Assessment of Carbon Capture and Sequestration Liability Regimes

Liability coverage for CCS is of paramount importance if the industry is going to mature and develop in a way that will allow it to make a significant contribution to mitigating climate change. Very few of the liability schemes that have thus far been implemented, with the exception of the schemes in Alberta, North Dakota, and Montana, cover post-closure, long-term liability in a comprehensive way. As a result, these incomplete liability schemes are likely to cause confusion, misunderstandings, and litigation as they are implemented.

White Certificate Trading: A Dying Concept or Just Making Its Debut? Part III: Future Market Potential in the U.S.

Challenges to white certificate markets are formidable, but they are not insurmountable, as demonstrated by successful white certificate schemes worldwide. This article discusses the future potential for these certificates in the U.S. A promising development that could affect implementation of a white certificate-type instrument is the inclusion of an instrument called an emission rate credit in the proposed Clean Power Plan. Other potential drivers include energy efficiency resource standards and voluntary markets

White Certificate Trading: A Dying Concept or Just Making Its Debut? Part II: Challenges to Trading White Certificates

This article addresses the major challenges to trading white certificates, identify why these obstacles exist, and how successful white certificate markets have addressed these potential problems. Among the challenges are defining a white certificate (including whether it meets the standard of being real, additional, permanent, verifiable, and enforceable) and identifying who owns them and how they are tracked

Analysis of Carbon Capture and Sequestration Pore Space Legislation: A Review of Existing and Possible Regimes

State-level CCS legislation, especially related to pore space designation, has blossomed over the last few years. However, the legislation that has passed does not yet provide an environment that would lead to the successful commercialization of CCS. Allowing the federal government to assume pore space ownership would not solve all the problems, but would certainly simplify some of them by reducing the amount of future litigation.

White Certificate Trading: A Dying Concept or Just Making Its Debut? Part I: Market Status and Trends

Energy-saving certificate trading programs within the U.S. have not had the success of their counterparts abroad due to the energy efficiency reduction targets not being stringent enough to incite trading. Programs exist in Italy, Denmark, France, the UK and Australia, and each is unique in what it allows to qualify, its units, and other details. The Italian market is the most robust in terms of volumes traded, but programs in Australia are strong and growing

Unveiling Assigned Amount Unit (AAU) Trades: Current Market Impacts and Prospects for the Future

The sale of assigned amount units (AAUs) from countries whose emissions have declined since their baseline year under the Kyoto Protocol has led critics to be skeptical of carbon markets due to the lack of actual emission reductions that occur as a result of these trades. This policy review describes the historical context of AAU trading, current market price and volumes, and environmental and economic impacts of the current AAU trading rules. Options for how to handle current, and prevent the creation of future, surplus AAUs are discussed

Managing the Risks of Carbon Sequestration: Liability Concerns and Alternatives

Business managers involved in the production of greenhouse gases have several critical concerns. In parallel with efforts to improve performance, reduce deployment schedules, and increase cost-effectiveness, those responsible for carbon sequestration solutions must address their responsibility for long-term liability. Existing regulations for subsurface storage of petroleum and natural gases provides some guidance for carbon dioxide (CO2) storage projects. Also, collective industry experience both on similar projects and on incipient sequestration efforts can give us guidance on the range of procedures that need to be managed. However, at present we lack a comprehensive regulatory framework to enable the effective management of long-term sequestration project operations