Updates (and no meeting this week)

Hey everyone: Sorry for the late notice on this, but let's not meet on Thursday. Here's the news:

1) The Waxman-Markey time line continues to be hit by delays: Joe Romm at Climate Progress says that "now it is officially impossible to imagine a Senate vote before November. And I’d say it’s now at most 50-50 the vote isn’t until December or January."

2) Todd Myers is going to be meeting with some state legislators this month, and I'm going to try to do the same. If you have any connections or want to join the fun please let me know!

3) Last time I emailed out an invitation for thoughts on Waxman-Markey (and a heads-up that I was writing something about my own thoughts). Below are some excerpts from an email from David Oliver; I'd be happy to forward the entire email to anybody who wants it. And I can also email you a draft of an op-ed I'm working on, which (as it happens) overlaps quite strongly with David's thoughts. (The bottom line is that I think Congress should pass Waxman-Markey without the cap, and that we should keep working on a stronger form of carbon pricing.) Comments welcome, and of course I should remind everyone that the CarbonWA group as a group has no stance on Waxman-Markey but that individual members of the group are free to share their own opinions. (And if anybody else has opinions they want to share with the group please send them my way!)

4) I'm going to have trouble making meetings for the next few months because of my teaching commitments. So... hopefully we can get work done via email, and if anybody is gung-ho on meetings then let me know and we can go from there! :)

PS. I got a boost in the arm from reading Elizabeth Kolbert's plug for carbon taxes in the New Yorker. Check it out!


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Dr. David W. Oliver

My background is PHD physics MIT, 33 years at GE R&D Center including managemnet positions and review of GE business strategies.

My knowledge and instincts both tell me that what is most vital in policy is a fixed long term price for fossil fuels. Any policy that results in price fluctuations will inhibit the industrial investment that must be made. Cap and Trade will enhance thosse fluctuations. Trade part will be subject to fraud without any possibility of monitoring and prosecution.

The Larson bill, ignored in congress and by many green organizations, could have worked.

Our congress will distort any legislation that is not driven by public demand and outrage into benefits for their districts and contributors. This is neither cynical nor critical. It is the basis of representative government. The reality is that US public is apathetic regarding climate change and the vested interests are among the most wealthy in the nation.

There is an extremely low probability that the Waxman bill can deliver the long term fixed fossil fuel price needed as it clears congress. It does not do so in present form.

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