News

• Emissions market questions Carper's CAIR fix

  25 March 2010

  A proposed legislative fix for the troubled US Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR) programme has good prospects, but may not be the best solution for the emissions trading markets, observers said.

• Climate Investment Funds to channel $40 billion to developing countries – World Bank

  25 March 2010

  Around $40 billion could be mobilised for low-carbon growth in developing countries via the Climate Investment Funds (CIF), according to Katherine Sierra, vice-president for sustainable development at the World Bank.

• Climate opportunities, capital hurdles for water sector – HSBC

  25 March 2010

  Growing water stress and increasing flood risk is driving investment into water utilities globally, according to a research note from HSBC – but capital constraints and regulatory barriers will slow growth, the bank says.

• UK budget sets out green bank plans, emissions trading changes

  25 March 2010

  The UK government is to create a £2 billion ($3 billion) green investment bank, finance minister Alistair Darling said on Wednesday, one of a handful of measures in the 2010 budget aimed at moving the UK towards a low-carbon future.

• EPA climate rules will identify targets for litigation, lawyers warn

  17 March 2010

  A more activist US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in trying to curb greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, is creating regulatory risks for companies that could trigger disclosure obligations, legal experts warned this week.

• Renewables investment to breach $200bn in 2010?

  17 March 2010

  New investment in clean energy is set to recover to at least $175 billion-200 billion this year, according to projections from Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF).

• 1.2GW of wave and tidal power for Scottish waters

  17 March 2010

  Around 1.2GW of wave and tidal energy projects could be built in Scotland by 2020, as the UK's Crown Estate this week named the winners of leases to 10 sites in Pentland Firth and Orkney Waters.

• Waste collection and recycling market worth €300bn – report

  17 March 2010

  The world market for waste, from collection to recycling, is worth about €300 billion ($410 billion) a year, according to a report commissioned by environmental services firm Veolia.

• Threadneedle targets £350m for low-carbon property fund

  17 March 2010

  UK investment management firm Threadneedle has launched a fund that will invest in low-carbon commercial property in the UK, aiming to raise £350 million ($534 million) from institutional investors within three years.

• Clean energy grows, but solar revenues dip

  17 March 2010

  Combined global revenues for wind power, biofuels and solar photovoltaics (PV) grew 11.4% last year, to reach $139.1 billion, according to Clean Edge's annual report on clean energy trends.