AP News, January 16th, 2007
An author and entrepreneur urged Vermont lawmakers Tuesday to consider capping carbon emissions by selling permits for discharges to oil companies and some fuel dealers and then returning the proceeds to citizens, all in a bid to reduce the state's role in global warming.
Doing so would help curtail harmful greenhouse gas emissions and provide financial incentives for Vermont's economy and consumers, according to Peter Barnes, a founder of the Working Assets Long Distance telephone network and author of "Who Owns the Sky?"
"If you did these things, you would be a model to the world," Barnes said.
His presentation, kicking off the third week of the Vermont Legislature's 2007 session, was the latest in a series focusing on global warming, which legislative leaders hope to address this year in some kind of legislation.
Hot topic, cold day: The gold dome of the Capitol _ where he spoke _ was capped with snow, the temperature outside 13 degrees.
Previous sessions focused on the science of global warming and the challenges facing mankind in reducing its potentially catastrophic effects. But Barnes centered his presentation on a policy approach he said would make Vermont a leader.
Vermont already participates in a greenhouse gas-limiting initiative with other states, but it covers power plants, not the source of what authorities say are the prime culprits when it comes to emissions _ cars, and buildings whose heating systems burn oil.
Reducing those emissions won't happen voluntarily, and even incentives might not be enough, Barnes said. A mechanism is needed to guarantee a steady decline in emissions before the so-called "greenhouse effect" begins wreaking havoc. One solution would be having the state of Vermont cap total carbon dioxide emissions, auction off a finite number of permits annually and let companies who need them buy or trade them with one another.
The number of permits would be reduced each year, making them more and more valuable. Companies that deliver fuel into Vermont would need them, as would fuel oil retailers who buy from outside the state, according to Barnes.
The state, in turn, would use the proceeds from the permit sales to give rebates to consumers or make direct investments in conservation and fuel-efficiency programs, he said.
But in a question-and-answer session afterward, Barnes acknowledged that in taking such a bold lead, Vermont could uninentionally drive up energy costs and send businesses to other states with no such system in place. "That is a risk. I can't minimize that," he said.
Reaction to his idea was mixed.
"I don't see any immediate opportunity in Vermont," said state Rep. Albert J. Perry, D-Franklin. "I'd need to see how it's set up, get a more concrete presentation of how it would work."
James Moore, clean energy advocate for Vermont Public Interest Research Group, said carbon-trading has great potential.
"If the legislators in Vermont actually want to examine this, there's terrific potential for this to be one of the ways Vermont leads the nation in addressing global warming through market mechanisms that help our economy as well," he said. But, he added: "The devil's in the details, and how it's set up."
Shane Sweet, executive vice president of the 260-member Vermont Fuel Dealers Association, said it's not a new idea.
"The concept of trading carbon credits is probably something that's in our future. The $64,000 question is `What's it going to look like?' Some of the best ideas get lost in translation, between concept and implementation."
