Michael Hoel
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- January 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780262027885
- eISBN:
- 9780262319836
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262027885.003.0002
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Development, Growth, and Environmental
The focus of the green paradox literature has been either on demand-side climate policies or on effects of technological changes. The present chapter addresses the question of whether there also ...
More
The focus of the green paradox literature has been either on demand-side climate policies or on effects of technological changes. The present chapter addresses the question of whether there also might be some kind of green paradox related to supply-side climate policies. Fossil fuels are non-renewable resources, and the term supply-side climate policy is used for policies that permanently remove some of the carbon resources. The main conclusion of the chapter is that there will no green paradox if supply-side climate policies are aimed at removing high-cost carbon reserves. If instead low-cost reserves are removed, the possibility that both early and total emissions increase cannot be ruled out. Hence, "wrong" supply-side climate policies may give a supply-side green paradox, since such policies may accelerate climate change.Less
The focus of the green paradox literature has been either on demand-side climate policies or on effects of technological changes. The present chapter addresses the question of whether there also might be some kind of green paradox related to supply-side climate policies. Fossil fuels are non-renewable resources, and the term supply-side climate policy is used for policies that permanently remove some of the carbon resources. The main conclusion of the chapter is that there will no green paradox if supply-side climate policies are aimed at removing high-cost carbon reserves. If instead low-cost reserves are removed, the possibility that both early and total emissions increase cannot be ruled out. Hence, "wrong" supply-side climate policies may give a supply-side green paradox, since such policies may accelerate climate change.
Kazuhiro Nakatani
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199532698
- eISBN:
- 9780191701054
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199532698.003.0021
- Subject:
- Law, Environmental and Energy Law
Japan's move away from a carbon economy is required for the following two reasons. First, under the Kyoto Protocol, Japan has to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to 6 per cent below the 1990 level ...
More
Japan's move away from a carbon economy is required for the following two reasons. First, under the Kyoto Protocol, Japan has to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to 6 per cent below the 1990 level in the commitment period between 2008 and 2012. A shift from oil to non-carbon energy resources is absolutely required to attain the commitment under the Protocol. Secondly, Japan is heavily dependent on oil most of which is imported from the Middle East. Japan must therefore look beyond hydrocarbons and critically consider the use of alternative energy sources or renewable energy. This chapter discusses the role of law in Japan's move away from carbon. Nuclear energy, which is categorised as quasi-indigenous energy in energy-poor Japan, is seen as unavoidable and is being promoted as an alternative to oil and gas. When long-term world energy policy is considered, nuclear fusion might stave off the anticipated world energy crisis in the late twenty-first century. Japan has been very active in the ITER (International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor) project.Less
Japan's move away from a carbon economy is required for the following two reasons. First, under the Kyoto Protocol, Japan has to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to 6 per cent below the 1990 level in the commitment period between 2008 and 2012. A shift from oil to non-carbon energy resources is absolutely required to attain the commitment under the Protocol. Secondly, Japan is heavily dependent on oil most of which is imported from the Middle East. Japan must therefore look beyond hydrocarbons and critically consider the use of alternative energy sources or renewable energy. This chapter discusses the role of law in Japan's move away from carbon. Nuclear energy, which is categorised as quasi-indigenous energy in energy-poor Japan, is seen as unavoidable and is being promoted as an alternative to oil and gas. When long-term world energy policy is considered, nuclear fusion might stave off the anticipated world energy crisis in the late twenty-first century. Japan has been very active in the ITER (International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor) project.