Want A Smaller Carbon Footprint? Pick A Different Ruler

October 15, 2008

Email this story Print this post Add your comments

In the past six months, the Brookings Institute and a team of NASA researchers have respectively ranked Los Angeles as having the U.S.’s second-smallest and second-largest carbon footprint. That’s because of the difference in how carbon emissions get calculated, Forbes reports.

Kyoto Protocol measures carbon footprints in terms of emissions produced domestically, whereas another approach measures emissions generated in producing goods and services consumed in a specific place, regardless where the goods are produced.

Debates are now underway in the U.S. on how to find a way to calculate carbon emissions, and solve “carbon leakage.” Carbon leakage occurs when people don’t sign up to a global climate deal and don’t have to bear the costs of paying for the carbon they emit.

Discussions around the idea of carbon border taxes are also underway. The concept aims to avoid situations like the LA Water Department importing electricity from coal-fired power plants in Utah when the state restricts the use of coal-fired generation.

Email this story Print this post Add your comments

Advertisers

Enhance Sustainability. Improve Profitability.

Learn how at the SAP Sustainability Resource Center. >>

Unclear about the EPA's new GHG Rule?

Learn how it could affect your business. >>

EPA mandatory emissions reporting starts Jan 1st

CSA Standards can help your organization get ready for compliance. Find out how. >>

Product Environmental Compliance Best Practices

How to achieve compliance at a significantly lower cost. Download the full report. >>

Join the Discussion

Reader Comments

All this carbon footprint and global warming stuff is a way for the “connected” to get money out of your wallet. Helping the environment is not on their radar and when it does not actually happen, they will come up with another way to steal your money but promise that “this time, it will really work”!

Spare me, please…

Lemming | October 16th, 2008

Recent Daily News [ see all ]

11/20/2009
11/19/2009
11/18/2009

Charts [ see all ]

European Paper Industry Cuts CO2 Emissions by 42% since 1990

S. America Takes Most Urgent View of Copenhagen Talks

Nike Tops Annual Climate Action Scores

Oceans May Trap more Carbon than Forests

Jobs

View All Jobs >> Post a Job >>

Comments and Discussions

Trade Association on Trade Group on EPA Chemical Regs: ‘If Everything is a Priority, Then Nothing is a Priority’
"Seriously… that..."

Gary Markowitz on Supermarkets Tackle Emissions Reductions, Fuel Efficiency
"Supermarkets waste over 10 percent of their energy through improper..."

peter in ireland on Ontario May Follow California’s Lead on TV Energy Efficiency
"Governor Schwarzenegger is shooting himself in the foot! 1...."

Environmental Leader on S. America Takes Most Urgent View of Copenhagen Talks
"The survey respondents (the PDF report mentions 4,000 respondents in 38..."

Jake on UPS Trying New Hydraulic Hybrid Trucks
"A point of clarification: the Reuters press release referenced herein reports that 20 UPS will purchase..."

Custom Organic Shirts on S. America Takes Most Urgent View of Copenhagen Talks
"90% of North Americans believe it is urgent to get a global climate..."

peter dublin on California City’s Green Building Ordinance Applies to Commercial Buildings
"Why energy efficiebnt regulation on buildings –..."

Environmental Leader