Browsing by Subject "Clean Development Mechanism"

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    AN ANALYSIS OF A CARBON OFFSET PROGRAM FOR THE UNITED STATES
    (2007-05) Uchida, Ryoto
    In the current absence of the federal government’s strong leadership to address climate change in the United States, mandatory regional tradable permit programs for greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions are being planned by several state governments. A carbon offset program, combined with a tradable permit program, induces a wider range of entities to implement offset projects that reduce GHG emissions within a wider range of industries than the industries regulated by the tradable permit program. An offset project has to be additional, meaning that it generates emission reductions as compared to the baseline emissions. Therefore, the additionality assessment is the most important element of a carbon offset program, but it is complicated because it requires estimating a counterfactual baseline scenario. For a carbon offset program in the United States, energy efficiency projects to reduce GHG emissions on the demand-side of energy are important. However, energy efficiency projects are prevented from being undertaken due to the high transaction costs of the project-specific additionality assessment method adopted by the Clean Development Mechanism. In this paper, a policy analysis is conducted to produce recommendations to solve this problem. First, along the rationally selected evaluative criteria, a qualitative comparative assessment is made on the policy alternatives implementing different additionality assessment methods as a definitive test. Then, based on the assessment, this paper discusses how to more flexibly implement and combine the different methods to address the problem. Finally, the recommendation is made for a comprehensive, simple and practical policy to assess additionality for a carbon offset program in the United States.
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    Analysis of the Clean Development Mechanism As a Vehicle for Achieving Sanitation Objectives of the UN Millennium Goals
    (2009-04-24T01:12:52Z) Loken, Lorraine
    The UN Millennium Development Goals identified sanitation objectives as being fundamental to stopping the downward spiral of impoverished nations. This basic improvement is so important to quality of life that it is the foundation for protecting public health, the environment, and building economic stability. Climate change and its disproportionate impact on the poor make achieving the goals more elusive as poor nations struggle to adapt while limiting greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) provides market incentives for reducing GHG emissions while investing in sustainable development. This master’s project looks at the feasibility of applying the CDM to provide a financial incentive for improving wastewater treatment facilities in Durban, South Africa. Specifically, it looks at algae based wastewater treatment systems to create biofuel, fertilizers and other useful byproducts. Algae wastewater treatment enhances water quality through nutrient removal and can create certified emission reduction (CER) credits by replacing the secondary treatment process to eliminate N2O emissions and reduce energy and chemical operations costs. Algae research investment and venture capital have grown exponentially to create numerous partnership opportunities for financing. South Africa and eThekwini Municipality are competent in the CDM process, have experience with algae technology, and stand poised to leverage opportunities. A recent carbon market downturn and escalating administrative costs in the CDM make a weak cost-benefit ratio for smaller scale projects. A “Sectoral” approach to include the entire Water and Sanitation unit of eThekwini Municipality is recommended. CDM proposals should consider multiple algae wastewater treatment plant retrofits with production of algae biofuels. The biofuels should be used by the municipality to increase offsets and credits to be more cost effective. This would increase the volume of CERs that can be generated and therefore the economic incentive available to improve sanitation.
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    CLEAN DEVELOPMENT MECHANISM IN A POST-KYOTO FRAMEWORK
    (2010-04-30T15:07:00Z) Kashikura, Shinsuke
    The Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) is a Greenhouse Gas (GHG) offset mechanism which is a part of the Kyoto Protocol. It allows developed countries to reduce GHGs in developing countries. Since the marginal cost of GHG reduction is lower in developing countries, this mechanism contributes to effective GHG reduction for developed countries. At the same time, according to the Kyoto Protocol, it should assist sustainable development in developing countries. However, many argue that this potential win-win mechanism is not working effectively, and will need some improvement after Kyoto expires. Given GHG emissions from developed countries will surpass those from developing countries around 2015, it is important for CDM not only to retain an offset scheme, but to also assist in decarbonization of developing countries. In this project, current CDM projects which have already been registered or rejected by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) as of January 4th, 2010 are examined by using linear and logistical regression models to detect significant factors with respect to successful registration, project duration, project scale and project efficiency. Each analysis is conducted for all CDM projects and for Japanese CDM projects. The results from the models show CDM projects with particular characteristics (sector, host countries, validator) are less risky in terms of investment. This means research and development for CDM schemes are beneficial for improvement of GHG reduction in developing countries. However, it is still difficult to assess how much each CDM project contributes to the sustainable development of a given host country.