesetzt werden.
Italy
Vorlesungen aus der Reihe regulatory lectures zu Energiemärkten und Förderung erneuerbarer Energien, keine inhaltlichen Information
Lehnt Karbonzölle als uneffektiv, ungerecht und kostspielig ab. Studie zur Förderung der Wind- und Solarenergieerzeugung, die den Arbeitsplatznutzen leugnet und die Kosten als höher auszeichnet, als sie sich durch energiesparende Innovationen ergäben. Autorität des IPCC: das IPCC sei eine politisierter Zusammenhang und darum nicht als wissenschaftliche Autorität zu betrachten. Weist auf die Positionen der Klimaskeptiker als eine begründeten Zweifels hin.
Fordert den Bau neuer Atomkraftwerke aus Gründen der Energiesicherheit und nationalen Unabhängigkeit. Kein oder kaum Bezug zur Klimaproblematik. Studie zur Erneuerbaren Energiequellen liegt vor, jedoch nur italienisch. Weist auf die Unsicherheiten der Argumente für den anthropogenen Klimawandel in einer Buchpublikation hin. Die Politik der CO2-Reduktion wird als sinnloser und kostspieliger Vorgriff auf noch zu erzielende wissenschaftliche Ergebnisse ausgewiesen.