Climate Leadership

Paul Rosenberg discusses a report from Oil Change International called "The Sky's Limit California" which proposes steps that state can take to uphold the Paris Agreement as a model for other governments. The plan includes preventing the expansion of oil and gas production, phasing out existing production (along side current plans to reduce consumption), and establish a fee and task force to implement a Just Transition to renewable energy sources.

From the conclusion of the report:

If no major producers step up to stop the expansion of extraction and begin phasing out existing fields and mines, the Paris goals will become increasingly difficult to achieve. Wealthy fossil fuel producers have a responsibility to lead, and this must include planning for a just and equitable managed decline of existing production.

Update (June 4):  A paper published in Review of Environmental Economics and Policy argues that forecasts of the economic impact of climate change are greatly underestimated.

Update (June 17):  Simon Clark points to a paper describing a carbon capture process but argues that even widespread implementation will leave the planet with long term impacts from the carbon dioxide already emitted.