E2 Law Blog : Environmental Lawyers & Attorneys : Greenberg Traurig Law Firm : Climate Change, Energy Legislation

This is why some carbon-cappers oppose trading and favor a tax.    According to the EUObserver:

Traders involved in Europe's flagship climate change programme [sic], the Emissions Trading System - some of whom work at Germany's biggest banks and energy firms - were the focus of a series of raids and arrests by British and German prosecutors in part of a massive pan-European crackdown on CO2-credit VAT fraud...The criminal activity the raids focussed [sic] on relates to what is known as 'carousel fraud.' Criminals establish themselves in one EU member state and open a trading account with the national carbon credit registry. They then buy carbon credits in a different country, which makes them exempt from VAT. These are then sold to buyers in the original country, but with VAT slapped on, although the VAT then just disappears along with the trader and the money never arrives in government coffers.

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So, in the end, was the UN Copenhagen climate summit  nothing more than a good party  and a massive waste of hot air?  And what now for US businesses and consumers?  

It is, frankly, far too early to evaluate the potential long-term impact (or lack thereof) of the Copenhagen Accord.  It is evident the combination of a massive recession and concerns regarding the science used to justify stringent CO2 controls are having a legislative impact.  And it certainly seems carbon traders took a hit because Copenhagen is widely perceived to have been a bust.   But in the final analysis, it is EPA's endangerment finding, and not the Copenhagen Accord, that matters most for US businesses, consumers, and politicians. 

Here's why:  EPA's endangerment finding effectively triggers significant Clean Air Act regulatory requirements, and thereby places the fate of US businesses and consumers in the hands of the federal courts.  Absent Congressional action taking CO2 regulation away from EPA (and right now passage of climate change or energy policy legislation taking ownership of the CO2 issues is unlikely due to splits in the Democratic Party) there will be a muti-year torrent of litigation from environmentalists, business groups, and everyone in between challenging pretty much everything EPA chooses to do (or not do).  This means, in turn, that the courts will effectively make or break US energy policy and thereby shape the future of the US economy.  

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Joe R. Reeder is a 1970 West Point graduate, an Army Ranger, the 14th Undersecretary of the Army (Clinton Administration), and the past Chairman of the Panama Canal Commission's Board of Directors, among other things.  In a recent speech before dignitaries, officials, and industry leaders at a plenary session of the Watec 09 international energy and environmental conference and exhibition in Tel Aviv, Israel Mr. Reeder explained the U.S. national security imperative of clean energy.  Based on Lawrence Livermore Laboratory research, Reeder called for a dual program of advanced research and practical, incremental measures, including federal, state, and local legal reforms to speed development and deployment of an efficient advanced electrical grid and alternative energy systems, an open fuel standard for cars and trucks, and a full bore commitment to nuclear power.  Reeder used Patton's Third Army march through France during 1944 and the Arab oil embargo of 1973 to drive home the strategic importance of secure and reliable energy supply and the crippling consequences of dependency on foreign oil.

What with climate change legislation bogged down in the Senate, the growing scandal over the apparent manipulation and misrepresentation of data by pro-regulatory scientists dubbed "Climategate", and apparent public scepticism about the entire issue, perhaps it is time for clean energy advocates to stop worrying about "saving the world" and instead to start focusing on what's good for America. Asking "What Would Patton Do?" might be a good start indeed.  

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