Greenhouse Gas Regulations: Drama, Rebellion, and Quiet Progress (episode I)

Last week I had the opportunity to travel to a conference on Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Regulations.  I learned a lot, and I will share some of the more interesting tidbits here over several posts.  For starters, I will not waste your time laying out too much of the background science, arguing about whether or not GHG's are accumulating in the atmosphere, or whether this is having an effect on the planet.  They are, it is.  Concentrations of CO2 have reached 400 ppm, the highest level in hundreds of thousands of years.  Even if humans stop emitting all CO2 today, we have already made significant, long lasting changes in our atmosphere, in the Earth's natural cycles.  The planet has warmed, it will warm further, and the consequences of this are far-reaching.  Comment if you like to argue these points if need be, but this isn't about what you might choose to believe--it is about science, facts.

I'm going to assume that if you are reading this you're already know at least a little about this topic, so I may skip over some of the most basic elements.  This piece is an overall introduction, and I'll also write several more specific posts.  California has some of the most progressive laws in the country regulating GHGs.  AB32 (CA Global Warming Solutions Act, 2006) and SB375 (Sustainable Communities and Climate Protection Act, 2008) are the two primary laws in CA that address the issues.  The brief summary is that these laws are designed to reduce GHG emissions to 1990 levels by 2020, and they do so by targeting many of the different sources of GHG emissions.

In California, the vast majority of GHGs are generated by 3 primary sources: the transportation sector (primarily cars & trucks), industry, and the electrical generation.  Further, although there are several different GHGs, the primary concern centers on CO2 emissions, as they account for most of the GHGs.  By regulating these three areas, California can do a lot of curb CO2 emissions.

California has therefore created a "cap and trade" system that limits the amount of CO2 various industries, electrical generators, etc. can emit per year.  The goal is first to "cap" the total amount of CO2 being released into the atmosphere.  Then, set a dollar value as to what a ton of CO2 is worth to an emitter. Emitting CO2 is tied to economic activity--the production of electricity, goods, services.  Therefore, anyone electing to emit CO2 can price this into their economic model. By allowing would-be emitters to buy/trade these CO2 credits on an open market, cleaner/more efficient companies can elect to sell their credits to another company that is struggling to comply with the restrictions.

These restrictions get progressively tighter with time, forcing companies to adopt new cleaner technologies, pay more for the right to pollute, or ultimately go out of business if they cannot adapt.  You can imagine that a power utility would turn away from coal, or even natural gas, in favor of cleaner sources of energy such as wind, solar, tidal, geothermal, etc.  Cities can contribute as well, by redesigning streets to improve traffic flow, building more public transit, siting goods and services in retail hubs that may be walking distance from high density housing or public transportation, etc.

In the next few days I'll go deeper into the laws California has put in place to try and mitigate this harm as much as it can.  Of course California is only one state, and California cannot solve this problem on its own.  However California can help lead the nation, the world, in solving this problem.

A Catalyst for Action

In 2002, I had the honor of attending the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) in Johannesburg, South Africa.  This UN Conference brought the world together 10 years later to follow up on the historic 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro.  Without getting into too many details here, many considered the WSSD a disappointment--a missed opportunity to make meaningful progress on a host of important environmental issues.  The global community kicked the can down the road.

Twelve years later, the world has gathered again--this time in New York City. Yes, there are still some people making excuses, claiming that Climate Change is not real, that humans cannot possibly be responsible for changing the temperature, weather, climate of the entire planet.  These Climate Deniers are a small but very vocal group that still have tremendous political influence in the United States.  Fortunately, the rest of the world is not listening.  Countries from Germany to China have realized: 1) the science speaks for itself, 2) this is happening now, and 3) we've already missed the chance to mitigate some harm.  We'd better act NOW or else the harm will be a whole lot worse.  Some clever people have also realized there's money to be made in new technology, and this doesn't need to be a "jobs vs. the environment" debate.  

So, what are some news organizations most worried about?  Whether or not a football player committed a crime (pick one), whether President Obama was disrespectful with his latte-salute, or whether one of the Kardashians or Jenners or whomever they are did X (pick anything).

Dear readers, this is all just one big distraction from things that really matter.  We are facing real problems, and we're (humans) the cause of these problems.  Today in Oklahoma, some guy cut off a woman's head apparently due to misguided religious beliefs.  Wildfires burning near Lake Tahoe were started by an arsonist.  ISIS and the Taliban are committing genocide and creating havoc in the Middle East while Putin is still making a mess in Ukraine.  Perhaps most alarming is that ebola could actually turn into a global pandemic--in large part due to misinformation, lack of education, superstitions...and the fact that the global community is pretty much failing to fund any sort of meaningful response.  

Really?  Really?!?  I look at my little boy sleeping peacefully as I write this.  I wonder what world we're going to leave him?  I am afraid it won't be nearly as nice as the world I was born into, and I hate that we as a country, as a species, can't figure out that we're wasting precious time on nonsense.

So, if you've taken the time to read this far, I ask you please--do this one thing.  Make the world slightly better with your time here.  I don't care what it is.  Add beauty through art or music.  Waste less.  Be kinder.  Invent something that makes things better.  Learn something new, and share it.  Help underprivileged kids.  Just. Do. Something. Good.

And me?  I'm about to start really educating myself much more thoroughly on Green House Gas emissions, renewable energy, and some related topics so I can take a more active role in this area.  I will also be sharing these new insights in my blog.  (Of course, if I happen to get involved in a dog-bite case, I may still talk about that too...)  Twelve years ago I flew all the way to South Africa to try and make things a little bit better.  I think now it is time to finally make good on that promise.  

Finally...Justice

Hello Everyone--

Yes, it has been another long gap since I have posted anything--sorry.  Suffice to say I have been busy both with work, and with family--but let's get on with more exciting news!  

Kareem Lane was finally found Not Guilty by a jury in Columbus, GA, for the tragic murder of school superintendent Jim Burns.  

• I say finally, because this was a cold case prosecution for a murder that happened in 1992.  
• I say finally because this was the second time Mr. Lane had been tried for this case.  In 2012 the jury had deadlocked 10-2 in favor of acquittal.  
• I say finally because Mr. Lane was arrested for this crime in 2009.  He was incarcerated for two and a half years, from the time of his arrest until the end of the first trial.  
• I say finally because the prosecution sat on this for another year+ before finally deciding this January to retry Mr. Lane.  
• I say finally because due to this case, Mr. Lane and his wife Carol have been unable to live anything approximating a normal life for over 5 years.  

If you have read some of my entries from 2012, you know that I played an active (albeit small, pro bono) role in Mr. Lane's defense.  Although I am not normally a criminal defense lawyer, I was uniquely situated to assist GA attorney Stacey Jackson defend Mr. Lane and fight this injustice.  In doing so, I became very familiar with the (lack of) evidence against Mr. Lane, and I was shocked that the DA's office even considered bringing this to trial.    

There's an expression that "Justice Deferred is Justice Denied."  I think that there is a lot of truth to that.  Mr. Lane, his wife, his entire family have had to live with this burden for years.  There is no doubt that this case has forever changed the course of his life.  However, I have to say that after 5 years of fighting, to finally hear the words "Not Guilty" was awfully sweet to me.  I can only imagine how it felt for the Lane family!  Justice may have been deferred for far too long, but in the end Mr. Lane was finally vindicated.  He can go home.      

Unfortunately this case will not draw much media attention outside of Columbus, GA.  This is a shame.  This is such a ridiculous example of prosecutorial overreach, perhaps even misconduct?  I know that is a strong assertion, and winning such a case is terribly difficult, but I have many reasons for saying this.  Perhaps this shall be topic of another blog entry?  Regardless of whether I ever decide to grind that ax publicly, I am happy to say that finally, after 5+ long years, an innocent man walks free.  I am so glad that I saw justice served.  Finally!