Things I don’t understand ||

As if by magic, Nigel Lawson has his thesis immediately proven by John Vidal, Environment Editor at the extremely pro-AGW “The Guardian” with this piece:

Billions of pounds are being wasted in paying industries in developing countries to reduce climate change emissions, according to two analyses of the UN’s carbon offsetting programme.

Leading academics and watchdog groups allege that the UN’s main offset fund is being routinely abused by chemical, wind, gas and hydro companies who are claiming emission reduction credits for projects that should not qualify. The result is that no genuine pollution cuts are being made, undermining assurances by the UK government and others that carbon markets are dramatically reducing greenhouse gases, the researchers say.

No, really?

A working paper from two senior Stanford University academics examined more than 3,000 projects applying for or already granted up to $10bn of credits from the UN’s CDM funds over the next four years, and concluded that the majority should not be considered for assistance. “They would be built anyway,” says David Victor, law professor at the Californian university. “It looks like between one and two thirds of all the total CDM offsets do not represent actual emission cuts.”

Governments consider that CDM is vital to reducing global emissions under the terms of the Kyoto treaty. To earn credits under the mechanism, emission reductions must be in addition to those that would have taken place without the project. But critics argue this “additionality” is impossible to prove and open to abuse. The Stanford paper, by Victor and his colleague Michael Wara, found that nearly every new hydro, wind and natural gas-fired plant expected to be built in China in the next four years is applying for CDM credits, even though it is Chinese policy to encourage these industries.

“Traders are finding ways of gaining credits that they would never have had before. You will never know accurately, but rich countries are clearly overpaying by a massive amount,” said Victor.

Of course, those billions come from Western taxpayers like you and me. Unsurprisingly, developers of such projects as wind energy farms and hydroelectric schemes applying for emissions credits that can be sold, which in theory would help fund building, but they’ve already been funded by conventional means anyway, so the money goes straight into the developers’ pockets.

Happy now?

So Lawson’s observation that one of the key characteristics of bubbles is roguery has already been demonstrated by the UN’s own scheme being ransacked by businessman wanting to double their profits through the CDM.

How long before the general public realises that its been had?