Japan is the world’s fifth-largest emitter of carbon dioxide.  In an effort to reduce emissions and become a leader in the clean energy industry, Japan has increased its focus on clean energy technologies and climate change mitigation measures.

A plan to implement a nation-wide carbon trading program was scrapped by Parliament earlier this year.  In this new proposal, heavy emitting Japanese firms would be held to carbon emissions quotas, and any emissions above the set levels would require purchases of carbon credits from either domestic or overseas reductions projects.

Japan will hold an extraordinary Parliament session on Septmeber 14^th, where a party leadership challenge is expected; the outcome of which could influence the passing of this legislation.  It is in the interest of the Environment Ministry to “have it passed smoothly” so we will be “ready and accountable in international climate talks,” remarked one government official.

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Similar scenarios are playing out elsewhere in the world.  Droughts in Kansas, for instance, have killed off over 2,000 cattle and flooding in Pakistan has destroyed thousands of acres of crops.

“Over the whole globe all these changes in climate… are going to cause some real ripples in our capabilities of producing food,” warned Jerry Hatfield, laboratory director at the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agriculture Research Service.

Analysts at HSBC warn that if countries cannot not adapt to higher temperatures and more extreme weather, grain production in G20 countries may fall 8.7% by 2020.  With population growth taken into account, HSBC predicts G20 per capita grain production could drop between 11.9% and 16.1% by 2020.

Reduced output could “create havoc” in agricultural markets around the world, driving up the price of food and other essential goods.  There is grave concern that price spikes could result in unrest in many poor or resource-scarce countries similar to the riots that took place during 2007-2008, when global food prices spiked based on rampant market speculation.

Watch video of air pollution from Russian fires – released by NASA

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Global emissions levels remained relatively unchanged in 2009 largely because of Chinese and Indian contributions, despite predictions from groups such as the International Energy Agency (IEA) which thought the global economic meltdown and decrease in manufacturing would assuredly reduce emissions worldwide.

The Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency notes that carbon dioxide emissions per person in China are now 6.1 tons, roughly equal to France which clocked in at 6.0 tons in 2009.  This figure represents a major increase for China, which in 1990 emitted only 2.2 tons per capita.    Interestingly, this increase comes Chinese wind and solar energy capacity has doubled for the fifth year in a row.

Because of its use of nuclear energy, French emissions are actually on the lower end of the scale in comparison to other developed nations.  Per capita emissions in other EU member nations were 7.9 tons in 2009, down from 9.1 tons in 1990, while per capita emissions in the United Sates fell to 17.2 tons in 2009, decreasing from 19.5 tons in 1990.

All in all, the Dutch agency now reports that 53% of 2009 global emissions came from developing nations, with 44% coming from the developed world.  International air and sea transportation accounts for the remaining 3%.

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Global coal use, however, has remained steady.  In fact, as a percentage of world primary energy usage, coal has risen to levels not seen since 1971.

On the other hand, oil’s percentage of global energy usage has fallen consistently over the past decade; from 39.00% in 1999 down to 34.77% in 2009.

As oil production becomes more difficult and expensive, coal is increasingly being employed as a source of transportation fuels.  Nations like South Africa and China have been expanding their coal-to-liquid (CTL) programs, and China reportedly has six major CTL projects under development.

CTL processes may present an alternative way to generate liquid fuel, but it comes at a price.  CTL produces nearly double the greenhouse gas emissions of conventional fuel production from oil, and many climate and environmental advocates worry that if CTL programs become more widespread the world would experience increased emissions levels.

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However, despite this overall reduction, China’s greenhouse gas emissions have grown sharply as the nation rapidly industrializes and continues to construct new coal-fired power plants.  China is now the world’s leading emitter, having overtaken the United States in 2008.  This past year, China ‘s fossil fuel combustion released 7.5 billion tons of CO2 into the atmosphere.

China is not the only developing nation whose emissions have grown sharply.  India also saw an increase of 7%, and it has now overtaken Russia as the world’s third largest emitter.  In aggregate, the developing world now accounts for half of all global emissions.

United States emissions, on the other hand, fell by 6.5% to 5.9 billion tons in 2009, the lowest level since 1995.  However, “although the share of emerging markets is growing, the industrialized countries remain the preponderant source of historical greenhouse gases,” reminds Nick Robins, head of HSBC’s Climate Change Center of Excellence.

The United States and China, as well as the world’s other top emitters, now find themselves under tremendous pressure to either extend the Kyoto Protocol or formulate a successor to the climate treaty, which is set to expire in 2012.  Nations are also attempting to come up with domestic emissions reductions plans of their own.  “In terms of future emissions targets, China is ahead of the U.S. because it has set itself commitments to reduce carbon intensity, while the U.S. is struggling to get climate legislation through Congress,” remarks Robins.

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OECD chief  Angel Gurría calls these subsidies, which by some estimates may be as much as $557 billion a year in developing nations and over $100 billion in the industrialized world, a “wasteful use of scarce budget resources.”  There is a contradiction, he says, because”many governments are giving subsidies to fossil fuel production and consumption that encourage greenhouse gas emissions, at the same time they are spending on projects to promote clean energy.”

According to some estimates, eliminating fossil fuel subsidies may help to reduce total global greenhouse emissions by 10% from their expected 2050 levels.  This would greatly assist  G20 nations with other policy initiatives to mitigate the effects of global warming.

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Part of Norway’s $1 billion investment will go towards creating and monitoring new projects under the U.N.-baked forest conservation scheme, called Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD).  The Indonesia-based Center for International Forestry Research said this new deal could be “a game-changer in the drive to make REDD a reality.”

Norway and Indonesia’s landmark deal was supported by another notable investor – billionaire George Soros.  In advance of the deal-signing, Soros said he would personally guarantee $50 million to help slow global deforestation, which he believes is of the utmost importance in the struggle to reduce emissions.  ”If you can stop the eradication of the forest before it happens, its much easier than to reclaim the degraded land.  That is why I think quick action is so important.”

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Energy efficiency investments emerged as a major theme from the survey results.   More than 82% of respondents expected to make energy efficiency investments over the next year, and 92% of those polled said energy costs would be high on the list of priorities over that time period.

Melanie Steiner of Ernst & Young said these results show that despite uncertainty over climate change, “companies are really taking action anyway, because they’re seeing that this is a business issue and an opportunity to generate new revenue.”

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Oceans are one of the world’s largest “carbon sinks,” storing about one-third of all CO2 emissions.  However, when CO2 is stored in the ocean, it reacts with seawater to form carbonic acid.  Unless emissions of carbon dioxide are limited, scientists warn that the ocean will grow more and more acidic.  Coral reefs and marine life are especially sensitive to the pH balance of the ocean, and increased acidification could have catastrophic consequences, such as the creation of ocean “dead zones” devoid of sea life.

The National Research Council’s data shows ocean acidity has increased 0.1 points (out of a 14 point pH scale).  This data indicates that ocean chemistry has changed more since the Industrial Revolution than at any other point over the last 800,000 years.

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