The Australian economy…
Australia’s “world leading” carbon price of AU$23 per tonne is now nearly seven times the price of UN-backed carbon credits, which yesterday fell to a new low:
Prices for UN-backed carbon credits sank to a record low in morning trading on Wednesday after doubts emerged about European Commission plans to prop up the bloc’s ailing emissions trading market.
Benchmark prices for certified emission reduction credits fell as much as 12.9 per cent from the previous day to a record low of €2.86 in early trading – a decline of 31 per cent from the start of July.
Allowances traded in the European Union’s emissions trading system, which the CER credits normally track, fell to a low of €6.80, down 11.5 per cent on the day and their lowest point since mid-June, before recovering to €7.18 later in the day.
Carbon prices have fallen to fresh lows at several points over the past nine months as a glut in the supply of EU credits has been exacerbated by sagging demand due to weak European economic conditions.
Some analysts believe carbon credits need to cost as much as €50 to drive the low-carbon investment that is a central plank of UN policy, so some EU countries, including Denmark and the UK, have been pushing for a plan to bolster the market. Others, such as Poland, which generates about 90 per cent of its electricity from carbon-intensive coal plants, have strongly opposed such moves. (source)
That’s the spirit, Julia – sacrifice the Australian economy on the UN’s environmental altar, right?
Australian Climate Madness 
A market based on a flawed premise will always fail eventually. It’s because those who have money to invest in them are not stupid; just those who create them and expect them to work. The smart ones make their money and get out.
Greg Sheridan of the Oz wrote about the carbon tax a couple weeks ago. He interviewed Warwick McKibben and a carbon trading guy overseas. Both acknowledged that no carbon program has yet measurably changed emissions anywhere, let alone temperature. And our carbon tax is the biggest baddest in the world by a long margin. Completely pointless.
Ms Gillard must have it in for us poor Aussies. Can a Prime Minister suicide a whole nation? I really do hope we get an election soon.
What an enormous amount of money is being wasted on this scam which will do NOTHING for the climate. Thank goodness there are some who are realising the futility of going down this idiotic path. Not Australia though – all about saving face of Julia Gillard especially after she lied to the Australian community.
The answer is actually very simpke – let’s have a federal election so we can elect a government that is neither virtually communist, nor one that constantly and consistly breaks its promises.
Well it all looks like it will match the price in the Chicago Exchange when it died, a staggering $0.05 @ ton and that’s to much.Climate Change is Natural and CO2 is Life Cheers
Because information about climate change has been hijacked by politics and agenda driven corporations looking to serve their own interests the global investor cmmunity is taking action to secure their investment returns into the future. Meet the Asset Owners Disclosure Project.
http://aodproject.net/index.php/best-practice
Do not worry about global warming as we need fossil fuels for that… apparently.The elephant in the room, do not worry about pricing carbon, try pricing the finite resources in the world, peak oil ring a bell, peak coal, peak gas…..
Guess you haven’t heard about the hundreds of years worth of narural gas thanks to fracking. Not only that co2 levels have gone down in the US due to the use of more natural gas (without the carbon traders making any money from bogus cap and trade schemes like Austraila has).
Hi James, yep I know about fracking I was around when Sydney Gas was drilling its first holes in Western Sydney in 1998 and I think you are a bit optimistic.
Thanks ACM the debate is not over……great to find your web page.
Andrew Hill: do a little check around the web. Peak oil? It’s a crock! Nowhere near it. 100’s of years of oil, coal and gas. 1000’s of years of methane clathrates.
Hi Tony I checked the internet back in 2004 just before oil started to run, but I was looking in the right places.
One last thing “Peak” does not mean we are close to running out it is the point in time when the global production of each resource reaches its maximum rate, after which production will gradually decline.
Every previous civilisation lived to the extent of it’s resources. Once the resources run out the civilisation collapses. Ours will be no different. Our primary resoure is coal. We have around 300 years left to run before the all coal is consumed. But if the next cold cycle (ice age) is deep then we could be looking at half that time left. We need to focus on preparing and adapting for climate change (next ice age), not foolishly squandering resources trying to change what we cannot.
Just to add, coal and coal byproducts account for around 3000 common household items from whitegoods to pain killers.
I am buying coal shares and very comfortable in doing so while the apathetic masses (sheep) follow the greens to their eutopian world built on lies, scaremongering and endless waste of tax payers money.