links about us archives search home
SustainabiliTankSustainabilitank menu graphic
SustainabiliTank

 
 
Follow us on Twitter


 
Poland:

 

Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on April 29th, 2013
by Pincas Jawetz (PJ@SustainabiliTank.com)

April 15-21, 2013, I participated on a trip to Baltic Sea States of the KPV (Komunal Politische Vereignigung) of the Politische Akademie of the Austrian Peoples Party (OEVP). Above took us to Estonia  Saturday April-20 to Sunday April 21-st. This was a weekend and it might have been a too short time for serious learning about matters of Energy Policy. But I was fortunate to come back with enough information because I had the chance to meet very helpful people and I was prepared ahead with my questions.

We drove from St. Petersburg in Russia to Narva in Estonia and then continued to the capital – Tallinn. We had the luck of having a very good Estonian guide and were honored that evening with a reception at the residence of Austrian Ambassador H. E. Ms. Renate Kobler who invited as well local and Austrian resource people and made sure to establish contacts according to our interests.

I had in effect two different set of interests. One was in regard to a transportation policy instituted this year by the city of Tallinn that offers free rides on the electric street-cars to documented residents of the city while having increased charges for the out-of-towners. The idea behind this being that people will be moving back to the city from the suburbs and increase the tax roles thus making up for some of the losses and allow for gains in air quality by getting out of their cars. I learned that though nice in theory, seemingly it did not work in practice because it applied mainly to the poor – so it did not result in enhanced income from taxes leaving just the lower income from the tram-rides. The topic was originally brought to my attention by the Austrian Standard of April 5, 2013.

This was the minor interest of my two suggested topics.

The other topic – and that one of major interest these days – dealt with the use of oil-shales for energy – an issue of global importance  when Shale-Gas has become the energy interests’ battle cry. It was brought out of obscurity in the United States, and Europe is talking as if it was going to follow suit. Austria has also shales and at present media battles rage between business interests and the environmentalists – with the Eurosolar monthly table all convinced that Austria can become energy self-sufficient without touching the shales.

Estonia, as well as Spain, are countries with experience in what can happen when energy is obtained from these shales.

Under the Soviets, the shales were mined and used like a lower grade coal in thermal power plants. What was left are mountains of ash from the combustion process and mountains of  spent shales from the retorting process in which the product was a synthetic crude oil. These mountains of by-product contain heavy metals and when washed by rains these heavy metals poisoned the underground water, thus making it unusable for drinking and agriculture. Everybody I talked to told me the same thing – the losses around Narva are immense.

Wikipedia tells us: “Oil shale in Estonia is an important resource for the national economy. Estonia‘s oil shale deposits account for just 17% of total deposits in the European Union but the country generates 90% of its power from this source. The oil shale industry in Estonia employs 7,500 people—about one percent of the national work force—and accounts for four percent of its gross domestic product.[1]

 

There are two kinds of oil shale in Estonia – Dictyonema argillite (claystone) and kukersite.[2] The first attempt to establish an open-cast oil shale pit and to start oil production was undertaken in 1838.[3] Modern utilization of oil shale commenced in 1916. Production began in 1921 and the generation of power from oil shale in 1924.[4]

 

In 2005 Estonia was the leading producer of shale oil in the world. Of all the power plants fired by oil shale, the largest was in this country.[1][5] As of 2007, six mines (open cast or underground) were extracting oil shale in Estonia.[2]“

Kukersite, named after the Kukruse settlement in Estonia, is the better quality shale. Estonian kukersite deposits are one of the world’s highest-grade shale deposits with more than 40% organic content and 66% conversion ratio into shale oil and oil shale gas. They have relatively a lower content of heavy metals.

in the 1830s, although the attempt of shale oil distillation failed, oil shale was used as a low-grade fuel. Then studies of Estonian oil shale resources and mining possibilities intensified in the beginning of 20th century because of industrial development of Saint Petersburg and a shortage of fuel resources in the region. Finally – the world’s two largest oil shale-fired power stations – Balti Power Plant and Eesti Power Plant (known as the Narva Power Plants) – were opened in 1965 and in 1973. Because of the success of oil shale-based power generation, Estonian oil shale production peaked in 1980 at 31.35 million tonnes.[3] In 2004, two power units with circulating fluidized bed combustion (CFBC) boilers were put into operation at Narva Power Plant.[4] In 1984, the scientific-technical journal Oil Shale was founded in Estonia.[15]

Some of the spent shale is used in cement manufacturing and Uranium is a by-product.

Kerogen (from Greek for wax + -gen, that which produces)[1]  is a mixture of organic chemical compounds that make up a portion of the organic matter in sedimentary rocks.[2] It is insoluble in normal organic solvents because of a huge molecular weight. The soluble portion is known as bitumen. When heated to the right temperatures in the Earth’s crust, (oil window ca. 60–160 °C, gas window ca. 150–200 °C, both depending on how quickly the source rock is heated) some types of kerogen release crude oil or natural gas, collectively known as hydrocarbons (fossil fuels). When such kerogens are present in high concentration in rocks such as shale they form possible source rocks. Shales rich in kerogens that have not been heated to a warmer temperature to release their hydrocarbons will eventually  form oil shale deposits. (The name “kerogen” was introduced by the Scottish organic chemist Alexander Crum Brown in 1906.)

What above tells us is that the organic matter in shales is in the form of very large molecular weight polymers. These can be deconstructed at high temperature in retorts, and then the quality of the remaining ash (or spent shale) can be investigated and the potential damage to the environment assessed. An alternative could be to create a fire underground and collect above ground the released oil or gas created by breaking up the kerogen polymer. In such case the damage from the ash cannot be assessed without knowing the underground conditions and where the underground waters will take the released heavy metals. The Shale Gas operations now in the United States are underground production sites explained as examples of Hydro-Fracking which sounds incoherent when we do not know the operating temperatures which are needed to break chemical bonds of that polymer. Neither the new American production companies nor the EU Shale Gas production interests give us such technology details as they did not even obtain patents that would have required transparency.

This present posting has an added purpose.

I learned that  June 10-13, 2013, the Estonian users of shale-for-energy intend a Shales Symposium in Tallinn as a follow up to the 2006 Symposium that was held in Ammann, Jordan.

The Symposium in Tallinn will be followed by a Field Trip to Estonian oil shale processing industry – an extraordinary opportunity to visit the most important sites of Estonian oil shale industry, including the new, recently completed Enefit280 Oil Plant.

I would like to hope that the European Commission send some inquisitive people to that symposium in order to learn about the side-effects or the environmentally harming “externalities” that could cause harm to the underground aquifers.

Further, as mentioned at the beginning, another European location were there was experience with Oil Shale Retorting is Puertollano, in the Ciudad Real region of Spain. With information from these  sites the EU could be in a better position to judge the issues involved.

I was personally involved with the Purtollano plant of the Empressa Nacional de Pisara Bituminosa Calvo Sotelo in 1959. That plant was producing lubricants or viscous petroleum product alternatives in huge retorts and leaving behind mountains of spent shale as well. Looking at the remains of those mountains – in Puertollano and in Narva, could help the decision making process at the EU.

We realize the importance of the energy independence goal – but as it can be reached in various ways, it is important to start out with open eyes.

 ——————–

Estonia and Sweden Oil Shale Estonia and Sweden Oil Shale Map

Map of kukersite deposits in northern Estonia and Russia (locations after Kattai and Lokk, 1998; and Bauert, 1994). Also, areas of Alum Shale in Sweden (locations after Andersson and others, 1985).

 

Estonia and Sweden Oil-Shale Deposits

Reprint of: United States Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2005-5294
By John R. Dyni

Estonia

The Ordovician kukersite deposits of Estonia have been known since the 1700s. However, active exploration only began as a result of fuel shortages brought on by World War I. Full-scale mining began in 1918. Oil-shale production in that year was 17,000 tons by open-pit mining, and by 1940, the annual production reached 1.7 million tons. However, it was not until after World War II, during the Soviet era, that production climbed dramatically, peaking in 1980 when 31.4 million tons of oil shale were mined from eleven open-pit and underground mines.

The annual production of oil shale decreased after 1980 to about 14 million tons in 1994-95 (Katti and Lokk, 1998; Reinsalu, 1998a) then began to increase again. In 1997, 22 million tons of oil shale were produced from six room-and-pillar underground mines and three open-pit mines (Opik, 1998). Of this amount, 81 percent was used to fuel electric power plants, 16 percent was processed into petrochemicals, and the remainder was used to manufacture cement as well as other minor products. State subsidies for oil-shale companies in 1997 amounted to 132.4 million Estonian kroons (9.7 million U.S. dollars) (Reinsalu, 1998a).

The kukersite deposits occupy more than 50,000 km2 in northern Estonia and extend eastward into Russia toward St. Petersburg where it is known as the Leningrad deposit. In Estonia a somewhat younger deposit of kukersite, the Tapa deposit, overlies the Estonia deposit.

As many as 50 beds of kukersite and kerogen-rich limestone alternating with biomicritic limestone are in the Kõrgekallas and Viivikonna Formations of Middle Ordovician age. These beds form a 20- to 30-m-thick sequence in the middle of the Estonia field. Individual kukersite beds are commonly 10-40 cm thick and reach as much as 2.4 m. The organic content of the richest kukersite beds reaches 40-45 weight percent (Bauert, 1994).

Rock-Eval analyses of the richest-grade kukersite in Estonia show oil yields as high as 300 to 470 mg/g of shale, which is equivalent to about 320 to 500 l/t. The calorific value in seven open-pit mines ranges from 2,440 to 3,020 kcal/kg (Reinsalu, 1998a, his table 5). Most of the organic matter is derived from the fossil green alga, Gloeocapsomorpha prisca, which has affinities to the modern cyanobacterium, Entophysalis major, an extant species that forms algal mats in intertidal to very shallow subtidal waters (Bauert, 1994).

Matrix minerals in Estonian kukersite and interbedded limestones includes dominantly low-Mg calcite (>50 percent), dolomite (<10-15 percent), and siliciclastic minerals including quartz, feldspars, illite, chlorite, and pyrite (<10-15 percent). The kukersite beds and associated limestones are evidently not enriched in heavy metals, unlike the Lower Ordovician Dictyonema Shale of northern Estonia and Sweden (Bauert, 1994; Andersson and others, 1985).

Bauert (1994, p. 418-420) suggested that the kukersite and limestone sequence was deposited in a series of east-west “stacked belts” in a shallow subtidal marine basin adjacent to a shallow coastal area on the north side of the Baltic Sea near Finland. The abundance of marine macrofossils and low pyrite content indicate an oxygenated-water setting with negligible bottom currents as evidenced by widespread lateral continuity of uniformly thin beds of kukersite.

Kattai and Lokk (1998, p. 109) estimated the proved and probable reserves of kukersite to be 5.94 billion tons. A good review of the criteria for estimating Estonia’s resources of kukersite oil shale was made by Reinsalu (1998b). In addition to thickness of overburden and thickness and grade of the oil shale, Reinsalu defined a given bed of kukersite as constituting a reserve, if the cost of mining and delivering the oil shale to the consumer was less than the cost of the delivery of the equivalent amount of coal having an energy value of 7,000 kcal/kg. He defined a bed of kukersite as a resource as one having an energy rating exceeding 25 GJ/m2 of bed area. On this basis, the total resources of Estonian kukersite in beds A through F (fig. 8) are estimated to be 6.3 billion tons, which includes 2 billion tons of “active” reserves (defined as oil shale “worth mining”). The Tapa deposit is not included in these estimates.

The number of exploratory drill holes in the Estonia field exceeds 10,000. The Estonia kukersite has been relatively thoroughly explored, whereas the Tapa deposit is currently in the prospecting stage.

 -Dictyonema Shale

Another older oil-shale deposit, the marine Dictyonema Shale of Early Ordovician age, underlies most of northern Estonia. Until recently, little has been published about this unit because it was covertly mined for uranium during the Soviet era. The unit ranges from less than 0.5 to more than 5 m in thickness. A total of 22.5 tons of elemental uranium was produced from 271,575 tons of Dictyonema Shale from an underground mine near Sillamäe. The uranium (U3O8) was extracted from the ore in a processing plant at Sillamäe (Lippmaa and Maramäe, 1999, 2000, 2001).

The future of oil-shale mining in Estonia faces a number of problems including competition from natural gas, petroleum, and coal. The present open-pit mines in the kukersite deposits will eventually need to be converted to more expensive underground operations as the deeper oil shale is mined. Serious air and ground-water pollution have resulted from burning oil shale and leaching of trace metals and organic compounds from spoil piles left from many years of mining and processing the oil shales. Reclamation of mined-out areas and their associated piles of spent shale, and studies to ameliorate the environmental degradation of the mined lands by the oil-shale industry are underway. The geology, mining, and reclamation of the Estonia kukersite deposit were reviewed in detail by Kattai and others (2000).

 

 

###

Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on March 21st, 2013
by Pincas Jawetz (PJ@SustainabiliTank.com)

 

I will not repeat what was said in previous postings as per the following link but rather start from those notes and see if I still find them correct:

What If: Imagining the Habsburg Monarchy as Today’s Center of the World – An Alliance of Civilizations. IN VIENNA – the Novel “DER KOMET” will be presented at HAMAKOM on March 17, 2013 at 7 PM.

Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on March 8th, 2013
by Pincas Jawetz (PJ@SustainabiliTank.com)

 

In fact I find now the material richer then at first thought. In major part thanks to the author’s dialogue with Austrian TV celebrity Hugo Portisch and the coverage of all that chunk of Europe that is in between Czernowitz to the North-East and Trieste in the South-West. Then we also understand better Israel that came into its own when in real life Vienna embarked on a journey of suicide. These days we can look back from a perspective of 75 years.

The 271 pages volume is made of two parts – 239 pages of the novel and the remaining 32 pages a very rich Glossary.

While the novel assumes full freedom with historic reality – the glossary explains that reality with exemplary precision .

It all starts with a note on the back-cover of  the volume where it says that the Austrian Crown-Prince Franz Ferdinand, on June 28, 1914, turns on his heels when the first shots were heard at Sarajevo, goes back to Vienna, and voila – no reason for World War I, followed by no reason for WWII, and a totally very different history emerges.

——–

Mr. Stein, born near Munich in Germany, who is a product of education systems in Austria (lived here for some 15 years – only 7 years in Berlin), considers himself lucky of having won in the lottery of US immigration services, is now a US citizen married with an American woman, has Jewish-American children, and is living in Connecticut.

His opening quote for the book is from “the Fledermaus” (the Bat opereta) – “Lucky is He Who Forgets what  Cannot be Changed Anymore.” We can only assume that Stein wants to live in the moment rather then think the “What If” way. So, the novel stands on its own in the frame he has set up for it – but then he invents that Glossary and it is there so we realize that all the rest is fiction. Sort of – Do – not – forget -what – to – forget when you live in my novel. But then – the text also points at a hidden love story Stein has with Vienna where he went to school. It could be a love-and-pity story – he does not show signs of hatred – but in private seems to feel lucky that he could escape.

The protagonist is a descendent of Ilya von Repin – who was a famous painter in the Moscow of old, of Russian heritage from the Ukraine – sort of a real life legend – and I thought it felt like an ideal of the writer.

The novel is about the prettiest woman in Vienna who is married to an observant Jew who is a scientific and economics adviser to the Emperor.

Her husband works out of town – that is on the moon. You see – there is still an emperor – His name Franz Joseph II and the year is 2000.

Why the moon? That was a German thing – no other place left to colonize – so Germany colonized the moon and that was easy for them – they had Einstein and all the rocket scientists – so they went to the moon easily. America was nothing, and had nothing – America was not only a Republic but also had no culture, and without the European immigration had not developed.
Europe did well under the imperial system and the monarchies. In effect only France, Switzerland and San Marino were republics in Europe – every other State was bound to a Monarchy and had not evolved as independent Nation States, but as cultures.

- So the Emperor of Austria whose full titles included also being King of Hungary, Bohemia, Dalmatia, Kroatia, Slavonia, the two Galizias (East and West), Londomeria, Ilyria, and King of Jerusalem (this was a clear title as well);   then Great Herzog (Duke) of Tuscany and Krakow;   Herzog of Lothringen, Salzburg, Styria, Karinthia, Krain, and Bukowina;   Great Furst of Transylvania, Markgraf of Moravia, Upper and Lower Ausitz, and Istria;   Herzog of Upper and Lower Schlesia, Modena, Parma, Piacenza, Guastalla, Auschwitz, Zator, Teschen, Friaul, Ragusa, and Zara;   Gefuersteter Graf of Habsburg, Tirol, Kyburg, Goerz, and Gradisca;   Furst of Trient and Brixen;    Graf of Hohenems, Feldkirch, Bregentz, Sonnenberg;   Lord of Triest, Cattaro, and the Windische Mark, and Great Woiwod of Serbia.   In effect the Emperor was saying he had 22 different Nations under his throne and he was the link between them – a true League of Nations.

Above might sound a bit pretentious, but the results of this continuation of rather a league of cultures to allow for people living in a friendly aglomeration might sound as the ideal alliance between them. The larger units in this empire – such as the Rumanians, Hungarians, Slowaks, Kroats etc.,  had their own Parliaments and Prime Ministers. Vienna itself was a microcosm of these 22 nationalities and people like Stefan Zweig were thriving here. Stein’s vision included a 1938 Anschluss of parts of Poland when the country was partitioned between Germany and Russia in 1938, and then he writes about a 1941 – “Heimholung” – which is the repatriation of the Poles from under Russia to be with the other Poles under Germany.

Dealing with it this way he avoided having to think about the atrocities, and the true history is relegated to the world of unexplained or unexplainable dreams – that even the disciple of Professor Sigmund Freud Cannot unravel. Albert Einstein’s grave is on the side of the moon that is not exposed to the inhabitants of planet  earth. On the stone is written -”Albert Einstein
March 14, 1879 – April 18, 1955.  “Gott Does Not Throw Dice.”

The story-line is an affair between the astroscientist’s wife and a student from Russia – the descendant of master Repin, and the Komet is the predicted celestial comet that the Professor calculated wila hit the earth on January 1, 2011 – but then turned out that it was made of ice that disintegrated when getting closer to earth.

Oh well – the nightmares of the twenties Century were just bad dreams and the world continued in its past splendor. If America is now more developed then in above story – this is because something snapped in Europe in an accident – the way it shouldn’t.

Is America really as solid as we think, did it accept the fact that it became successful when it absorbed immigrants? Is a traveling America secure enough not to decompose like that comet did? Can it just be a light in the sky with an adorable tail that reminds of the glory of the Christmas story?

###

Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on December 29th, 2012
by Pincas Jawetz (PJ@SustainabiliTank.com)

‘Coal-aholics’ Poland Wages War on Efforts to Save the Climate

SPIEGEL ONLINE – December 21, 2012Poland is addicted to coal. That is the message the country has been sending both domestically and internationally as Warsaw prepares to host the global climate summit next year. In Europe, the Poles are isolated in their fight for looser emissions reduction goals and against fixes to the EU’s cap-and-trade system. By Joel Stonington more…Forum ]

12/21/2012 21.12.2012

‘Coal-aholics’ Poland Wages War on Efforts to Save the Climate

By Joel Stonington, with Spiegel on line, Germany.
 www.spiegel.de/international/euro…

The Belchatow coal-fired power plant near Lodz is one of the world's largest.ZoomAFP

The Belchatow coal-fired power plant near Lodz is one of the world’s largest.

Poland is addicted to coal. That is the message the country has been sending both domestically and internationally as Warsaw prepares to host the global climate summit next year. In Europe, the Poles are isolated in their fight for looser emissions reduction goals and against fixes to the EU’s cap-and-trade system.

For reasons of data protection and privacy, your IP address will only be stored if you are a registered user of Facebook and you are currently logged in to the service. For more detailed information, please click on the “i” symbol.

It is not everyday that a small legal practice receives a visit from a domestic security agency. So Tomasz Wlodarski, the director of Environmental Law Service Poland, said he was surprised when Poland’s equivalent of the FBI paid him a visit in the fall. Even stranger, the officers asked for nothing that hadn’t been previously published about the organization.

“Harassment is a big word,” said Wodarski, “But these are actions that may cause people to feel pressure.”His organization was not the only one to have been called on. And government officials have done their part via the press. In October, Poland’s Treasury Minister Mikolaj Budzanowski criticized an anti-coal environmental organization by telling a local newspaper that the NGO “should accept that there are limits to its activities,” and that “they have exceeded their limit.” Those statements caused about two dozen NGOs to write a scathing letter to Prime Minister Donald Tusk regarding what they called an “unprecedented attack” on Polish society, according to the European news website EurActiv.

The apparent pressure on environmental groups, while concerning, does not seem inconsistent with Warsaw’s approach to issues relating to climate change. On Monday, coal-dependent Poland continued its virtually solitary opposition to a widely-supported — and badly needed — short-term fix for Europe’s carbon-trading system, the continent’s flagship policy in the fight against global warming. Such obstreperousness, however, has not led to Poland’s being internationally ostracized. On the contrary, even as the country helped block Europe’s ability to present a unified front at the recent climate change conference in Doha, Poland was chosen to host the next conference in 2013.

It is a decision which seems destined to make next year’s conference, aimed at fashioning a global pact to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, just as unsuccessful as in years past.

‘Coal-aholics’

The pessimism is born of Poland’s ongoing addiction to coal — and of the government’s own interest in the status quo. Recently, Tusk told a press conference that “energy is the key to politics.” And in Poland, there is little difference between the two. Despite communism having crumbled almost two-and-a-half decades ago, much of the energy industry in Poland remains under government control. Though many of the largest energy companies have been ostensibly privatized, the Polish treasury often retains a significant stake.

“There is a vested interest in maintaining the current power system, so the renewable energy system is too dispersed to benefit the right players in the system,” said Michael LaBelle, a professor at Central European University in Budapest who teaches energy policy. “They are coal-aholics, that’s the best term to use, it’s horrible but it’s true.”

Poland is the 10th largest consumer of coal in the world and produces 92 percent of its electricity from coal, according to the World Coal Association. And despite EU targets for curbing greenhouse gas emissions, Poland is pressing forward with plans replace old coal plants with massive new ones.

That doesn’t mesh well with Europe’s CO2 emissions reduction plans. As Europe’s emissions trading system grows and becomes more comprehensive, carbon should get more expensive. But Poland has responded by both fighting against making fixes to the European Emissions Trading System (ETS) — which has been crippled by chronically low prices for emissions certificates — and against more ambitious goals for reducing carbon emissions. Warsaw has also pushed to get extra pollution allowances for new and existing plants.

“This is a situation in Poland, now, where the government is pushing state-owned companies to build new coal-fired power stations,” said Marcin Stoczkiewicz, a lawyer with ClientEarth, a leading environmental law organization in Europe. “Sometimes those investments are not developing in line with environmental law, especially with EU environmental law.”

‘An Attack on Our Organization’

ClientEarth has not made too many friends in the Polish government. While Stoczkiewicz said his organization’s offices in the Polish capital have not been visited by the police, the group was the target of Treasury Minister Budzanowski’s October comments.

“This represented an attack on our organization and other civil organizations,” Stoczkiewicz said. “The climate of the conversation changed. It seems that the government is trying to push for coal, for dirty investments, even if they are investments which break the law.”

The push is also an international one. This year, Poland has twice vetoed new greenhouse gas reduction targets. And while those vetoes may ultimately be circumvented, Poland is also standing in the way of making the European Emissions Trading System work. The system involves gradually lowering the number of carbon emissions certificates on the open market, thus slowly making it more expensive to release carbon into the atmosphere. But the market is currently glutted, leading to a price-per-ton of emissions of just €7.13 on Friday, well below where it needs to be to act as a disincentive.

There is a united front across Europe — one that includes not just leading European politicians, but also large utility companies and oil firms including Shell — which agrees that a fix is necessary. And a short-term fix, involving the temporary reduction of emissions systems on the market, is on the table.

Poland, though, is not part of that broad front. On Monday, Poland claimed that the proposal to amend the ETS, known as “back-loading,” would cost the country more than €1 billion over the next seven years, according to the news site European Voice. It is a statement consistent with Poland’s outspoken stance that the ETS should not be tampered with, even as the need to fix the system has become more urgent.

The Limit?

“The Emissions Trading System is working as a tax with the highest burden on countries like Poland,” Polish Environment Minister Marcin Korolec said in an interview with SPIEGEL ONLINE. “We are already at the limit of what our industry and citizens can pay.”

Still, it seems unlikely that Poland can avoid facing up to the problem on the long term. Even as CO2 emissions are currently cheap, the price will almost certainly rise in the future, putting pressure on Poland to lower its own output of the pollutant. The current situation, which sees the country relying on power from dirty, Soviet-era coal-fired power plants that have long since been paid for and are cheap to operate, cannot continue indefinitely.

Yet a greater emphasis on natural gas, which is cleaner than coal despite still being a fossil fuel, is problematic for the country. Much of Europe’s supply of natural gas comes from Russia, a country that Poland historically distrusts. What willingness exists in Poland to pursue natural gas is focused primarily on drilling for shale gas in the country.

More Coal Plants on the Way

And when it comes to developing renewable energies, there is frustration in the environmental community. Many say that Poland’s stance on renewable energy seems to come more from ideological issues than from a studying long-term economics and viability. Julia Michalak, a policy officer for Climate Action Network Europe, said that the strong mining lobby aligned with government combined with Warsaw’s emphasis on energy security add up to a policy of blocking and fighting climate policy from Brussels.

“What is needed is a very robust and detailed analysis of both costs and benefits,” Michalak said. “So far I haven’t seen it.”

Coal, in short, appears to be Warsaw’s only strategy when it comes to energy. And the Polish government is moving forward with major investments in coal-fired power plants, planning to spend €24 billion in the energy sector over the next eight years with much of that earmarked for 11,300 megawatts of new coal plants — an amount equivalent to Israel’s peak electricity usage during a heat wave.”Our economy is dependent on electricity produced by coal,” said Stoczkiewicz. “This is the fact. But the policy should be to change this bad energy mix and try to find cleaner sources of energy.”

Such a change, though, doesn’t seem to be in the country’s near future.

###

Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on December 11th, 2012
by Pincas Jawetz (PJ@SustainabiliTank.com)

Quote of the day

Climate change was predicted to arrive tomorrow but it is happening today. For this reason, the moment for climate justice has arrived.

Edward Cameron, World Resources Institute and Tara Shine, Mary Robinson Foundation.

SOUTHNEWS
No. 20,         10 December 2012
SOUTHNEWS is a service of the South Centre to provide information and news on topical issues from a South perspective.
Visit the South Centre’s website: www.southcentre.org.

Green thinking takes root in midst of desert in Doha climate talks

Are oil-rich Gulf states, once a byword for waste and excess, really now leading the world on sustainable development?

COP18 Doha : Qatar environmental policy , partnership with the Potsdam Institute

The signing of a partnership between the Qatar Foundation and the Postdam Institute for a new climate change research institute in Qatar. (Photograph: IISD)

One of the great surprises for the 15,000 negotiators and others here in Doha for the climate talks is not the breakneck speed of development in the gas-rich emirate, or the displays of wealth and the giant construction projects, but the possible dawn of reality.

Until recently, the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) states were the epicentre of unsustainable global development, a byword for waste, excess and ecological irresponsibility. Their huge consumption of natural resources and flouting of nature on the back of oil and gas production shocked even hard-nosed observers of global oil wealth.

Well, we may have to change our views. From my hotel window, I can see 14 monster buildings being built, each to a much higher energy standard than the law demands in the US or most of Europe. Down the road is a new $70m (£43m) test-bed for carbon capture, the beginnings of a 200 megawatt solar power station, a $1bn photovoltaic manufacturing plant, new waste treatment plants, a pilot project to grow food in the desert with saltwater, and a fledgling construction industry with waste plastic.

Green baubles for the super-rich perhaps, but there is evidence that a real change of thinking is taking place. Schools, local authorities and mosques are now teaching about water and energy saving, and Gulf state governments are committing themselves to deeper cuts in emissions than the US or much of Europe.

Britain hopes to generate 20% of its electricity with renewables by 2030. But the Qataris will do that by 2020. Britain, with a population of more than 60 million, built about 100,000 new homes last year. Qatar, with 1.4 million people, will build a whole city to the highest green specifications for 200,000 people in not much more time.

And it’s not just Qatar. Other Gulf states are racing each other to rethink their development paths. The renewable energy world is moving to Abu Dhabi. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology has invested billions of dollars in projects there, as well as in Europe and north Africa. Even Dubai, which has indulged in a 20-year construction frenzy, is aiming at 7% renewables in 12 years – similar to Belgium. Even more remarkably, Saudi Arabia, fearful of its own escalating domestic electricity needs, will meet one-third of its electricity demand from solar by 2032.

None of this would have been conceivable even a few years ago. So what has changed? One senior adviser to the Qatari government put it like this: “There is a new direction. The GCC countries all move together like a herd. A desperate search is going on to find new ways of doing things. They need to find the answer for when the oil and gas is not there. They have seen the future and now they have fire in their arse.

“But they also know that the Arab spring countries all neglected people during development. They are learning. Education, health and welfare were all neglected. Environment has risen up the agenda. In the past, it was of no interest. Now it is a global necessity. Money is not the problem.”

The thirst for what Qatar, Abu Dhabi and other oil-rich states call a new “knowledge economy” would partly explain why Qatar on Wednesday committed to set up a global climate change centre in Doha with the German Potsdam Institute. It will employ around 200 researchers and sit beside a dozen other prestigious US, British and other academic centres, including Imperial College, which is now at Doha.

The founder of the institute, Hans Joachim Schellnhuber, spelled out what was at stake: “Qatar is the only true desert state in the world with no surface water and 500km of flat coastline, where temperatures are already 45C in summer. With sea level rise expected to be up to 90cm by 2100 in the Gulf region and temperatures expected to rise [by] 5-8C, this place will be unlivable [if climate change is not brought under control].”

The Gulf states’ change of direction, he suggested, is being undertaken not out of any desire to be green but sheer pragmatism. What happens here could shape all our futures, says the adviser. “The next stage of modern civilization can be blueprinted here. Qatar can be a role model for the region and the whole planet.”

———————————————————————————————————————

Last-minute scramble for climate deal at UN talks

Negotiations continued through the night Thursday at United Nations climate talks in Doha, Qatar, with envoys trying to mesh procedure with political will. A key proposal is the annual delivery of $100 billion in aid by 2020 to pay for projects to cope with the effects of global warming. The lead negotiator from the Philippines, Naderev Saño, broke down in tears in the hall, saying, “I appeal to the whole world, I appeal to leaders from all over the world, to open our eyes to the stark reality that we face. … It cannot be a way of life that we end up running always from storms.”

Above tells us that the location and hosts had no effect on the negotiators that still attempted a North-South wrangle. A waste of time so far as we are concerned.

———————————————————————————————————————-

he faithful IISD Report titled -

Doha Climate Change Conference Adopts Doha Climate Gateway -

spills out for us to see the best diplomatic slippery beans:

8 December 2012: The UN Climate Change Conference in Doha, Qatar, took place from 26 November-8 December 2012, focused on ensuring the implementation of agreements reached at previous conferences. Following two weeks of negotiations, delegates adopted the package of “Doha Climate Gateway” decisions on the evening of Saturday, 8 December. The outcome includes amendments to the Kyoto Protocol to establish its second commitment period.The Doha Climate Change Conference included: the 18th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 18) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC); the eighth session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (CMP 8); the 37th sessions of the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA 37) and the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI 37); the second part of the 17th session of the Ad Hoc Working Group on Further Commitments for Annex I Parties under the Kyoto Protocol (AWG-KP 17); the second part of the 15th session of the Ad Hoc Working Group on Long-term Cooperative Action under the UNFCCC (AWG-LCA 15); and the second part of the Ad Hoc Working Group on Durban Platform for Enhanced Action (ADP 1).

The DOHA conference drew approximately 9,000 participants, including 4, 356 government officials, 3, 956 representatives of UN bodies and agencies, intergovernmental organizations and civil society organizations, and 683 members of the media. {much lower figures then the above upbeat report}

Having been launched at CMP 1, the AWG-KP terminated its work in Doha. The parties also agreed to terminate the AWG-LCA and negotiations under the Bali Action Plan. Key elements of the outcome also included agreement to consider loss and damage, “such as” an institutional mechanism to address loss and damage in developing countries that are particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change. Other outcomes of the Conference include the adoption of: a decision on gender and climate change; and the Doha Work Programme on Convention Article 6 (education and awareness raising).

While developing countries and observers expressed disappointment with the lack of ambition in outcomes on Annex I countries’ mitigation and finance, most agreed that the conference had paved the way for a new phase, focusing on the implementation of the outcomes from negotiations under the AWG-KP and AWG-LCA, and advancing negotiations under the ADP.

[IISD RS Coverage of the Conference] [UN Press Release] [UN Secretary-General's Statement on COP 18] [UNFCCC Press Release]

For IISD FULL REPORT - please see - mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?shva=1…

———————————————————————————————————————

FOLLOWED BY THE UNUSUAL SHORT AND VERY MISLEADING UNSG BAN KI-MOON PRESS RELEASE THAT IN A FEW LINES DECLARES THE SECRETARIAT”S BANKRUPTCY  IN ALL MATTERS OF CLIMATE CHANGE.

10 December 2012

THE UNITED NATIONS
Secretary-GeneralSG/SM/14708
ENV/DEV/1333

Department of Public Information • News and Media Division • New York

Secretary-General Welcomes Doha Climate Change Conference Outcome, But Stresses Need for Accelerated Action to Limit Rise in Global Temperature.

SO WE ASK – WHAT DID THE MEETING ACTUALLY ACHIEVE? DIPLOMACY ASIDE _ WHO PAID AND WHO GAINED FROM THIS MIGRATION OF CLOSE TO 10,000 PEOPLE TO THE ISLAND OF QATAR, IN A CORNER OF THE SAUDI PENINSULA OF THE GREAT ARAB DESERT?

The following statement was issued on 8 December by the Spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon:

The Secretary-General welcomes the outcome of the United Nations Climate Change Conference that concluded today in Doha, and he congratulates Qatar for a job well done in hosting the Conference.

Doha successfully concluded the previous round of climate negotiations, paving the way to a comprehensive, legally binding agreement by 2015.

The Secretary-General believes that far more needs to be done and he calls on Governments, along with businesses, civil society and citizens, to accelerate action on the ground so that the global temperature rise can be limited to 2° C.

He said he will increase his personal involvement in efforts to raise ambition, scale-up climate financing and engage world leaders as we now move towards the global agreement in 2015.
* *** *

Will the UN Secretary General show now rhe decency to cancel the 2013 – 2014 meetings and advise the Member States to act in quiet diplomacy in preparations for a 2015 outcome?

Meeting before 2015 like the Cancun, Durban and Doha meetings – the last three yearly meetings that came after the Copenhagen COP 15 of the UNFCCC of 2009 – were nothing more then large exercises in migration that enhanced income from tourism in the host countries. Our own website has stopped listing the meetings after the Copenhagen meeting and we preferred to call them Copenhagen +1, Copenhagen +2, And now for Doha we reserved Copenhagen +3. That was because the last real step in the UNFCCC evolution happened on the way to Copenhagen when President Obama went first to Beijing and managed for the first time to get China to declare that they are indeed part of these negotiations. China then brought in India, Brazil, South Africa as well.


We are afraid that if nothing is done before the 2013 Warsaw meeting that meeting will be a waste as well. What has to happen is that the Obama II Administration steps forward with direct proposals to the other major emitters – specifically – China, India and Brazil – with or without South Africa – and seals direct agreements with them that can then become the base for multilateral negotiations. Indeed, there is no reason why one must have all nations on board.

In the past it was mainly the oil States of the Middle East that were the hindrance to an agreement – this even before one could tackle the large emerging emitters and the United States. Perhaps the Doha meeting provided the needed Climate Change education to the oil States, and thus a strong decision of President Obama and rolling over the climate deniers of the Republican oil-Lobby, could return the issue to multilateral diplomacy.

———————————————————————————————————————

Kyoto Protocol extended in climate compromise.

Is the title of the UN Foundation’s UN WIRE of December 10, 2012.

Delegates at the United Nations climate talks that ended Saturday in Doha, Qatar, agreed to extend the Kyoto Protocol through 2020 and create a road map by 2015 to replace the pact. The world’s governments remained divided over who should pay the costs for helping the most vulnerable countries cope with the effects of climate change through 2020, when industrial nations are slated to contribute $100 billion annually from public and private sources.         Reuters (12/9), The New York Times (12/8), IRINNews.org (12/9)

THE REUTERS REPORTS  FROM DOHA ARE AS FOLLOWS:

Despair after climate conference, but UN still offers hope

Sunday, December  9, 2012 final report:

* U.N. process has to accelerate before 2015

* Many leave Doha conference in despair

By Barbara Lewis and Alister Doyle

DOHA, Dec 9 (Reuters) – At the end of another lavishly-funded U.N. conference that yielded no progress on curbing greenhouse emissions, many of those most concerned about climate change are close to despair.

As thousands of delegates checked out of their air-conditioned hotel rooms in Doha to board their jets for home, some asked whether the U.N. system even made matters worse by providing cover for leaders to take no meaningful action.

Supporters say the U.N. process is still the only framework for global action. The United Nations also plays an essential role as the “central bank” for carbon trading schemes, such as the one set up by the European Union.

But unless rich and poor countries can inject urgency into their negotiations, they are heading for a diplomatic fiasco in 2015 – their next deadline for a new global deal.

“Much much more is needed if we are to save this process from being simply a process for the sake of process, a process that simply provides for talk and no action, a process that locks in the death of our nations, our people, and our children,” said Kieren Keke, foreign minister of Nauru, who fears his Pacific island state could become uninhabitable.

The conference held in Qatar – the country that produces the largest per-capita volume of greenhouse gases in the world – agreed to extend the emissions-limiting Kyoto Protocol, which would have run out within weeks.

But Canada, Russia and Japan – where the protocol was signed 15 years ago – all abandoned the agreement. The United States never ratified it in the first place, and it excludes developing countries where emissions are growing most quickly.

Delegates flew home from Doha without securing a single new pledge to cut pollution from a major emitter.

So far, U.N. climate talks have missed just about every deadline. The rich nations of the world promised two decades ago to halt their rise in greenhouse gases. They failed. Next, they promised a sequel to Kyoto by 2009. They failed again.

Now they have a 2015 deadline to get a new global, binding deal in place, to enter into force after the extension of Kyoto expires in 2020. For the first time, it would apply to rich and poor countries alike. But with the world’s nations divided over who must pay the cost, the task of reaching accord seems beyond the capabilities of the vast corps of international delegates.

Meanwhile, the world’s weather is only getting more unstable. As the Doha talks dragged on, Typhoon Bopha in the Philippines left nearly 1,000 people dead or missing.

Hurricane Sandy last month was a reminder that even rich countries are not safe from extreme weather, which scientists say will become ever more common as the world heats up.

PROGRESS AT GROUND LEVEL

A series of reports released during the Doha talks said the world faced the prospect of 4 degrees Celsius (7.2F) of warming, rather than the 2 degree (3.6F) limit that nations adopted in 2010 as a maximum to avoid dangerous changes.

// BUT UN SERETARY GENERAL BAN KI_MOON STILL DREAMS AT A 2degrees LIMIT?!//

According to the World Bank, that would mean food and water shortages, habitats wiped out, coastal communities wrecked by rising seas, deserts spreading, and droughts both more frequent and severe. Most impact would be borne by the world’s poorest.

“The alarm bells are going off all over the place,” Alden Meyer, of the Union of Concerned Scientists, said. “We are in a crisis and treating it like a process where we can dither away for ever.”

Action at ground level has had a positive impact, even as the U.N. dithers. Investment in carbon-free renewable energy hit a record $260 billion in 2011.

In the United States, the discovery of techniques to produce natural gas from shale has cut the cost of gas, which has reduced emissions from the world’s biggest polluter by replacing coal, a bigger carbon emitter, for power generation.

But although U.S. emissions – nearly a quarter of the world’s total – have fallen, for the world as a whole this year they are expected to rise by 2.6 percent, up by 58 percent since 1990. Emerging economies led by China and India account for most of the growth.

Although frustrated by days and nights of haggling, ministers still back the United Nations as part of the solution.

“It’s clear to me that this process is the only global framework we have and since this is a global problem, it has to be addressed globally,” Denmark’s Energy Minister Martin Lidegaard told Reuters.

“But obviously, this can’t stand alone. Nations can’t continue to hide behind the process. There’s a direct link between what we deliver at home and here. We desperately need to combine action by regions, municipalities, citizens with this global approach. That is becoming more and more evident.”

Negotiators say ultimately politicians – distracted by other events – need to become engaged.

“It (the environment) is no longer on the front page with the political and financial crisis. That is the reason why heads of state have to turn to this,” the European Union’s chief negotiator Artur Runge-Metzger said.

CONVERTS

The conference is an easy target for cynics – not least because it was held in Qatar, a desert kingdom that exports carbon-producing fossil fuel and uses the proceeds to fund a lavish lifestyle for many of its 2.5 million people.

A country that burns fuel to desalinate water and build golf courses in the desert seems like an odd place to talk about curtailing consumption. But supporters say bringing producers like Qatar into the consensus for change is a step forward.

Business leaders are also getting involved.

“A lot of CEOs from the region have turned up. A lot of them are talking about sustainability and resource efficiency. That’s no longer a dirty word,” said Russel Mills, global director for energy and climate policy at Dow Chemical Co.

Dow, like many other big industrial firms, keeps a close eye on U.N. carbon policy because of the United Nations’ role as “a kind of central bank” for pollution allowances.

The most developed carbon trading scheme is the European Union’s, which has lurched from crisis to crisis. The value of EU Emissions Trading Scheme permits sank to a record low this month under the burden of surplus allowances during a recession.

But other jurisdictions such as Australia, California, South Korea and even China believe they can learn from Europe’s mistakes and are developing their own emissions trading. Such schemes could be the planet’s best hope of survival, and the United Nations is likely to play a role.

“Economy-wide carbon pricing, whether carbon taxes or cap and trade, is the only approach that can conceivably achieve the targets scientists advocate,” Robert Stavins, a professor of business and government at Harvard in the United States, said.

“Also, it will be most the cost-effective and therefore in the long run the most politically-viable approach.”

Still, even with the best of intentions, U.N. diplomats are unlikely ever to deliver change at the pace scientists seek.

“Science is demanding immediate and drastic action,” Christiana Figueres, head of the U.N. Climate Change Secretariat, told Reuters. “Policy, economics and financing cannot move in drastic fashion.”

——————————————————————————————————————–

and the IRIN NEWS  Report:

IRIN – standing for Integrated Regional Information Networks – has its head office in Nairobi, Kenya, with regional desks in Nairobi, Johannesburg, Dakar, Dubai and Bangkok, covering some 70 countries. The bureaus are supported by a network of local correspondents, an increasing rarity in mainstream newsgathering today.

CLIMATE CHANGE: Snapshot of wins and losses at the Doha talks.

Talks in Doha at the futuristic Qatar National Convention Centre dragged on overtime

JOHANNESBURG, 9 December 2012 (IRIN) – Like last year’s UN climate change talks, this year’s conference in Doha culminated in an all-night session to hammer out a deal on preventing further global warming and protecting people from the effects of climate change. While some promising compromises were made, the absence of a strong commitment to slash greenhouse gas emissions and help vulnerable populations adapt to climate change was evident in the conference’s 39 decisions.

IRIN provides a snapshot of the three overarching themes of the decisions that came out of the 18th session of the Conference of Parties (COP18) to UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), and what these decisions mean for humanitarian actors.

Loss and damage

Tweeting out of the conference, one of Argentina’s negotiators said the decisions don’t feel “ground-breaking” but are “more likely saving face”. “What we got for it, only loss and damage and nothing else”, he said.

''[The] decisions don’t feel ground-breaking but are more likely saving face. What we got for it, only loss and damage and nothing else''

Poor countries, including small island states and the least developed countries, were looking for a decision to create an international mechanism to address losses and damages caused by climate change. The mechanism would open the door to possible compensation from affluent countries for poor countries facing the mounting costs of extreme climate events. It would consider both their economic and non-economic losses, and possibly explore technological interventions.

In the end, they had to settle for the possibility of this happening in the COP19 talks taking place in Poland next year. Still, the fact that the possibility of such a mechanism was mentioned in the decision at all was considered a breakthrough.

Additionally, a work programme collecting data on loss and damage caused by slow-onset disasters – such as droughts – received an extension. The programme will also consider climate change’s impact on migration patterns and displacement, as well as efforts to reduce risk.

The decisions on loss and damage echoes much of a framework proposed by a group of NGOs earlier in the conference, which had recommended focusing on the international mechanism, the work programme, and consideration of non-economic losses. But ultimately, the decisions are subject to money being made available for development of the work programme.

What it means: With the extension of the work programme, more information on possible policy approaches will be forthcoming. This will help humanitarian organizations better scale-up responses to extreme climate events, which are increasing in frequency and intensity.

But NGOs and the civil society will likely have to wait a long time for affluent countries to make firm commitments on funding, risk transfer mechanisms such as insurance, and technology to help poor countries improve their resilience to climate change. Given that money to help vulnerable populations adapt has been ad hoc and insufficient, there is little optimism for funds being made available for compensation.

Adaptation finance

In 2009, developed countries promised to provide US$30 billion by 2012 to help poor countries adapt to climate change. They also promised to provide $100 billion a year from 2020 onwards.
Developed countries reported in Doha that they had reached the $30 billion target, but this was disputed by academics and civil society.

“It is very difficult to know where that finance went and how,” said scientist Saleemul Huq of the International Institute for Environment and Development. “We need to come up with procedures for monitoring, reporting and verification of these finance figures. We need to agree on some format so that money can be tracked effectively. It hasn’t been tracked previously.”

The developed countries further indicated that, with the global recession, they are unable to make firm commitments to finance poor nations’ efforts to adapt. Instead, a decision was made to set up a work programme in 2013 to help developed countries identify ways to raise this money.

What it means: No global funding pledge has been for the interim period between 2013 and 2020. Individual pledges by five European countries – including the UK, France and Germany – have been made, but cumulatively, these fall far short of the $60 billion that developing countries had requested for the interim.

It is also not clear if the five pledges are specifically for climate change adaptation or if they are part of the Official Development Assistance (ODA) that developed countries provide to the developing world. The UNFCC requires that developed countries provide money for climate change adaptation that is additional to their ODA.

Emission cuts

The good news to emerge from the talks is that the Kyoto Protocol – a global agreement to cut emissions that was set to expire in 2012 – has been extended to 2020.

They also agreed that a roadmap to create a deal to replace the Kyoto Protocol should be ready in 2015.

But meanwhile, there are no firm commitments to take on deeper emissions cuts. And with Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Russia and the US opting out of the Kyoto Protocol, the protocol applies to only 15 percent of current global greenhouse gas emissions.

What it means: Scientific organization, including the UN Environment Programme have warned that failing to further cut emissions could increase global temperatures by over four degrees Celius by the turn of the century. The internationally embraced goal is to limit this warming to two degrees Celsius, but the International Energy Agency has shown that achieving this goal grows more difficult and expensive with every passing year. This means poor countries and aid agencies will have to contend with the possibility of more frequent and intense climatic events and the mounting costs associated with prevention, relief and recovery.

jk/rz

see also -

[This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]

———————————————————-

A ‘low ambition’ outcome at Doha climate change conference

By Martin Khor, Executive Director of the South Centre, Doha, 9 December 2012

The annual UN climate conference concluded in Doha last Saturday (8 December) with “low ambition” both in emission cuts by developed countries and funding for developing countries.

Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) adopted many decisions, including on the Kyoto Protocol’s second commitment period in which developed countries committed to cut their emissions of greenhouse gases.

Many delegates left the conference quite relieved that they had reached agreement after days of wrangling over many issues and an anxious last 24 hours that were so contentious that most people felt a collapse was imminent.

The relief was that the multilateral climate change regime has survived yet again, although there are such deep differences and distrust among developed and developing countries.

The conflict in paradigms between these two groups of countries was very evident throughout the two weeks of the Doha negotiations, and it was only papered over superficially in the final hours to avoid an open failure.  But the differences will surface again when negotiations resume next year.

Avoidance of collapse was a poor measure of success.  In terms of progress towards real actions to tackle the climate change crisis, the Doha conference was another lost opportunity and grossly inadequate.

The conference was held at the end of a year of record extreme events.  News of typhoon in the Philippines which killed 500 and made 300,000 homeless reminded the conference participants of the reality of the climate crisis.

However, the dictates of economic competition and commercial interests unfortunately were of higher priority, especially among developed countries, which explains their low ambition in emission reduction.  They also broke their promises in the legally binding UNFCCC to provide funds and transfer technology to developing countries.

The most important result in Doha was the formal adoption of the Kyoto Protocol’s second commitment period (2013 to 2020) to follow immediately after the first period expires on 31 December 2012.

However, the elements are weak.  With original Kyoto Protocol Parties Russia, Japan and New Zealand having decided not to join in a second commitment period, and and Canada have left the Protocol altogether, only Europe, Norway, Switzerland, Australia, and a few others (totalling 35 developed countries and countries with economies in transition) are left to make legally binding commitments in the second period.

Also, the emission cuts these countries agreed to commit to are in aggregate only 18% by 2020 below the 1990 level, compared to the 25-40% required to restrict global temperature rise to 2 degrees Celsius.

A saving factor in the Kyoto Protocol decision is the “ambition mechanism” put in by developing countries, that the countries will “revisit” their original target and increase their commitments by 2014, in line with the aggregate 25-40% reduction goal.

Also, the decision severely limited the amount of credits or surplus allowances that can be used during the second period.  These credits were accumulated in the Kyoto Protocol’s first commitment period by countries that cut their emissions more than the targeted level.

According to the decision, these countries cannot use or trade most of the surplus allowances as a means to avoid current emission cuts.

The most important country affected is Russia, and on Saturday it strongly objected to the way the President of the Conference, Abdullah Hamad al-Attiyah of Qatar, bulldozed through the Kyoto Protocol decision even though it and two other countries tried to object.

——-

// DO YOU REMEMBER THOSE KYOTO HOT AIR CLOUDS RELEASED BY THE COLLAPSE OF THE ANTIQUATED SOVIET BLOC INDUSTRY?//

Just look at what happened at Doha – here something we heartily applaud:

The final “wrangling” took place in the closing plenary on Saturday afternoon between those wanting to limit the use of excess AAUs to ensure the “environmental integrity” of the emission reduction commitments put forward and those arguing that “overachievement” of commitments should not be punished by a limitation in the use of AAUs. Russia, Ukraine and Belarus attempted to block the adoption of the AWG-KP outcome during the CMP closing plenary, but the nimble COP President gaveled its adoption before appearing to notice Russia’s raised flag. A round of applause welcomed the adoption of the decision, which limits the amount of surplus AAUs that can be used and provides that only parties taking on second commitment period QELRCs can use them. Russia objected to what he said was a breach of procedure by the President, while the COP President responded he would do no more than reflect his view in the final report. This action on the part of the COP President brought back echoes of the events of Cancun when Bolivia’s objections to the adoption of the Cancun Agreement were overruled/ignored in much the same way. It also made many wonder whether this was becoming a trend in the climate negotiations; as many have repeated, consensus does not mean the right of one party to block progress.

The information comes from the IISD final analysis – www.iisd.ca/climate/cop18/enb/

NOW – IF THIS KILLED SOME HOT-AIR BALLOONS – POWER TO QATAR – WE LOVE THEM.

——-

A second major criticism of the Doha decisions is the lack of funds to be provided to developing countries to take climate actions.

In 2010, the Conference of Parties in Cancun decided that developed countries would mobilize climate finance of US$100 billion a year starting in 2020; and that US$30 billion of fast track finance would be given in 2010-2012.

But there is a gap between 2013 and 2020.  Despite the demand by developing countries that there be US$60 billion by 2015, the decision adopted on Saturday does not specify any number as a commitment.  It only “encourages” countries to provide at least as much as they had in the 2010-2012 period.

The lack of a credible finance commitment led to an outcry by developing countries on the plenary floor.  This lack of funds curtails their ability to undertake actions to combat climate change, especially since they have agreed in the 2010 Cancun and 2011 Durban Conferences to take on more mitigation efforts.

The Doha conference also adopted a set of decisions under its working group on long-term cooperative action under the UNFCCC.  The developing countries were pleased with paragraphs on equity, unilateral trade measures, technology assessment and a vague reference to the effects of intellectual property.

However these decisions were very weak.  Even then the United States registered its disagreement or reservations to these decisions, after the adoption of the text, giving a foretaste of how they will continue to object to future discussions on these issues.

A positive decision made in Doha was to prepare for the setting up by next year’s Conference of an “international mechanism”  to help developing countries deal with loss and damage caused by climate change. This also resulted from intense negotiations.

Activities meanwhile will include an expert meeting and preparing technical papers on this issue.  Developing countries hope that this programme will lead to new funds being channelled to those countries suffering from flooding, drought, sea level rise and other forms of damage linked to climate change.

The Doha conference also adopted a work plan for the new working group on the Durban Platform that was set up in December 2011.  There were major fights in Doha over this, with many  developing countries insisting that mention be made that the Durban Platform will operate on the basis of equity and common and differentiated responsibilities (CBDR), the operating principle of the UNFCCC.

The final text did not mention this principle, and even the reference to the June 2012 Rio Plus 20 Summit which endorsed the equity and CBDR principle was removed at the insistence of the United States.

What remained in the text was a reference that the Durban Platform’s work will be guided by the principles of the Convention.  Even then, the United States in the final plenary placed a reservation that they reject the use of this phrase in the negotiations in the Durban Platform group. (The phrase is in the 2011 decision that established the working group – after the United States rejected any reference to explicit inclusion of “equity” or “CBDR” the final compromise was “under the Convention”.)

This reveals how much lacking in the spirit of international cooperation that the United States and some other developed countries have become.

They are no longer willing to assist the developing countries, and incredibly are even objecting to the principles of the Convention being applied to negotiations to set up a new agreement that will be under the Convention.

More than anything else, this shows the tragic paradox of the Doha conference. It succeeded in adopting many decisions and kept the functioning of the multilateral climate regime alive, but the actual substance of actions to save the planet from climate change was absent, as was a genuine commitment to support the developing countries.

Author: Marin Khor is Executive Director of the South Centre. Contact: director@southcentre.org.

An earlier version of this article was published in The Star of 10 December 2012.

To view other articles in SouthNews, please click here.
For more information, please contact Vicente Paolo Yu of the South Centre:
Email yu@southcentre.org, or telephone +41 22 791 80 50.
The list of the Climate Change Convention Conferences of the Parties held todate:

###

Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on December 3rd, 2012
by Pincas Jawetz (PJ@SustainabiliTank.com)

The Internet says about Russ and Daughters:
Home

 www.russanddaughters.com/our_hist…

Mark Russ Federman is third generation – counting from grandfather Joel who located in the Lower East Side, Manhattan Island in 1907.

On March 5, 2013, the Publishers Schocken Books, a Division of Random House, Inc. will release the volume by Mark titled: “Russ & Daughters – Reflections and Recipes From The House That Herring Built.” We wonder if the cover page will carry the picture of the front of the store at 179 East Houston Street, New York, NY 10002, or the picture of a Bagel with Salmon-Lux and Cream Cheese with onion. The latter is depicted on the publication-date advertisement, and it would be a pity to have there the Royal Lux rather then the more plebeian Herring.

Then – please remember – 2014 will be the centennial year to the fabled Herring store.

————————————-

These last few weeks, many things sort off created a nostalgic atmosphere that came together in the Yiddish term – A GOLDENE MEDINE or the GOLDEN LAND and I was left wondering which land was this indeed? And here came to my attention that THE NATIONAL YIDDISH THEATER – the New York Folksbiene – will present the end of the run of THE GOLDEN LAND – A musical in English and Yiddish – Created by Zalmen Mlotek & Moishe Rosenfeld – Directed by the famed Bryna Wasserman of the Montreal Theater family.

The added attraction for the 2 PM show on Sunday December 2nd, 2012, was a COFFEE & CONVERSATION with Mark Russ Federman of the famed – nearly one hundred years old – Russ & Daughters Herring Mecca in the heart of the Manhattan Lower East Side – a store that has survived the changes in its neighborhood like the anchor of the ship that transported close to two million European Jews to their first Golden shores.

Talking about Russ & Daughters will embrace 100 years of development of the Jewish Community in America, and as the geopolitics have proven lately as well – steps that led to the other ongoing Golden Land of the 19th to 21st centuries in Jewish history – the strengthening of the Community in Israel.

————————————–

A Concise Russ Family History:

1985 – Joel Russ is born in Strzyzow (Strizev in Yiddish) – a rural town (Stetl) in Austro-Hungary’s Galizia. After WWI the place became part of Southern Poland.

1907 – Joe, at twelve, gets to America following an older sister – the usual story – first Ellis Island then Lower East Side (LES). He starts out by selling strings of polish mushrooms that he carries on his shoulders. He saves money to purchase a push cart and then a horse and wagon. He marries another immigrant from Galizia in 1908 at 13. They have three daughters – Hattie, Anne, and Ida. Hattie, the oldest, is born in 1913.

1914 Joel Ross opens up his first store on Orchard Street, just bellow East Huston and includes in his wares salt cured Herring and Salmon. The daughters start working in the store when they reach 11 years of age.

1920 – Joel Russ moves his store around the corner to 179 East Houston Street and renames it – perhaps with some Chutzpah – “J. Russ National Appetizing Store.”

1932 – the start of the Depression and Joel Russ sells the home they bought in Brooklyn and they return to live in cramped quarters on East 4th Street in Manhattan – but hangs on to the store.

1933 – He renames the company to Russ and Daughters, and it is believed to be the first American business to have the word DAUGHTERS in its name.

The sons-in-law work in the family business, and Mark Russ Federman (a third generation Russ) returns to the business with his wife, after 9 years of practicing law.

In 1976 and 1980, two recent young immigrants from the Dominican republic – Jose Reyes and Herman Vargas, join as employees. They learn Yiddish from the clients  and eventually Herman ends up managing the store. Mark does not speak Yiddish, though in grandfather Joel’s home only Yiddish was spoken.

2000 – The Smithsonian Institute designates Russ & Daughters “a part of New York’s Cultural Heritage.” The former tenement building where it’s housed, which in the meantime was bought by the Russ family from Mrs. Franks, the original German lady that owned it, is placed onto the National Register for Historic Places.

2002 – Fourth generation Russ, Joshua Russ Tupper, leaves his career as a chemical engineer and enters the family business, joined in 2006 by Mark’s daughter – Niki Russ Federman.

————————————–

The National Yiddish Theater is located in the building of the William and Anita Newman Vertical Campus at the Baruch College (that is the City University College located on Bernard Baruch Way on East 25th Street in Manhattan between Lexington and Park Avenues). Mr. Newman, his brother, both his parents, and many of his eventual partners graduated from this college that allowed them to develop great careers having immigrated to America from East Europe and landed in the Lower East Side (LES) with nothing else then the will to succeed.The Newmans back New York City University so next waves of immigrants can progress as well.

THE SHOW:

The ship arrives – the passengers are enchanted – “Here she is – how beautiful! a Golden Home!”

Oh Ellis Island! The interrogations and a new name some pick for themselves. The old joke – the newcomer trains himself to say Izzie Jacobs0n but mumbles “Shoin Vergesen” and ends up getting registered as Sean Ferguson.

Life’s a Pretzel – Gold is in the Street – it’s fool’s gold.

“A Brievele der Mamen” – a letter to mother – but what should I write?

March 25, 1911 – a day of horror in Washington Square – a fire in a sweatshop – so many innocent working girls burned – trapped to die in the Triangle Company fire. In the follow up the red flag is unfurled with a cry for justice. The trumpets and saxophones from the orchestra march on stage – the conscience of the new America is awakened. The Jewish immigrants fight for the better America.

Intermission.

Surkie becomes Sadie – a regular Yankie – American citizen. {will something like this happen to the Hispanic immigrants of today?} The former Izzie Jacobson becomes now – “they call me C.D. Allen” – that is he lived on Allen Street corner of Delancey and he remembers this for its positives.

The social element sings – Fifty-Fifty as the Astors will have to learn to share their wealth. New wealth appears – Louis B. Mayer in Holywood and radio WEVD provides lessons on the air.

The Depression – President Hoover says don’t panic – they tell us it will be well but do not say when. Not just we – it is half the Nation that is asking for an explanation. Brother can you spare a dime? We lost our store but the faith in God we have not lost. We will survive.

Yesterday I had a dream for you and me. I dreamed about life for you and me and children – yes – children! A beautiful dream, and education, as we did not have. As long as you have me and I have you.

Clouds appear in Europe – My Little Town Belz, and the Germans crossed the Polish border. It should not happen to our dogs what happened to me.

The Bnei Brith ask for 20,000 visas for the US and are told that it will be taken into consideration.

Dozens of Jews have disappeared in Bucarest – Rumania, Rumania – a Pastramale, a Carnatzale ….

We have no contact with our families – Save European Jews! Please Help! Warshaw – Kiew – Kishinew …

We liberated Camp Dachau – it is hard to put this in words.

1947 at the UN – THE SUN IS SHINING – THE JEWISH PEOPLE HAVE ONCE AGAIN A FUTURE IN A GOLDEN LAND.

America Hurra!

Due to demand – the show will continue for another two more weeks.

————————————–

Above is in narrative the sequence of well known songs strung out so they tell a complete story.

Did it mean that we moved from one Golden Land to see the creation of an additional one?

————————————-

Back to Mr. Mark Russ Federman son of Ida Russ and third generation of American Russ proprietors of the American Herring National treasure.

In his presentation before The Golden Land performance:

Jews love their food – that he learned in his interaction with the clients – Mazaleh, Pastramaleh, Mamaliga – it is all in the songs. The monuments still left in the LES area – the Schimmel Knishery, Katz Delicatessen, and Russ & Daughters – all on East Houston Street.

Joel Russ worked in his store seven days a week – no closed Saturdays or Holidays. They spoke only Yiddish at home but kept no religious laws – it was not a Kosher-abiding place and the sturgeon is not a Kosher fish. Joel Russ left the religion on Ellis Island. By 1940 their business was known as the best place for fish in New York. Mark said about himself that he feels best with a knife in his hand behind the counter. He put on a white gown he used in the store.

He regards his heritage as high pedigree – “Jiches” of his business of fish – Smoked, Pickled or Cured. The customers those days knew to shop and demanded quality. On his part – he learned to sell. He instituted numbers on index cards in order to know whom to serve and found it hard to give a number to an old customer. He described the shopping experience as something between making love and war. He had a story about a Mrs. Manny that had to pick her herrings directly from the barrels in the back-room. Zero – that is the actor Zero Mostel used to come to the store. Once Ronald Lauder came with the chauffeured limousine to get the treats. Now the customers are international – even Chinese and Japanese. The Jiches of Russ is like that of Top Rabbis or Doctors.

Some of the fish are different. The butter-fish is no more – it became too high priced because of the Chinese and Japanese buying it up. The sable fish is also not sold by their store anymore – it belongs to the Japanese. At one time or another 1.5 million Jewish immigrants passed through LES. Now sometimes young descendants make a point of moving into 5-6 floor walk-up apartments there. Many new and expensive buildings with concierge have popped up – clubs and hotels. The linen shops of Grant Street are replaced by Chinese shops and fish shops.

The parents always worked hard and wanted their children to work less hard – that is how Mark studied law and Joshua chemical engineering – but low and behold – they ended up coming back to the fish store. The book will be a story about “Parnusa” – that is about making a living in the Golden Land.

After the show I walked up a couple of blocs on Lexington Avenue to the row of South-Indian Kosher vegetarian restaurants, and ate at Madras Mahal.


###

Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on November 15th, 2012
by Pincas Jawetz (PJ@SustainabiliTank.com)

Yesterday I saw on TV a series of interviews in a hamlet in Texas where President Obama got only 5 votes while his opponent got 239 votes. It was said that this was the most one-sided voting-booth in the recent elections.The only person the journalist found who voted for Obama was afraid to give his name. Those that proudly acknowledged voting for Mr. Romney – simple people and not of high income – contended that the President was dictatorial, not a true American, not a Christian believer, he allows immigration that dilutes the values of the country … etc. This reminded me about The New York Times article that looked at the voting in the Ukraine. Antisemitism, not a factor yet in the US – but it can be banked upon that this sort of evolution will make it a factor as well. The attack on US military leadership and on the performance of the US government after the very serious mishap in Benghazi may be further proof that ultra-Nationalist elements in the US are on a roll again. The foot soldiers in such movements obviously do not come from the 1% of the extreme rich that help finance this.

—–

Ukraine’s Ultranationalists Show Surprising Strength at Polls.

By
Published: November 8, 2012

KIEV, Ukraine — The last time Oleg Tyagnibok was a member of Ukraine’s Parliament, his colleagues kicked him out over a fiery speech in which he described how Ukrainians, during World War II, bravely fought Muscovites, Germans, Jews “and other scum,” and then used slurs to refer to the “Jewish-Russian mafia, which rules in Ukraine.”

Eight years later, Mr. Tyagnibok is preparing to return to Parliament, not as a lone member of a broader coalition, as he was when he was ejected, but as the leader of Svoboda, the ultranationalist, right-wing party that will control 38 of 450 seats, or about 8.5 percent of the national legislature.

Svoboda’s surprising show of strength in the Oct. 29 election — polls had predicted that the party would fail to meet the 5 percent threshold to enter Parliament — has stirred alarm, including warnings from Israel about the rise of anti-Semitism and xenophobia in Ukraine, a former Soviet republic and a place with a firsthand knowledge of ethnic violence and genocide.

But in an interview in the downtown office building that Svoboda shares with an insurance company and a dental clinic named Smile, Mr. Tyagnibok said that fear of his party was misplaced and the accusations of racism and extremism unfounded.

“Svoboda is not an anti-Semitic party,” he said, seated behind a desk, a sport jacket stretched by his barrel-sized chest, his huge hands folded in front of him, speaking slowly and firmly in Ukrainian. “Svoboda is not a xenophobic party. Svoboda is not an anti-Russian party. Svoboda is not an anti-European party. Svoboda is simply and only a pro-Ukrainian party. And that’s it.”

Of course, that was not it.

Mr. Tyagnibok was just beginning to demonstrate the smooth charm that has helped Svoboda, which means “Freedom,” build support beyond its traditional stronghold in the Ukrainian-speaking west.

Tall, with beefy good looks, Mr. Tyagnibok, 44, who is a urological surgeon by training, has used his party’s pro-Ukrainian message to tap into frustration over the country’s stalled economy and growing disillusionment with the government of President Viktor F. Yanukovich.

From Mr. Tyagnibok’s frequent appearances on television talk shows, emphasizing national sovereignty and warning of encroachment by neighboring Russia, most viewers might never discern that some of his party’s members are unabashed neo-Nazis, while others shun the label but nonetheless espouse virulent hatred of Jews, gays and especially Russians.

Researchers who specialize in extremism say it is a talent shared by other leaders of far-right parties and has helped bring them into the mainstream in many European countries, including Hungary, Poland and Romania.

“This is a common phenomenon within these parties, that they have a front-stage image and a backstage agenda,” said Andreas Umland, an expert at the National University in Kiev. “The internal discourse, from what we can only suspect, is much more radical and xenophobic than what we see.” He added, “This is all much more radical.”

In the interview at his office, Mr. Tyagnibok said Svoboda’s message was only positive. “We do call ourselves nationalists,” he said. “Our view is love. Love of our land. Love of the people who live on this land. This is love to your wife and your home and your family. So, it’s love to your mother. Can this feeling be bad?”

“Our nationalism does not imply hatred to anybody,” he continued. “We formed a political party to protect the rights of Ukrainians, but not to the detriment of representatives of other nation.” He added, “So, if you ask about philosophy to be explained in two words: We are not against anyone. We are for ourselves.”

For a long time, they were for themselves and mostly by themselves. In the previous parliamentary election, in 2007, Svoboda received less than three-quarters of 1 percent of the vote, and that was an improvement. Until 2004, Svoboda was called the Social-Nationalist Party, which critics said was just a word flip of its true ambitions.

Born in Lviv, sometimes called the capital of the western, Europe-oriented Ukraine, Mr. Tyagnibok said he was raised to hate Communists, in part because his paternal grandfather was a victim of oppression under Stalin. He got his start in politics as a student organizer in the late 1980s, attended medical school and has been a member of the nationalist party from its inception in the early 1990s.

He served six years in Parliament, from 1998 until he was ejected in 2004. In 2001, with Ukrainian voters growing increasingly frustrated with the status quo, Svoboda made major gains in local and regional elections. Some voters who supported Svodboda said they believed that the party could present the strongest challenge to President Yanukovich. Many said they did not view the party as extreme.

“Those people who supported Svoboda in these elections, they don’t support racism, anti-Semitism, neo-Nazism,” said Vyacheslav Likhachev, who monitors extremism for the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress. “They support Svoboda because every vote for Svoboda was a vote against the ruling government.”

Still, Mr. Likhachev said, Svoboda’s rise was not a positive development for Ukraine. “It is bad for society,” he said.

In the days before the vote, Mr. Tyagnibok signed an agreement to work with other opposition parties, including the Fatherland party of the jailed former prime minister, Yulia V. Tymoshenko. Ms. Tymoshenko, who was barred from the ballot this year, recently began a hunger strike to protest what she said was fraud in the elections.

Mr. Tyagnibok’s ties to Ms. Tymoshenko and former President Viktor Yushchenko date to before Ukraine’s Orange Revolution in 2004, which Mr. Tyagnibok and other nationalists supported. Critics of the alliance say that it will give Svoboda more power than it would have on its own, and grant it further legitimacy as a mainstream faction.

Although his occasional use of ethnic and religious epithets is well documented — there was the 2004 speech to supporters, and in 2005, his public signing of an open letter to President Yushchenko and others demanding an end to “criminal activities of organized Jewry in Ukraine” — Mr. Tyagnibok called the allegations of hate speech “a fantasy and a serious exaggeration.”

The general prosecutor charged him with inciting ethnic hatred, but the case was dropped after the Orange Revolution. “In 2004, I was accused of anti-Semitism, but I won in all the court cases,” Mr. Tyagnibok said.

Mr. Tyagnibok said nationalist parties were enjoying a renaissance in Europe because of the Continent’s financial problems, as well as conflicts with Muslim immigrants in countries like Italy, France and Spain. “Europe is change,” he said. “Economic failures make people look for reasons.”

But he said it was all for the best. “In our view the ideal is to see Europe as one big flower bed full of different flowers, with Ukraine as one of the most beautiful flowers in it,” Mr. Tyagnibok said. “It has its own scent, its own beauty. It is different from other flowers, but it is in the same flower bed.”

He waved away any thought of nationalist strife. “Just imagine one nationalist talking to another nationalist,” he said. “There should be no problems between them. Everybody respects their interests, and everybody understands we live in one big world.”

———————————————————————————————

Also today’s:

Veteran F.B.I. Agent Helped Start Petraeus E-Mail Inquiry.

By , and ALAIN DELAQUÉRIÈRE
Published: November 14, 2012

DOVER, Fla. — The F.B.I. agent who spurred the investigation that led to the resignation of David H. Petraeus as C.I.A. director is a “hard-charging” veteran who helped investigate the foiled millennium terrorist plot in 1999, colleagues said on Wednesday.

Frederick W. Humphries II helped start the inquiry that led to the resignation of David H. Petraeus, center, as C.I.A. director and ensnared the commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan, Gen. John R. Allen, left, shown with Leon E. Panetta in 2011.

The agent, Frederick W. Humphries II, 47, is also described by former colleagues as relentless in his pursuit of what he sees as wrongdoing, which appears to describe his role in the F.B.I. investigation involving Mr. Petraeus. Suspecting that the case involved serious security issues and was being stalled, possibly for political reasons — a suspicion his superiors say was unjustified — he took his concerns to Congressional Republicans.

“Fred is a passionate kind of guy,” one former colleague said. “He’s kind of an obsessive type. If he locked his teeth onto something, he’d be a bulldog.”

The question of how and why the F.B.I. opened the investigation that has had such momentous consequences has been central from the moment Mr. Petraeus stepped down Friday. The emerging portrait of the agent who initiated the inquiry is another step toward an answer.

Mr. Humphries, who was identified on Wednesday by law enforcement colleagues, took the initial complaint from Jill Kelley, a Tampa woman active in local military circles and a personal friend, about anonymous e-mails that accused her of inappropriately flirtatious behavior toward Mr. Petraeus.

The subsequent cyberstalking investigation uncovered an extramarital affair between Mr. Petraeus and Paula Broadwell, his biographer, who agents determined had sent the anonymous e-mails. It also ensnared Gen. John R. Allen, the commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan, after F.B.I. agents discovered what a law enforcement official said on Wednesday were sexually explicit e-mail exchanges between him and Ms. Kelley.

A spokesman for Ms. Kelley provided her version of events in two conference calls with reporters on Wednesday. Ms. Kelley’s concern when she took the e-mails to Mr. Humphries was that she feared the sender was “stalking” Mr. Petraeus and General Allen, said the spokesman, who asked not to be identified.

“She asks the agent, ‘What do you make of this?’ ” the spokesman said. “The agent said: ‘This is serious. They seem to know the comings and goings of a couple of generals.’ ”

General Allen himself had received a similar anonymous e-mail message, sent by someone identified as “kelleypatrol,” advising him to stay away from Ms. Kelley. The general forwarded it to Ms. Kelley, and they discussed a concern that someone was cyberstalking them.

On Tuesday, Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta said he had asked the Senate to postpone a confirmation hearing for General Allen’s next assignment while the department’s inspector general reviewed his e-mail correspondence with Ms. Kelley, which was discovered by F.B.I. agents investigating her initial complaint.

Pentagon officials said the review covered more than 10,000 pages of documents that included “inappropriate” messages. But associates of General Allen have said that the two exchanged about a dozen e-mails a week since meeting two years ago and that his messages were affectionate but platonic.

A law enforcement official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, disputed that assertion on Wednesday, saying some messages were clearly sexual. Investigators were confident “the nature of the content warranted passing them on” to the inspector general, the official said.

In a statement on Wednesday, General Allen’s military counsel said he intended to cooperate fully with the inspector general’s investigation. “To the extent there are questions about certain communications by General Allen, he shares in the desire to resolve those questions as completely and quickly as possible,” said the statement from Col. John G. Baker, the chief defense counsel of the Marine Corps.

The F.B.I. director, Robert S. Mueller III, and the deputy director, Sean Joyce, briefed leaders of the Senate and House intelligence committees about the investigation. Mr. Petraeus is expected to speak to the panel behind closed doors on Friday about the attack on the American Mission in Benghazi, Libya. The events leading to his resignation are certain to come up.

A Pentagon official said the security clearance of Ms. Broadwell, a West Point graduate and officer in the Army Reserve, had been suspended pending the outcome of the F.B.I. investigation. F.B.I. agents on Monday night carried boxes of documents and a computer out of the house she shares with her husband and two sons. The law enforcement official said that Ms. Broadwell had cooperated with investigators in their effort to remove all classified material, which by law cannot be kept in an insecure facility.

The officials said Ms. Kelley was no longer permitted to enter MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa “with a wave,” as she has for years as a regular volunteer and visitor to ranking officers there. Now she has to get approval and sign in at the visitor’s gate, the official said.

Ms. Kelley, whose house has been besieged by reporters and television crews, has called 911 several times to complain about snooping reporters, according to tapes and transcripts of the calls posted on the Web. In at least one call, she asked for “diplomatic protection,” saying she is an “honorary consul general,” a designation she reportedly received from South Korean diplomats.

By all accounts, Mr. Humphries doggedly pursued Ms. Kelley’s cyberstalking complaint. Though he was not assigned to the case, he was admonished by supervisors who thought he was trying to improperly insert himself into the investigation.

In late October, fearing that the case was being stalled for political reasons, Mr. Humphries contacted Representative Dave Reichert, a Republican from Washington State, where the F.B.I. agent had worked previously, to inform him of the case. Mr. Reichert put him in touch with the House majority leader, Eric Cantor, who passed the message to Mr. Mueller.

Lawrence Berger, the general counsel for the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association, who spoke with Mr. Humphries, said Mr. Humphries only received the information from Ms. Kelley and never played a role in the investigation.

Mr. Berger said Mr. Humphries and his wife had been “social friends with Ms. Kelley and her husband prior to the day she referred the matter to him.”

“They always socialized and corresponded,” he said.

Mr. Berger took issue with news media reports that said his client had sent shirtless pictures of himself to Ms. Kelley.

“That picture was sent years before Ms. Kelley contacted him about this, and it was sent as part of a larger context of what I would call social relations in which the families would exchange numerous photos of each other,” Mr. Berger said.

The photo was sent as a joke, he said, and was of Mr. Humphries “posing with a couple of dummies.” Mr. Berger added that it was not sexual in nature.

Two former law enforcement colleagues said Mr. Humphries was a solid agent with experience in counterterrorism. He has conservative political views and a reputation for being aggressive, they said.

Colleagues and news reports described the role of Mr. Humphries, who in 1999 was in his third year at the F.B.I., in building the case against Ahmed Ressam, who was detained as he tried to enter the United States from Canada with a plan to set off a bomb at Los Angeles International Airport.

In May 2010, after he had moved to the Tampa field office, Mr. Humphries fatally shot a knife-wielding man near a gate of MacDill Air Force base. A state prosecutor declined to prosecute the case, and the Justice Department’s civil rights division and an internal F.B.I. review board each also found that the use of force had been justified, according to bureau records.

A large American flag was flying on Wednesday in front of Mr. Humphries’s house in Dover, a half-hour drive from Tampa. A man standing in the driveway who appeared to be Mr. Humphries, approached by a reporter seeking comment, said his first name was not Fred. The man then walked into the house, closed the front door and did not respond to the doorbell.

In regard to his client’s speaking with Mr. Cantor, Mr. Berger declined to address the issue, saying only that his client “had followed F.B.I. protocols.”

“No one tries to become a whistle-blower,” he said. “Consistent with F.B.I. policy, he referred it to the proper component.”

A law enforcement official said disclosing a confidential investigation even to Congress members could sometimes violate F.B.I. rules. The official said that Mr. Humphries’s conduct was under review and that he had not been punished in any way.

On Wednesday, Mr. Cantor said he had no intention of “politicizing” the tip from Mr. Humphries, whom he did not name. “The information that was sent to me sounded as if there was a potential for a national security vulnerability,” Mr. Cantor said.

###

Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on October 8th, 2012
by Pincas Jawetz (PJ@SustainabiliTank.com)

MEPs 9the Members of the European Parliament) elected Martin Schulz to be the new European Parliament president with 387 votes in favour out of 670 cast. The 56-year old German MEP will lead the European parliament for two and half years, until the beginning of the next legislature in July 2014. This happened January 17, 2012 and his time in office ends July 2014.

—————————————-

ÖGB/ÖGfE-Europadialog
“Wem Gehört Europa?”
Martin Schulz, Präsident des Europäischen Parlaments und Erich Foglar, ÖGB-Präsident, im Gespräch über die Zukunft der Demokratie in Europa.
11. Oktober 2012, 18:30 Uhr
ÖGB, Gewerkschaftshaus Catamaran,
Johann-Böhm-Platz 1, 1020 Wien
Anmeldung:
ÖGB Internationales Referat: europadialog@oegb.at
Der ÖGB/ÖGfE-Europadialog wird dieses Mal in Kooperation mit dem Informationsbüro des Europäischen Parlaments in Österreich veranstaltet.

————————————-

Martin Schulz (S&D, Germany) replaces the outgoing President Jerzy Buzek (EPP, Poland).

In a brief address to the European Parliament in Strasbourg immediately after the vote, Mr Schulz said: “We must grasp the fact that people in Europe have little time for institutional debates because they are too busy worrying about their future, their jobs, their pensions (…). This Chamber is the place where the interests of the people are defended”.

President Schulz warned that “for the first time since it was founded, the failure of the European Union is a realistic possibility” adding that, our interests can no longer be separated from those of our neighbours; on a shared understanding that the EU is not a zero-sum game, in which one person must lose so that another can win. The reverse is true: either we all lose – or we all win. The fundamental basis for this is the Community method. It is not a technocratic concept, but the principle at the heart of everything the European Union stands for!”.

Over the past two years, summits of the Heads of State and Government meant “the representatives of the peoples of Europe have essentially been reduced to the role of rubberstamping agreements reached between governments in backrooms in Brussels: the European Parliament will not stand idly by and watch this process continue”, Mr Schulz said, adding that “the intergovernmental agreement on a new fiscal union will be the first test”.

“Whoever breaches the values enshrined in our Charter of Fundamental Rights must reckon with us as adversaries. That is our duty as Members of the European Parliament”. He also announced the presence of Hungary Prime Minister Viktor Orban tomorrow in plenary to discuss his country’s controversial constitutional provisions.

A full version of the President’s address will be available via the link next to this article.

Full result of the vote for the President of the European Parliament

Under Parliament’s Rules of Procedure, to be elected President, a candidate must win an absolute majority of the valid votes cast, i.e. 50 per cent plus one.
Blank or spoiled ballots do not count in calculating the majority required.

The result of the first ballot was as follows:

Votes cast: 699

Blank or invalid votes: 29

Valid votes cast: 670

Absolute majority of votes cast required to be elected: 336

Votes for the candidates:

Martin Schulz (S&D, DE) 387: Mr Schulz duly elected President of the European Parliament

Nirj Deva (ECR, UK): 142

Diana Wallis (ALDE, UK): 141

Right after the speech by the newly-elected President Schulz, political groups’ leaders took the floor to comment on the outcome. Most groups expressed the hope that his presidency would reinforce the Union and Parliament’s role, while a few others stressed disagreements with his first speech as President.

On Behalf of EPP, chair Joseph Daul (FR), after congratulating Mr Schulz on his election said “You must, in our view, have three priorities: defending the Community method, advocating the Community method and safeguarding the Community method”, stressing that “nothing is more important than showing our citizens that the Euro is a strong and sustainable currency, as long as we do what we should have done at its creation, i.e. provide political and economic governance”.

S&D Vice-President Maria Badia i Cutchet (ES), said “There is a great need for the new President to strengthen the role of the Parliament.  In the light of the latest discussions around a new inter-governmental treaty, this is of ever greater importance.  We need to ensure that any future action is based on the principle of democratic participation and thus the Community method “.

Guy Verhofstadt (BE), leader of the ALDE group, said “I want a President who fights in favour of the EU, (…) who explains to Member States the truth, that only through a political economic and fiscal union we can save the Union” with a Parliament able “to show the way out of the crisis and that Europe is the solution”.

Rebecca Harms (Greens/EFA, DE), said with regard to the next challenges facing Parliament that “A new approach is needed to press on to the goals set”. She suggested that Mr Schulz should “not give in to diplomacy but take that rough along with you when discussing with Barroso, Van Rompuy, Merkel and Sarkozy”.

Martin Callanan (UK), on behalf of the ECR group, told Mr Schulz that although “We did not agree with many things you said this morning (…), we will ensure fair cooperation with you”, stressing that his first duty will be to represent the Parliament at the next European Summit.

Kartika Tamara Liotard (NL), Vice-Chair of the GUE/NGL group, told Mr Schulz “It is a shame you’re not a woman”. She added that “Some people elected you because they know you are a tough fighter and I believe Parliament has a big role to play in crisis”, urging him to “make sure there is more transparency in these negotiations” on the fiscal compact.

Nigel Farage (UK, EFD), wondered “What kind of President Schulz are we going to get? A calm speaker (…) or the Schulz we got to know: angry, intolerant of everybody with a different point of view, anti-British and who does not like the free market?” He concluded “We want a Europe of trade (…), not a superpower”.

The votes to choose Vice-Presidents and Quaestors will take place on Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday morning.

###

Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on August 21st, 2012
by Pincas Jawetz (PJ@SustainabiliTank.com)



EU-Ukraine: The next chapter

blogs.euobserver.com/paul/2012/08/07/eu-ukraine-the-next-chapter/

from EUobserver of August 21, 2012


A few days ago campaigning for Ukraine’s 28th October Parliamentary elections began. It seems set to be quite a battle with emotions running high. It may prove to be one of the most important elections in Ukraine’s history. Not only will it represent a litmus test for democracy, it may also be a defining moment for EU-Ukraine relations.

Today the EU and Ukraine are passing through a difficult period. For a long time Ukraine was the “star” in the EU’s Eastern neighborhood. All the other countries in today’s Eastern Partnership have gained from Ukraine’s labours. Kyiv pushed for Association Agreements, Free Trade Agreements and visa liberalization.

Unfortunately today “the star” has lost some of its shine. The Association Agreement, including an integrated Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA), which Ukraine and the EU spent more than four years negotiating may not be signed due to EU concerns over democratic values and the rule of law. The EU has made further economic and political integration dependent on improving democratic standards, ending selective justice, serious reform and carrying out free and fair elections.

Ukrainian efforts to justify events in the country have fallen on death ears, with a negative trend towards Kyiv prevailing in Brussels.

Dialogue of the Deaf

While the answers to today’s problems lie, rightly or wrongly – mainly with Kyiv, at the same time history has shown that Ukraine’s relationship with the EU has never been a really satisfactory one. Ukraine has always wanted more than the EU has been willing to give. For most of the past fifteen years the EU and Ukraine have been carrying out something of a “dialogue of the deaf”. While Ukraine has talked incessantly about obtaining an EU membership perspective, the EU has spent most of this time trying to avoid this eventuality.

Unfortunately, for the most part, Ukraine has been burdened by incompetent leaders more interested in furthering their own interests than those of the country. Transforming the country has been more wishful thinking than concrete actions. This has led to “development stasis” and sadly, for a country with so much potential, today’s Ukraine scarcely differs from that of ten years ago.

Meanwhile, the EU has never really embraced Ukraine, failing to develop a policy that could stimulate and encourage reform by giving strong support to the reformers in the country. The EU has seemingly been quite content for Ukraine to remain in a sort of grey zone.

Ukraine has watched many of its neighbours enter the EU. It also witnessed, almost ten years ago, the countries of the Western Balkans receive a membership promise even though the region was far from meeting EU values of democracy, freedoms and human rights. Meanwhile Kyiv has been consistently told it is “different” and needs to get fit, both politically and economically, before a membership perspective may be considered. The combination of Ukraine’s lack of capacity and weak leadership, together with the EU’s lack of strategy and inadequate support has made EU conditionality, the core element of its European Neighborhood Policy, virtually ineffective in Ukraine. Yet, while Ukraine may seem like a country unchangeable in its habits, these habits were broken with the 2005 Orange Revolution. Unfortunately, the Yuschenko-Tymoshenko duo failed to deliver. While one cannot pin the shambolic and wasted “orange years” on the EU, more may have been achieved if the EU had been more generous and visionary in its approach in the revolution’s aftermath. Unfortunately the EU failed to harness the momentum, maintaining the same mediocre policy and Ukraine slipped back into bad habits.

While undoubtedly Ukraine is a complicated country, burdened by a Soviet past and continually struggling with identity issues, it is unmistakably a European country. Yet at times some member states, for example Germany, have resisted recognizing this fact.  Why has the EU done this given the EU defines Ukraine as a “priority partner”; the most important country in the region. Rather like the case of Turkey, the EU has always been divided over Ukraine, although for different reasons. Big countries which would one day have a significant share of power are not particularly welcomed even though they have the potential to make the EU stronger and more globally competitive. Indeed, if Poland had not been part of a group of ten, its membership may have been far more difficult.
Ukraine’s situation is further complicated because of Russia, and the interesting relations some member states have with Moscow.

Ukraine was always the biggest jewel of the Soviet Union, and for Russia “losing Ukraine”, would be like having a limb severed. Moreover a modern, prosperous and democratic Ukraine, grounded in European values would serve to undermine Russia’s current style of governance. Therefore today Ukraine has turned into a battle-ground, with Moscow trying to persuade Kyiv, one way or another, from pursing closer ties with the EU, and join Russia’s Eurasian Union instead.

What Lies Ahead?

While efforts in the reform arena have shifted up a gear including the establishment of an EU Coordination Centre, launching of a broad package of EU demanded reforms and intensified dialogue with civil society, it is not enough to guarantee the signature and ratification of the Association Agreement by EU member states. If Yulia Tymoshenko remains in prison the status quo will probably prevail. Much will depend on the report of the EU’s Special Envoys, Pat Cox and Alexsander Kwasniewski, who are monitoring the Tymoshenko appeal. At the end of the hearing a report will be submitted to the EU based on their findings.

The 28th October Parliamentary elections, the crucial pre-election period -and its compliance with international standards, including on issues such as media freedom which has recently come under fire, will also be key. Indeed the EU would be well placed to create a special media monitoring commission, as they have done in Georgia which is due to hold parliamentary elections on 1 October.

If Ukraine does not deliver the Association Agreement and DCFTA, which have the potential to anchor Ukraine onto a track of reform and modernization as well as support the reformers in Ukraine’s government, will be shelved. Considering how much effort went into negotiating these agreements it would be a big loss. It also leaves them open for renegotiation at some future point, if there is a change of leadership. The visa liberalization negotiations will probably continue, as blocking this would have a negative impact on ordinary Ukrainians, seriously damaging the EU’s image.

However, relations will not freeze, Ukraine is not Belarus: the two partners are entwined in too many different sectors including energy, transport, biotechnology, airspace, security and defence, for this to happen.  Yet a Ukraine left to “float” and “flip-flop” in the “grey zone” is not in the interests of either party, nor will it contribute to greater regional stability. Unfortunately, today’s EU is neither courageous or visionary, and it is therefore more than likely Ukraine will be left to drift, even if that drift risks Kyiv finally succumbing to Russian pressure.

Yet, even if Ukraine delivers, it is unlikely Kyiv will receive it’s much sought-after membership perspective, more so because of the current climate of economic malaise and depression in Europe. However, even without the EU membership carrot Ukraine needs to step up and introduce European standards: first and foremost for its long suffering but ever patient population.

Unfortunately today the EU still does not know what its ultimate objectives are for this region. It has failed with Ukraine and its neighbourhood policies are still waiting for a real success story. The EU needs to have a serious discussion over how it sees its future relations with Eastern Europe. Whether the final outcome will reflect the position of Poland or the UK -if you achieve certain criteria you will join – or whether it will be nearer to the German position – Russia first and foremost – remains to be seen.

——————

We wonder – Would it not make sense to allow a partitian of the Ukraine so the Western part joins the EU and the Eastern part forms with Belarus the kind of buffer State that the EU actually likes to have between itself and Russia?

###

Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on July 28th, 2012
by Pincas Jawetz (PJ@SustainabiliTank.com)

Romney’s journey abroad affords both opportunity and risk

He leaves Tuesday on a six-nation trip. It could raise his stature or invoke the unpopularity of George W. Bush.

July 23, 2012|By David Lightman, McClatchy Newspapers

WASHINGTON – Mitt Romney, looking for a boost after being battered recently by President Obama, heads abroad this week in a bid to portray himself as a wise statesman.

The Republican presidential candidate leaves Tuesday on a six-day swing to the United Kingdom, Israel, and Poland.

Each stop is carefully choreographed to help him gain stature in the eyes of the American public, not to mention the world. He hopes to create momentum that will continue through August, when he is expected to announce his vice presidential choice and reintroduce himself to America at the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Fla.

=======

Romney’s advisers were divided on whether the candidate should accept the International Olympic Committee’s invitation to attend the opening of the London Games, according to reports from Bloomberg’s Lisa Lerer. Some aides argued that a visit to the Olympics, where his wife’s horse is representing the United States in the dressage competition, could draw more attention to his personal wealth, while others saw a trip abroad as the perfect opportunity to show voters “he could be an effective global player,” she writes.

Politico’s Jonathan Martin writes that expanding the trip beyond Europe to include Israel offers Romney a chance to shift attention from his time at Bain Capital to his successful rescue of the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympic Games as well as focus on foreign policy, which he has so far not done much of this campaign season.

At The Hill, Juan Williams says Romney’s trip will bring foreign policy into the campaign spotlight, which he says is a bold and potentially risky move for Romney since polls show voters consider President Barack Obama to be holding a foreign policy advantage in the race.

“As a governor and a businessman, Romney has dealt almost exclusively with domestic policy. He arguably has the least international experience of any GOP presidential candidate of the last twenty-five years,” Williams writes. “The 2012 election appears to be unique in that foreign policy looks to be an advantage for Democrats — with Republicans seeking ways to reclaim a past strong point.”

=============================================================================

ROMNEY’S COMMENTS ON OLYMPICS RALLY PROUD BRITS.

By PAUL HAVEN,

Associated Press

Updated July 27, 2012

LONDON (AP) Mitt Romney may be just what the London Olympics needed.

In little more than 24 hours in London, the U.S. presidential candidate has gotten Britons to stop complaining about bumper-to-bumper traffic, cringing about cost overruns and fretting about shoddy security – and instead start taking pride in their country’s long-awaited day in the sun.

From Prime Minister David Cameron to ordinary Londoners rushing to work, Britons recoiled at the visiting American’s suggestion that the logistical problems encountered so far were “disconcerting.” Many who have themselves been slamming organizers as incompetent, and the massive competition as an expensive fiasco, are suddenly rallying around the flag.

“Mitt the Twit” screamed Friday’s headline in The Sun, which just days ago was trumpeting an embarrassing incident in which an official bus carrying the U.S. team from Heathrow airport got lost and spent hours in traffic.

“Who invited party-pooper Romney?” asked the Daily Mail.

“Nowhere Man” declared the more reserved Times of London, a reference to a biting comment by the famously diplomatic Cameron, who implied that Romney lacked the experience to offer advice to one of the world’s great capitals since the Olympics he helped organize in Salt Lake City, Utah, took place “in the middle of nowhere.”

“We are holding an Olympic Games in one of the busiest, most active, bustling cities anywhere in the world. Of course, it’s easier if you hold an Olympic Games in the middle of nowhere,” Cameron said.

Colorful London Mayor Boris Johnson also got in on the act, using Romney’s criticism as a rallying cry to stoke up a crowd of tens of thousands gathered at Hyde Park on Thursday night: “There’s a guy called Mitt Romney who wants to know if we are ready. Are we ready? Yes, we are!”

Romney spent much of Friday trying to dial back his dig, but ended up raising more eyebrows when he referred to looking out of the “back side” of 10 Downing Street to see the beach volleyball stadium and after he let slip that he had met with the head of MI6, Britain’s overseas intelligence agency. Briefings with British spy chiefs are usually kept secret.

To the British, “back side” usually refers to the derriere.

Residents learned of Romney’s Olympic readiness comments from friends, television and social media. And the fact the Republican presidential candidate tried to make amends seemed to win him little favor.

“What would he know?” asked Londoner Liudmila Troshina, wearing a Team Great Britain jersey and posing for pictures along with her husband in Piccadilly Circus. “I don’t really care what people from other countries think about us because I take my information firsthand – from people who live here.”

“No matter what some man said, we are prepared … to support our country, our city and our sportsmen with everything we have,” she added.

Those sentiments are a quick about-face from the weeks of moaning many Britons have engaged in prior to the games, which begin with the opening ceremony Friday night.

For months, the nation has been awash in complaints – from taxi drivers angry over special traffic lanes for Olympics VIPS, to slack-jawed travelers staring down long lines at immigration, to commuters apoplectic about being asked to rethink their journey to avoid the crush of Olympic tourists, to residents alarmed that surface-to-air missiles have been placed on their roofs to fight terrorism.

Even the heavens have come in for a browbeating, with the Times of London publishing an editorial recently demanding an end to weeks of rain.

“It is a British sport,” Labour lawmaker David Winnick told The Associated Press on Friday. “We always complain.”

He should know.

One of the iconic images of London’s troubles was Winnick’s cutting exchange with the head of the G4S security group earlier this month after the company failed to provide enough Olympics workers, forcing the British military to step in.

“It’s a humiliating shambles for the country, isn’t it?” Winnick demanded of Nick Buckles after the CEO offered a groveling mea culpa on live TV, repeating the charge until Buckles could not deny that it was.

But even Winnick winced when he heard what Romney had to say.

“These are internal matters that would be well dealt with under our own democratic system,” he said. “There is a feeling, and I’m sure it applies in the United States, that … families can quarrel bitterly in private, but should anyone from the outside have a go, the family is united. In other words: ‘Mind your own business.’”

========================================

National Health Service honored

Children representing the Great Ormond Street Hospital, the NHS and children’s literature take part in the Opening Ceremony. (Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

The glowing bed routine was supposedly a tribute to the National Health Service, the BBC reports.

“Olympic opening ceremony now celebrating Britain’s socialized health system with a dance routine. Really.” Slate’s @AnnieLowrey tweeted.

“Good thing Romney didn’t see a rehearsal of that..” The Post’s conservative blogger @JRubinBlogger responded.

###

Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on April 30th, 2012
by Pincas Jawetz (PJ@SustainabiliTank.com)

GLOBAL JOBS CRISIS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE FOR SOME TIME, WARNS UN REPORT.

The global employment situation is alarming, says a new United Nations report released today, which also warns that recovery is not expected any time soon.

The World of Work Report 2012: Better Jobs for a Better Economy – published by the UN International Labour Organization (ILO) – says that around 50 million jobs are still missing compared to the situation that existed before the global economic crisis.

It also warns that the global jobs crisis is likely to get worse due to several factors, including the fact that many governments, especially in advanced economies, have shifted their priority to a combination of fiscal austerity and tough labour market reforms.

Such measures are having “devastating” consequences on labour markets in general and job creation in particular, ILO stated in a news release.

“The narrow focus of many Eurozone countries on fiscal austerity is deepening the jobs crisis and could even lead to another recession in Europe,” said the Director of the ILO Institute for International Labour Studies and lead author of the report, Raymond Torres.

“Countries that have chosen job-centred macroeconomic policies have achieved better economic and social outcomes,” he added. “Many of them have also become more competitive and have weathered the crisis better than those that followed the austerity path. We can look carefully at the experience of those countries and draw lessons.”

Another factor leading to a worsening jobs crisis is that many jobseekers in advanced economies are demoralized and are losing skills, something which is affecting their chances of finding a new job. In addition, small companies have limited access to credit, which in turn is depressing investment and preventing employment creation.

“In these countries, especially in Europe, job recovery is not expected before the end of 2016 – unless there is a dramatic shift in policy direction,” according to ILO.

Other factors include the fact that, in most advanced economies, many of the new jobs are precarious and there exists the possibility of increased social unrest in many parts of the world. According to the report’s Social Unrest Index, 57 out of 106 countries with available information showed a risk of increased social unrest in 2011 compared to 2010. The regions with the largest increases are sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East and North Africa.

The report argues that if a job-friendly policy-mix of taxation and increased expenditure in public investment and social benefits is put in place, approximately two million jobs could be created over the next year in advanced economies. {please remember Krugman and Stiglitz articles – see how vindicated they are!}

Among the other findings of the report is that employment rates have only increased in six of the 36 advanced economies since 2007 – Austria, Germany, Israel, Luxembourg, Malta and Poland – and that youth unemployment rates have increased in about 80 per cent of advanced countries and two-thirds of developing countries.

###

Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on April 9th, 2012
by Pincas Jawetz (PJ@SustainabiliTank.com)

Der Standard of Austria of April 4, 2012, continues a stream of information about Shale-Gas development North of Vienna – in the Wein-gardens of Poysdorf.

WEINVIERTEL –  Kein Ende im Schiefergas-Krieg.

by ROSA WINKLER-HERMADEN, 04. April 2012

Geheime Bohrungen, gefährliches Fracking und ein Landeschef im Vorwahlkampf: Warum die Bürger dem Frieden mit der OMV nicht trauen.

please see the full April 4, 2012 article at -

derstandard.at/1332323983885/Weinviertel-Kein-Ende-im-Schiefergas-Krieg

The original article was of   December 17, 2011, and we posted it following a meeting of Eurosolar Austria.

=================================================

(c) DiePresse

vergrößern (means enlarge the map)

Bedeutung der „Bruderschaft“ nimmt ab.

——

Like all the rest of Europe, Austria switched from oil to natural gas. This is a less polluting energy carrier and emits less CO2, but then – where do you buy the gas?

From the Netherlands – that is OK, or what about North Africa, Russia, Central Asia, and that means dependence on sources that may be friendly today but may use political pressure tomorrow?  The import of the gas via pipelines or huge boats of liquefied gas, means also serious outflow of Euro, dollars, or whatever National currency you have – not very good at times of budding recession.

Further – bringing the gas in by ship requires the building of high pressure unloading stations that people do not consider safe in their backyards;  pipelines depend very much on the countries in transit, and a dispute relations of the Ukraine and the Russian Federation had serious impact on the gas supplied to the European Union.  The Austrian OEMV got involved in plans for the Nabucco pipeline from Central Asia via Turkey to Austria, and found that Russia will retaliate by directing the planned South Stream pipeline not to touch Austrian land. The recent announcement by OEMV of huge finds of Shale-gas, just North North-East of  Vienna, must be viewed in above context.

A small, integrated oil-shale operation has been conducted at Puertollano since about 1922 by a French company, Sociedad Mimora y Metalurgica de Penarroya, hereinafter referred to as “Penarroya”, but only during WWII have the potentialities of the Spanish oil-shale deposits been recognized.

Empresa Nacional “Calvo Sotelo” do Combustibles y Lubricantes, hereinafter designated as “Calvo Sotelo,” which was created in 1942 by the National Industrial Institute of Spain to produce liquid fuels from oil shales, has made marked progress in the design and construction of a complete oil-shale plant at Puertollano. Penarroya is mainly a coal-mining company, and the oil-shale operations were on a small scale of approximately 220 tons a day in October 1947. It is an integrated operation comprising oil-shale mining and retorting and shale-oil refining. Motor gasoline, Diesel fuel oil, light burner fuel oil, lubricants, paraffin wax, cresols, and ammonium sulfate were manufactured.

The problem is in the nature of the finding. Shale is a stone – it contains hydrocarbons in a polymeric form called Kerogen. When heated in a retort the kerogen breaks down and yields oil and gas. In 1959 I watched this being done in above-ground retorts at the Puertollano plant, the Ciudad Real region of Spain. The governmental Calvo Sotelo company was doing this with lubricants as the prized product. The plant was planned still during WWII by the Franco government, and became a reality only after the war with the help of French engineering companies. The original idea was to produce liquid fuels as a substitute for the petroleum that was hard to obtain during the war years. The Puertollano plant was dismantled, and sold for scrap metal in 1968, as by then Petroleum was cheap and plentiful on the global market. With the first energy constraint of 1972-1973 there was general interest in oil-shales but the  Spanish experience was history by that time.  Brazil picked up with a company called Petrosix,  and in the US The Oil Shale Corporation was formed, with competition from Paraho, The Occidental Company, and Exxon.


The Brazilian Oil Company Petrobras started oil shale processing activities in 1953 by developing Petrosix technology for extracting oil from oil shale of the Irati formation.
A 5.5 metres (18 ft) inside diameter semi-works retort (the Irati Profile Plant) with capacity of 2,400 tons per day, was brought on line in 1972, and began limited commercial operation in 1980. The first retort that used the Petrosix technology was a 0.2 meters (0.7 ft) internal diameter retort pilot plant started in 1982. It was followed by a 2 metres (6.6 ft) retort demonstration plant in 1984. A 11 meters (36 ft) retort was brought into service in December 1991, and commercial production started in 1992. At present, the company operates two retorts which process 8,500 tons of oil shale daily.

The Petrosix 11 metres (36 ft) vertical shaft retort is the world’s largest operational surface oil shale pyrolysis reactor. It was designed by Cameron Engineers of the US. The retort has the upper pyrolysis section and lower shale coke cooling section. The retort capacity is 6,200 tons of oil shale per day, and it yields a nominal daily output of 3,870 barrels of shale oil (i.e., 550 tons of oil, approximately 1 ton of oil per 11 tons of shale), as well as 132 tons of oil shale gas, 50 tons of liquefied oil shale gas, and 82 tons of sulfur.

Petrosix – as per Qian, Jialin, Wang Jianqiu (2006-11-07) – he said at the “World oil shale retorting technologies” (PDF) - International Oil Shale Conference. AmmanJordan by Jordanian Natural Resources Authority –  it is one of five technologies of shale oil extraction, which is currently in commercial use.

It is an above-ground retorting technology, which uses externally generated hot gas for the oil shale pyrolysis (decomposition by heat). After mining, the shale is transported by trucks to a crusher and screens, where it is reduced to particles (lump shale). These particles are between 12 millimetres (0.5 in) and 75 millimetres (3.0 in) and have an approximately parallelepipedic shape. These particles are transported on a belt to a vertical cylindrical vessel, where the shale is heated up to about 500 °C (932 °F) for pyrolysis. Oil shale enters through the top of the retort while hot gases are injected into the middle of the retort. The oil shale is heated by the gases as it moves down. As a result, the kerogen in the shale decomposes to yield oil vapor and more gas. Cold gas is injected into the bottom of the retort to cool and recover heat from the spent shale.

Cooled spent shale is discharged through a water seal with drag conveyor below the retort. Oil mist and cooled gases are removed through the top of the retort and enter a wet electrostatic precipitator where the oil droplets are coalesced and collected. The gas from the precipitator is compressed and split into three parts.

One part of the compressed retort gas is heated in a furnace to 600 °C (1,112 °F) and recirculated back to the middle of the retort for heating and pyrolyzing the oil shale, and another part is circulated cold into the bottom of the retort, where it cools down the spent shale, heats up itself, and ascends into the pyrolysis section as a supplementary heat source for heating the oil shale. The third part undergoes further cooling for light oil (naphtha) and water removal and then sent to the gas treatment unit, where fuel gas and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) are produced and sulfur recovered. Above tells us that this above ground retorting of the shale is done so that oil is the outcome and the by-product gasses are used to provide the energy for the process. One major problem is what to do with the heavy metals rich spent shale that cannot be discarded without damaging neighboring undergound water or rivers.

One further drawback of this process is that the potential heat from the combustion of the char contained in the shale is not utilized.  Also, oil shale particles smaller than 12 millimetres (0.5 in) can not be processed in the Petrosix retort. These fines may account for 10 to 30 per cent of the crushed feed. The above process was similar to the process used by the Spanish Calvo Sotelo company at Puertollano, and the Oil Shale Corporation method used in Colorado. A TOSCO II system, the reworked US Oil Shale Corporation technology, used a rotating drum and Alumina balls in the retort and the  spent shale is transferred to a furnace where residue-carbon is burned off to provide reheating of the balls.
The main advantages of the Tosco system are the relatively high throughput rates achieved inproportion to the size of equipment, and the production of high-BTU off-gas since there is no dilution thereof by combustion products. However, one serious disadvantage of the Tosco process has been just how to separate the alumina bals lfrom the spent shale.

As a result of the 1972-1973 energy crisis, the United States got interested in oil shales as a strategic fuel and I found myself involved first with TOSCO, then with the Hudson Institute in formulating what became the only Energy Policy the US ever had – that was the government funded “THE SYNFUELS CORPORATION” which allowed private companies to try to develop commercial technologies. Needles to say – the money was spent by the oil companies but no tangible results were returned to the government.

{My last involvement with oil shale technology was when I was contracted to write the issue paper on the use of shales for the 1981 UN Conference on NEW and RENEWABLE SOURCES OF ENERGY at Nairobi. Oil Shales, coal liquids and gases were the “NEW” sources of Energy at the UN – The Canadian tar sands and Venezuela’s heavy crudes were not part of the conference discussions.}

Wikipedia posted: “The Synthetic Fuels Corporation was a U.S. government-funded corporation established in 1980 by the Synthetic Fuels Corporation Act to create a financial bridge for the development and construction of commercial synthetic fuel manufacturing plants (such as coal gasification) that would produce alternatives to imported fossil fuels. The Great Plains coal gasification plant in Beulah, ND, still producing natural gas and sequestering carbon in 2009 , was built with the support of the Department of Energy and applied for further support by this corporation, partly as a result of efforts by Reagan’s Energy Secretary James B. Edwards. The corporation was abolished in 1985.

Oil Shales were part of these sponsored corporations as promoted during the Gerald Ford Presidency 1974-1977. The 1980 – “the Synthetic Fuels Corporation Act” was then passed under President Carter and eventually killed under President Reagan. Whatever the policy – it was still a pro-petroleum policy.

The Colony Shale Oil Project was an oil shale development project at the Piceance Basin near Parachute CreekColorado. The project consisted of an oil shale mine and pilot-scale shale oil plant, which used the TOSCO II retorting technology, developed by Tosco Corporation. Over time the project was developed by a consortium of different companies until it was terminated by Exxon on 2 May 1982 a day which is known amongst locals as “Black Sunday”.

Shale Oil History at Parachute Creek, Colorado:

The project started in 1964 when Tosco, Standard Oil of Ohio, and Cleveland Cliffs Iron Company formed the Colony Development joint venture.[4] The aim of the newly formed joint venture was to develop the Colony Oil Shale Project and to commercialize the TOSCO II technology. Starting in 1965 the consortium operated a shale oil pilot plant and in 1968 the Colony Development started preparatons to build a commercial-scale plant.[5]

In 1969 Atlantic Richfield Company joined the project acquiring part of Tosco’s stake.[5][6] However the commercial project was delayed by economic uncertainties and then resurrected in the 1970s after the Arab oil embargo. In 1972 the consortium stopped the pilot plant and the development of the commercial plant was suspended in November 1974 when more detailed economic studies indicated a more than three times higher cost than previously anticipated.[4][5][7][8]

In 1974 Ashland Oil and Shell Oil Company joined the project.[7][9] In the late 1970s Standard Oil of Ohio, Cleveland Cliffs Iron Company, Shell and Ashaland Oil sold their shares to Atlantic Richfield Company.[7][10][11] As a result of these transactions Tosco owned 40% of shares and Atlantic Richfield Company owned 60% of shares in the project.

In 1980 Atlantic Richfield Company sold its share to Exxon for $300 million.[6] In 1981 the Colony Development started a construction of the commercial scale shale oil plant.[3] On 2 May 1982 Exxon announced the termination of the project because of low oil-prices and increased expenses laying off more than 2,000 workers resulting in the date becoming known among locals as “Black Sunday”.[1][2][3] According to the shareholders agreement in a case of project termination Exxon had an obligation to buy out Tosco’s shares. It paid $380 million worth of compensation.[6]

During its existence the project produced 270 thousand barrels (43×103 m3) of shale oil.[4]

I felt obliged to talk first about the above-ground retorting of the oil-shale as this taught us about problems that will occur OUT-OF-SIGHT if one works underground as well.
The dislodgement of heavy metal compounds and the poisoning of water resources is to be expected – no surprise thereof.

Others, like the Schlumberger Corporation started to eye the Shale Gas & Liquids production in situ – thus avoiding the mess above-ground that made for easy criticism. But doing it underground – who will see that? The idea was – in situ retorting that involves heating the oil shale while it is still underground, and then pumping the resulting liquid to the surface.

To the Americans it sounded at first like a great idea: While oil shale is found in many places worldwide, by far the largest deposits in the world are found in the United States in the Green River Formation, which covers portions of Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming. Estimates of the oil resource in place within the Green River Formation range from 1.2 to 1.8 trillion barrels. Not all resources in place are recoverable; however, even a moderate estimate of800 billion barrels of recoverable oil from oil shale in the Green River Formation is three times greater than the proven oil reserves of Saudi Arabia. Present U.S. demand for petroleum products is about 20 million barrels per day. If oil shale could be used to meet a quarter of that demand, the estimated 800 billion barrels of recoverable oil from the Green River Formation would last for more than 400 years. In theory – for those pushing for the continuation on the dependence on an oil economy – this was a great idea. In practice it did not work – this because despite the great fires underground only very little oil came out above ground – and those were still the days that the industry was looking for oil and was not interested in developing sources of gas that had the potential to compete with their oil refineries.

For those interested in more about the US search for new feeds to the petroleum refinery – here a link to a RAND Corporation study:  http://ostseis.anl.gov/guide/oilshale/

But things change and the US has learned to use gas – this by learning it from the European experience.

So, now gas is in demand and gas can be obtained from these underground shales with us not seeing how it is done – and that is very important to realize!

WE DO NOT HEAR THUS OF SHALE OIL BUT OF SHALE GAS. WE DO NOT HEAR OF RETORTING BUT OF HYDRAULIC FRACTURING – FRACKING – IN EFFECT WE HEAR OF ROSY FUTURES BUT DO NOT HEAR HOW THIS IS ATTAINED.

THE PRESS IS FULL WITH ARTICLES ABOUT GAS COMING OUT WITH DRINKING WATER – SO YOU CAN LIGHT A FIRE WITH YOUR CIGARETTE LIGHTER APPLIED TO YOUR HOME DRINKING WATER TAP. WE HEAR OF CHEMICALS COMING OUT WITH THAT WATER – BUT WE DO NOT HEAR WHAT IS PUT IN WITH THE INFLOW TO THE THIS GAS MINING PIPE. WE HEAR ONLY OF THE OUTFLOW – THUS WE HAVE NO UNDERSTANDING OF THE UNDERGROUND PROCESS – IS IT HYDRAULIC, CHEMICAL, or THERMAL?

The US IS FULL WITH THE SO CALLED FRACKING TECHNOLOGY TO RELEASE GAS FROM SHALE, AND NOW IT SEEMS AUSTRIA IS LUCKY AS WELL – GAS WAS FOUND!

======================================

OMV findet riesiges Gasfeld in Niederösterreich.

Gas für mehr als 30 Jahre: Im Norden von Niederösterreich sollen gewaltige Erdgasmengen schlummern. Die OMV sucht nach Wegen, sie zu fördern.

The KURIER, LETZTES UPDATE AM 05.12.2011.

Poysdorf ist vor allem durch seine Weine – insbesondere den DAC – bekannt. Die Stadt im nö. Weinviertel könnte demnächst aber schon ein ganz anderes Image bekommen: Denn die OMV AG will rund um die Weinstadt Gas fördern. Nicht konventionelles Erdgas, sondern Shale-Gas, deutsch: Schiefergas. Dabei handelt es sich um natürliches Erdgas, das in Tonsteinen entsteht und gespeichert wird. Seine Gewinnung ist technologisch sehr anspruchsvoll, aber durch die steigenden Gaspreise zunehmend rentabel.

Das Gasvorkommen soll dort derart groß sein, dass der österreichische Inlandsbedarf auf lange Zeit – Insider sprechen von 30 Jahren und mehr – zu 100 Prozent abgedeckt werden könnte.

“Ja, das Shale-Gas-Vorkommen wird dort als sehr mächtig eingeschätzt. Bis wir aber so weit sind, dass wir das Gas auch fördern können, dauert es noch einige Jahre. Abgesehen davon muss die Förderung sowohl technisch möglich als auch wirtschaftlich sein”, bestätigte am Dienstag eine OMV-Sprecherin.

vergrößern (enlagement)

Bedeutung der „Bruderschaft“ nimmt ab.

The OEMV company, intends to start first drilling experiments at Poysdorf and Herrnbaumgarten already February 2012 and aims at commercial production by 2014. The two mayors of the above named locations seem to go along with these plans and expect windfall of profits from the oil company.

The way OEMV has explained the project to the local people it says that the fracking process is a hydraulic pressure attack against walls of shale that stand between us and pockets of gas which they call shale gas rather then Natural Gas. I wonder if anyone has asked the oil people to explain the difference in clear terms. They also say that chemicals are needed in order to avoid biological processes that lead to the closing up of the pipes and state that they will not use pesticide chemicals but natural means. This is not clear to us and we wonder what other events will occur undergroup besides the application of pressure in mechanical ways. What chemical reactions, or thermal reactions, are intended and what organic chemicals and heavy metals are expected to be found in the returning water and in the effluents that will reach the underground water.

It seems that Poland, Germany, and France were also looking at production of shale-gas, but while in Poland there is high enthusiasm by a people that are struggling to disengage themselves from the dependence on Russian gas – a highly inflamed political and economic issue, in France the government has decided not to proceed to extract the gas. The protest from an environmentally conscious population  led to this stand by the government.

The gas production in Austria is intended at above two locations in the Wine-Quarter (Vineviertel) outside Vienna with some of the local people, led by local officials of the Green Party, state that the region lives from tourism, Wine, and ambiance and if known as the Gas-Quarter (Gasviertel) all this will be lost.

December 2 and 3, 2011 papers printed the news of a press conference in the Vine-Quarter as in:

diepresse.com/home/wirtschaft/economist/713891/Schiefergas-fuer-30-Jahre-OMV-will-nur-oekologisch-foerdern

diepresse.com/home/wirtschaft/international/717100/Der-Gasstrategie-der-OMV-droht-ein-herber-Rueckschlag

kurier.at/wirtschaft/4460260-die-omv-gibt-schiefer-gas.php

kurier.at/wirtschaft/4317428-omv-findet-riesiges-gasfeld-in-niederoesterreich.php

and today – December 17, 2011, the Wiener Zeitung had another series of three articles on the subject – both as related to Austria and Poland.

www.wienerzeitung.at/nachrichten/wirtschaft/oesterreich/419491_Es-heisst-ja-schliesslich-Weinviertel-und-nicht-Gasviertel.html

“It is, after all, wine district and not gas-quarters” - By Christian Roesner

  • Poysdorf and Mr. Baumgarten will take place in 2012 drilling.

It also mentions that Fritz Gall, head of Nonmuseums in  Baumgarten: said “Fossil energy is not the official line of Austria in terms of energy policy.” Gall is about to establish a platform and invite independent experts to the local population to offer also other perspectives than those of OMV.


 www.wienerzeitung.at/nachrichten/…

Ein Totenkopf gegen das Aufreißen: Frankreich gilt nach Polen als das Land mit dem höchsten Schiefergasvorkommen in Europa. Doch nach vielen Demonstrationen hat Paris im Sommer den Abbau von Schiefergas mittels hydraulischem Fracturing verboten.

Ein Totenkopf gegen das Aufreißen: Frankreich gilt nach Polen als das Land mit dem höchsten Schiefergasvorkommen in Europa. Doch nach vielen Demonstrationen hat Paris im Sommer den Abbau von Schiefergas mittels hydraulischem Fracturing verboten.

Huge shale gas reserves make Poland independent from Russia

Freedom, equality, gas

  • The price could be high for environmental damage.
  • Shale gas is the so-called “Game Changer” for Europe?

———-
 www.wienerzeitung.at/nachrichten/…

Drill deep cracks in the earth  - but only for 80 years.

By Eva Stanzl

  • Shale gas would quadruple natural gas deposits in Europe or tripled.
——–
People do worry about the effects of the gas production on the environment and things get worse when groups like EUROSOLAR Austria, get angree at this because they believe that there is no need to follow the dictum of the oil industry in order to stay dependent on oil and gas when renewable energy is possible and the sun is a main supplier.

Why let OEMV spend 130 million Euro, to just start these experimental drillings when the government provides only for 50 million Euro for the safer whole renewable energy yearly allowance? Investing in Renewables seems rather a safer way of detaching from fossil fuels – even in economic terms – not just environmental.
Thursday December 15, 2011, The monthly discussion table of the Vienna EUROSOLAR group had the time dedicated to Shale Gas – this being an exception as the group deals with renewables. This exception was obviously prompted by the worries that the shale gas project could derail the interest in renewables by creating in the minds of some of the people that this false saviour could answer the need for more energy independence – as it is felt seemingly in Poland.
Ing. Herbert Eberhart brought along the GASLAND documentary of the International WOW Company that showed the effects of shale oil production in the US.
The film talks about the Green River shale area in Wyoming, the old area of the attempt to produce Shale Oil, and moves to the Chesapeake area, to Pennsylvania’s Marcellus Shale up to New York State and the endangered Croton River water system that supplies the New York City water. We lean about the Cabot Oil & Gas Company and Halliburton – the company that was under the leadership of Vice President Dick Cheney.  Under Mr. Cheney’s days at the White House laws were changed and Federal Lands in the West opened to exploitation for oil and gas by private companies. It turned out that things were as in a song that said: “YOUR LAND – MY LAND – GASLAND” – and people were left in unhealthy conditions because of the effects of this drilling for gas.
What attracted my attention was a hearing in US Congress where the gas producing companies refused to divulge the chemicals they were using in those pipes and personally I was left with the uncertainty that perhaps we do not even know what actually is being done underground. The analysis of water from the home taps in the area of production shows the presence of some 596 chemicals including Naphthalene, Methyl Pyridine etc. –  as these are probably not chemicals used as inputs – it means they are results of breakdown of the Kerogene – thus reminding me of the spent shale from above ground retorting and this is an old NO! NO!
Important to note that the same companies working in the US are now lining up to work also in Europe – and Poland was their port of entree. Will Halliburton be as well the technological outfit that will be used by the Austrian OEMV?
From the Financial Times of December 17, 2011, we learn:

“The recent revelation that PetroChina successfully extracted natural gas from shale formations in China’s Sichuan Basin has confirmed the commercial viability of hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking”, in the country. The news also confirmed the major export opportunity that has emerged for the growing number of American companies that produce the array of equipment, chemicals and technologies that will be needed to exploit China’s vast shale gas reserves. At an estimated 1,275 trillion cubic feet, these reserves comprise the world’s largest source.”

“Chinese shale gas developments herald major US industrial export opportunities,” and “the companies with the know how are the American companies - oil field service majors like Baker Hughes, Halliburton, and National Oilwell Varco as well as ITT’s water treatment spin-off, Xylem. Barclays Capital oilfield services analyst, James West, expects US companies like these will add a combined USD 8 to 10bn in shale gas-related equipment and services economic activity over the next year.”

Will the results look like what one seen is GASLAND?

The Tursday evening event at EUROSOLAR turned out to be a five hours affair. After the 90 minutes documentary came the actual meeting of EUROSOLAR with a guest presentation by Green Member of Parliament of Lower Austria, Mrs. Amrita Enzinger who is active in bringing to the public’s attention the dangers inherent in the extraction of the shale gas as experienced in the United States. Lower Austria is not the county in Wyoming that has only 600 residents that was mentioned in the documentary – and that is why the issue deserves a more serious go-through then an agreement with two mayors that might be ill advised in their effort to bring some fast money to their area and forfeiting the future of the area.

The moderator of the evening was energy autarky proponent,businessman Hermann Mentil, former Member of Parliament and  present was also a specialist on energy from Poland.
The meeting was followed by a very interested Q&A period.

============================================================================================

Wiener Zeitung

19. Dezember 2011

Schlagwortsuche

Riesige Schiefergasvorräte machen Polen unabhängig von Russland

Freiheit, Gleichheit, Gas

  • Der Preis dafür könnten hohe Umweltschäden sein.
  • Ist Schiefergas der sogenannte “Game Changer” für Europa?

Wien/Warschau. (wak) Na Zdrowie – auf die Gesundheit! Auf die Unabhängigkeit. In Polen wird derzeit ein Glas nach dem anderen des nationalen Wodkas Ma… weiter

Tiefe Risse in die Erde bohren – aber nur für 80 Jahre

  • Schiefergas würde Erdgasvorkommen in Europa verdrei- oder vervierfachen.

Wien.OMV-Chef Gerhard Roiss will im Weinviertel vorhandene Schiefergas-Vorräte gewinnen, sofern es “ökologisch vertretbar” sei, wie er betont. Sein Fo… weiter

“Es heißt ja schließlich Weinviertel und nicht Gasviertel”

  • In Poysdorf und Herrnbaumgarten sollen 2012 Probebohrungen stattfinden.

Wien. “Als wir zum ersten Mal vom Schiefergasvorkommen in unserer Region hörten, haben wir gegoogelt und diese furchtbaren Infos gefunden, die uns und… weiter

###

Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on April 2nd, 2012
by Pincas Jawetz (PJ@SustainabiliTank.com)

EU Fails To Resolve Dispute Over UN Climate Fund Seats.

Date: 02-Apr-12
Country: UK/BELGIUM
Author: Nina Chestney and Charlie Dunmore from Reuters.

European Union ambassadors failed to resolve a dispute over the allocation of seats on the United Nations’ Green Climate Fund (GCF) board on Friday, possibly undermining the bloc’s credibility in international climate talks.

The EU envoys were meeting for the second time in a week to decide which European nations will be represented on the governing board. This has 12 seats for developing countries and another 12 for developed countries.

“Despite willingness to compromise and adequately share board seats, it has, unfortunately, not been possible to come to an agreement within the EU,” the EU’s Danish presidency said in a statement.

As a result, the EU will miss a March 31 deadline for making a joint proposal on board membership, and EU governments and the bloc’s executive will now have to negotiate directly with other developed countries over who gets the seats.

“For this reason, respective nominations from the group of developed country parties will be withheld until these discussions have taken place,” delaying the entire process, the Danish presidency said.

U.N. climate talks in Durban last year agreed on the design of the fund, which is aimed at channelling up to $100 billion a year to help developing countries adapt to climate change.

Disputes of this kind could both slow the process towards the launch of the fund in 2013 and give other countries the impression that the EU is stalling on climate finance. “It shows that the EU unity we had in Durban has been eroded and that could damage Europe’s image in global climate change talks,” Danish presidency spokesman Jakob Alvi said.

The fund’s first board meeting is due on April 25 to 27, a U.N. spokesman said, subject to confirmation next week.

Despite the EU’s failure to reach an agreement, it should not affect the number of seats it will be allocated on the GCF board, he added.

SEAT DISPUTE

Thirteen of the 27 EU countries had requested a board seat, to ensure they had a say in funding decisions.

A draft EU document, seen by Reuters this week, shows that EU member states and Switzerland might together be able to obtain seven full seats plus associated alternating seats between them. Denmark had proposed that Britain, Germany and France, as the likely biggest financial contributors, should hold a full seat each and share three further alternating seats with another EU country.

But an EU source involved in the discussions said Germany – backed by France – refused to share its seat with any other EU country and insisted on a permanent position on the board, ending any chance of an EU compromise.

Poland also insisted on having a full seat, and told the meeting that in the absence of a joint proposal it would put itself forward to the U.N. in a separate bid outside the EU, sources said under condition of anonymity.

Poland, which relies heavily on coal production for its energy needs, says its economy would develop much more quickly if it wasn’t for the EU’s climate policy, which aims to make coal power generation more expensive.

“(The Commission) has tried to rob us so many times before. This time around we want to wear a second jacket – just in case – and let nothing we are eligible for miss us,” a Polish government source told Reuters.

###

Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on February 10th, 2012
by Pincas Jawetz (PJ@SustainabiliTank.com)



Energy Crisis Looming in the European Deep Freeze

Last week something so rare happened in Rome that it brought the Eternal City to a virtual standstill. IT SNOWED!

The cold that has had Europe in its grip all of this month has even stretched halfway down Italy.

As most of the U.S. is enjoying the warmest winter in memory, Europe is in the deep freeze. Temperatures are regularly below 0 Fahrenheit and 15 to 20 below Celsius across wide swathes of the continent.

The weather has frozen the Danube River solid, bringing vital shipping traffic for nine countries to a halt. It may still be the “Blue Danube” for all we know, but there’s really no telling when it’s under the six inches of ice.

Hardest hit has been Eastern Europe. From Poland in the north to Serbia and Croatia in the south, the weather has been brutal. The worst victim of winter has been Ukraine. Hundreds of people have died, and the government has suspended basic services in parts of the country.

But more ominously, something else has emerged from this reminder that Mother Nature has a grim sense of humor.

The energy grid has begun to buckle.

A Natural Gas-Strapped Continent

The cold weather has drained far more electricity and natural gas than usual.

The gas component is even more essential because it is the primary source of thermal power, and the fuel for a rising amount of electricity generation.

European nations are accustomed to their dependence on foreign gas. It’s a result of their decision to wean themselves from coal and of countries – most significantly Germany – choosing to phase out nuclear power.

That, of course, has consequences.

The ability to import supply quickly in emergency situations like this cold spell is very important, and it’s a very touchy issue, given their dependence on non-EU suppliers. Europe, with Poland and Ukraine in particular, does not want to rely too heavily on Russia for gas imports.

Of course, if the weather rapidly turns into what feels like another ice age, then health, safety, and warmth should supersede politics.

The Russian gas behemoth Gazprom usually obliges with additional volume.

But not this time.

This Deep Freeze Also Extends into Russia

Temperatures have collapsed in Moscow, and domestic demand for available gas is reaching all-time records.

Gazprom has not only declined the request for additional gas, but it is also cutting the normal export levels because of weather at home.

The last time we saw a problem like this, a “gas war” ensued between Russia and Ukraine. During another nasty weather period a few years ago, the flow of Russian gas across Ukraine to Europe halted altogether.

Remember, Europe gets about 40% of its gas imports from Russia, and 60% of that crosses Ukraine.

Because of a political spat between Moscow and Kiev, Europe ended up, literally, out in the cold.

To the European Union, this has been a painful reminder that it needs to diversify its energy sourcing.

The continent is again facing a cut in Russian supply (or at, minimum, no additional needed imports). Yet the culprit this time around is not politics but a brutal winter.

And the policy impact of this is a matter I shall be face to fact with in just a couple weeks.

Marina and I leave for London, Windsor Castle, and Scotland at the end of this month (and I hope you’ll join me as I write from there). One of my primary responsibilities on these trips is to provide briefings on the North American experience in shale gas development (both positive and negative) and to report on the degree to which such unconventional gas reserves will impact the international market.

One immediate result of this developing energy crisis is an accelerated reexamination of domestic shale gas potential in places like Poland and Germany.

Now the Poles have already committed to developing shale gas, and I have been involved in the planning for that move. In Germany, on the other hand, environmental concerns have led to the suspension of shale gas projects.

In the wake this energy shortfall, the EU may reconsider its policies.

The other certain development will be the increasing European interest in importing more liquefied natural gas (LNG). I have told you before about how the rising LNG trade with Europe will benefit U.S. produced shale gas.

This brutal weather is reinforcing both of these approaches in Europe.

It is forcing the EU to import North American shale gas expertise, technology, and equipment, as well as to fast-track commitments for the rapid introduction of a U.S.-based LNG flow.

First, it was cross-border politics.

Then it was a continent-wide brutal cold snap.

Both events have reminded Europe that it requires energy alternatives.

And U.S. companies, and investors like us, are likely to benefit from both.

Actually, there may be one more beneficiary, back in the deep freeze…

Even since Vladimir Putin surprised nobody by announcing his candidacy for another stint as Russian president, he has been hit by widening protests.

A huge rally is planned this weekend in Moscow against Putin. Marina’s sister called last night to say the cold weather will deepen over the weekend in the city and it could cut down the numbers rallying.

But don’t get your hopes up, Vladimir. The freezer environment is not likely to remain all the way to Election Day. Nobody could be that lucky.

Sincerely,

Kent

###

Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on October 3rd, 2011
by Pincas Jawetz (PJ@SustainabiliTank.com)

CANADA GETS TOUGH ON ANTI-SEMITISM.

The government of Canada took an historic step yesterday by signing the Ottawa Protocol to Combat Anti-Semitism. By doing so, it recognized anti-Semitism as a pernicious evil and a global threat against the Jewish people, the State of Israel and free, democratic countries everywhere. As Prime Minister Stephen Harper has noted, “Those who would hate and destroy the Jewish people would ultimately hate and destroy the rest of us as well.”

The protocol is a declaration that hatred of this nature will not be tolerated in this country. It sets out an action plan for supporting initiatives that combat anti-Semitism and provides a framework for other nations to follow.

It also sets out a vibrant definition of anti-Semitism which, for the first time in history, links anti-Semitism to the denial of the right Jewish people have to their ancestral home land — the State of Israel. This, in fact, is what sets post-World War Two anti-Semitism apart from its historic roots. Today’s anti-Semitism is all about denial: denial of the legitimacy of Zionism as a Jewish movement to reclaim the land of Israel; denial of a Jewish history in connection to the holy land and, in particular, the centrality of Jerusalem to the Jewish people; denial of the Holocaust (while at the same time accusing Jews of Nazism); and denial of Jews to live free of anti-Semitism, hate and intolerance.

In announcing the Protocols, Foreign Minister John Baird has expressed his government’s unequivocal support for the State of Israel. In referring to this week’s turmoil at the United Nations and the Palestinian threat to unilaterally declare a state, Baird said, “Canada will not stand behind Israel at the United Nations, we will stand right beside it. It is never a bad thing to do the right thing.”

According to Baird, more and more countries are refusing to participate in the UN conference dubbed “Durban III” — otherwise known as an anti-Semitic hate fest which began as a human rights forum in South Africa in 2001; the forum ultimately degenerated into an anti-Semitic slinging match in which repressive Arab and African countries blamed all the problems facing their own countries and the world on Israel. The governments of France, New Zealand and Poland joined Canada and 10 other western nations this week by declaring they will not take part.

Unquestionably, the Government of Canada’s stance on Israel is based on the principle of standing by your friends — especially when they are democracies and advocates for human rights. Most Jewish leaders would agree that Israel is indeed Canada’s greatest ally in the fight against hate and intolerance.

But the fight against hatred and anti-Semitism must be won here in Canada as well. The Ottawa Protocol is mostly the result of a report published this summer by a Canadian Parliamentary Coalition to Combat Anti-Semitism which was comprised of leading Canadian politicians who volunteered their time to probe the increasing and alarming tide of anti-Semitism in Canada.

In a letter accompanying the report, Chairs of the Inquiry Panel and the Steering Committee Mario Silva and Scott Reid wrote, “The Inquiry Panel’s conclusion, unfortunately, is that the scourge of anti-Semitism is a growing threat in Canada, especially on the campuses of our universities.” The report cites numerous examples of anti-Semitism on various campuses including the infamous incident in 2009 when Jewish students at York University were chased and barricaded themselves in the Hillel lounge while a mob outside taunted them with anti-Semitic slurs. The list of examples is quite long and disturbing.

Universities should take note of the report and the signing of the Ottawa Protocols. They should put an immediate end to hateful and fallacious events like Israeli Apartheid Week; they should state unequivocally that freedom of speech should not be abused to provide a cover for anti-Semitism; they should ensure that Jewish students feel welcome on campus and that their learning environment should be freed from anti-Israel occurrences and finally, universities must become accountable for allowing their private property to be venues for hateful conduct among students.

The Ottawa Protocol to Combat Anti-Semitism is a template for every Canadian to consider. But it is especially a document of significance for universities that have allowed themselves to become vehicles of hatred and complicit in its promotion. As my friend, Professor Irwin Cotler said last night at the Ottawa signing ceremony, anti-Semitism is not only the longest known form of hatred in the history of humanity — it is the only form of hatred that is truly global.

Every person of conscience should take note of the Ottawa Protocols and never forget the lessons of the Holocaust when the world was silent.

—————————————————————————————————

Also – from latest news:

Hamas Gaza leader Ismail Haniyeh reiterated that while Hamas wouldn’t object to a Palestinian Arab state he would not accept the existence of Israel, ever, not the idea that Israel is anything other than eternal Arab land.

Hamas “political leader” Khaled Meshal said on Saturday that “resistance” remains the strategic option at all stages in order to liberate all of Palestine is the elimination of the Zionist project.

Islamic Jihad leader Ramadan Shallah said that no one is entitled to give up one inch of “Palestine” and the Palestinian Arabs want the entire land from the river to the sea.

Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khameini said that any solution that allows Israel to remain in existence in any form is rejected in full.

————————————————————————————————-

###

Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on September 19th, 2011
by Pincas Jawetz (PJ@SustainabiliTank.com)

From a businessman’s point of view:

Everyone’s watching oil right now. And sure, they’ll make a few bucks. But the “silent” move here – and the bigger one – is natural gas. It’s about to explode. What has been a fragmented, local set of markets is about to become one global market, operating at the speed of light. The result, for you, is the profit opportunity of a lifetime. All you have to do is act before the big changes arrives.


September 19, 2011

The Polish Energy Revolution Begins.
by Dr. Kent Moors

Dear Oil & Energy Investor,

As you read this, I am flying back from Poland, shortly to grab another flight on to Vancouver for our first Energy Summit cruise starting Wednesday.

I am genuinely excited about spending four days with many of you, as I lay out our strategy to profit – big time – from small- and micro-cap energy companies in the months ahead. (To that end, I’m taking a few days off, so there will be no Oil & Energy Investor mailing until next Monday.)

For now, though, major news has emerged during my stay in Poland.

At about 9:30 yesterday morning, the nation formally embarked on a new energy course – one whose impact will be felt throughout Europe and beyond.

Visiting the first advanced drilling site in eastern Poland, Prime Minister Donald Tusk committed the country to extracting shale gas beginning in 2014. This will fundamentally transform the nation’s energy prospects.

Now, Tusk and his government are in the run up to a parliamentary general election (the voting takes place on October 9), and the country’s energy situation has been a visible campaign issue.

Back in Krakow, the prime minister’s press conference was broadcast live at our shale gas conference. (Funny – it actually interrupted a panel I was on devoted to how the shale gas revolution will affect localities and regions.) Turns out, the Polish shale picture is more significant than even I was anticipating.

—————————————–

The Impact Will Be Felt Around the World.


For one thing, the projections keep increasing of how much unconventional gas Poland possesses.

The government is now convinced the country will become self-sufficient in energy and beginexporting gas to the rest of Europe.

Yet the implications hardly stop there.

Several of the ministers at our meetings are talking openly about using a new liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal under construction on the Baltic to move product into the broader global market.

Moreover, the rapid development of shale gas will require the creation of an entirely new technical sector to service the fields, process the gas, and apply the newfound largess. This means a significant upgrading of the national gas network, and the laying of major new stretches of pipelines and pumping stations, along with a concerted move to employ the gas as feeder stock for the petrochemical industry.

It is, therefore, hardly surprising that among the audience in Krakow were representatives from such field service powerhouses as Halliburton Co. (NYSE:HAL) and Schlumberger Ltd.(NYSE:SLB), European offices of international drilling companies, consulting agencies, research centers, and law firms.

And there will be plenty of work for all of them.

—————————————-

Rising Opportunities (and a Message for Moscow)

Despite the refrain I heard repeatedly over the past several days – that Polish companies should provide the bulk of the services – this energy revolution will require outside assistance for years to come.

In due course, there will be a technical base created for domestic services, especially given the excellent locally educated work force and the industrial base already present in Poland. But for at least the first decade and beyond, the Polish sector will rely upon those who have the experience…

In other words, American- and Canadian-based shale gas producers and support providers that are already in the business.

Once again, I am witnessing the rise of opportunity elsewhere in the world that will need to draw upon North American technology and expertise to develop energy locally.

Yet far from being competition, energy developments such as the one rapidly coming into view in Poland are major exporting opportunities.

Remember, significant shale gas production is less than 10 years old. Yet virtually all of it has taken place in the U.S. and Canada. That means the rest of the world will be looking to that experience when bringing their own unconventional production on-line.

This will be a welcome addition to the revenue streams generated for those providing services in the North American market.

The primary losers in all of this, of course, are the Russians.

###

Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on September 17th, 2011
by Pincas Jawetz (PJ@SustainabiliTank.com)

Does the Euro Have a Future?

OCTOBER 13, 2011George Soros

www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2011/oct/13/does-euro-have-future/

Excerpts from this and the fact that George Soros advocates now for
Greece, Portugal. Ireland to leave the Eurozone in order to allow the
rest to put the house in order by creating a new EU with much more of
a centralized treasury. He effectively blames the troubles of the EU
on the export to them of the problems of the US that did not handle
correctly its banks in 2008. The papers in Europe already write about
the content of the New York Review Of Books article – the Issue of
October 13, 2011.

———————–

The euro crisis is a direct consequence of the crash of 2008. When
Lehman Brothers failed, the entire financial system started to
collapse and had to be put on artificial life support. This took the
form of substituting the sovereign credit of governments for the bank
and other credit that had collapsed. At a memorable meeting of
European finance ministers in November 2008, they guaranteed that no
other financial institutions that are important to the workings of the
financial system would be allowed to fail, and their example was
followed by the United States.

Angela Merkel then declared that the guarantee should be exercised by
each European state individually, not by the European Union or the
eurozone acting as a whole. This sowed the seeds of the euro crisis
because it revealed and activated a hidden weakness in the
construction of the euro: the lack of a common treasury. The crisis
itself erupted more than a year later, in 2010.

There is some similarity between the euro crisis and the subprime
crisis that caused the crash of 2008. In each case a supposedly
riskless asset—collateralized debt obligations (CDOs), based largely
on mortgages, in 2008, and European government bonds now—lost some or
all of their value.

Unfortunately the euro crisis is more intractable. In 2008 the US
financial authorities that were needed to respond to the crisis were
in place; at present in the eurozone one of these authorities, the
common treasury, has yet to be brought into existence. This requires a
political process involving a number of sovereign states. That is what
has made the problem so severe. The political will to create a common
European treasury was absent in the first place; and since the time
when the euro was created the political cohesion of the European Union
has greatly deteriorated. As a result there is no clearly visible
solution to the euro crisis. In its absence the authorities have been
trying to buy time.

———-

Where are we now in this process? The outlines of the missing
ingredient, namely a common treasury, are beginning to emerge. They
are to be found in the European Financial Stability Facility
(EFSF)—agreed on by twenty-seven member states of the EU in May
2010—and its successor, after 2013, the European Stability Mechanism
(ESM). But the EFSF is not adequately capitalized and its functions
are not adequately defined. It is supposed to provide a safety net for
the eurozone as a whole, but in practice it has been tailored to
finance the rescue packages for three small countries: Greece,
Portugal, and Ireland; it is not large enough to support bigger
countries like Spain or Italy. Nor was it originally meant to deal
with the problems of the banking system, although its scope has
subsequently been extended to include banks as well as sovereign
states. Its biggest shortcoming is that it is purely a fund-raising
mechanism; the authority to spend the money is left with the
governments of the member countries. This renders the EFSF useless in
responding to a crisis; it has to await instructions from the member
countries.

———-

Leaving the euro would make it easier for them to regain
competitiveness; but if they are willing to make the necessary
sacrifices they could also stay in. In both cases, the EFSF would
protect bank deposits and the IMF would help to recapitalize the
banking system. That would help these countries to escape from the
trap in which they currently find themselves. It would be against the
best interests of the European Union to allow these countries to
collapse and drag down the global banking system with them.

It is not for me to spell out the details of the new treaty; that has
to be decided by the member countries. But the discussions ought to
start right away because even under extreme pressure they will take a
long time to conclude. Once the principle of setting up a European
Treasury is agreed upon, the European Council could authorize the ECB
to step into the breach, indemnifying the ECB in advance against risks
to its solvency. That is the only way to forestall a possible
financial meltdown and another Great Depression.

========================================================

Mr. Geithner in Wroclaw, September 16, 2011:

It is easy for Mr. Geithner to suggest that Europeans spend more of their own money. Doing so is hard.

The U.S. and Europe have broadly different outlooks on the use of fiscal stimulus—another topic discussed Friday.

“We don’t see any room for maneuver inside the euro area which would and could allow us to launch a new fiscal stimulus package,” said Jean-Claude Juncker, the Luxembourg prime minister who heads the group of euro-zone countries. “We cannot put at risk the consolidation of public finances, which is now well on track.”

By contrast, President Obama last week proposed a $447 billion package of tax cuts and spending increases to boost the slowing U.S. economy. But European leaders appear determined to carry out budget-cutting plans put in place last year, despite slowing growth and persistent financial-market turmoil caused by the currency bloc’s debt crisis.

The Austrian Government has already announced that they will not go above the 1.4 billion Euro they already did spend on Greece – the Austrian taz-payer objects.

###

Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on September 17th, 2011
by Pincas Jawetz (PJ@SustainabiliTank.com)

The West wrote in the IHT – POLAND TO LEAD ON CLEAN ENERGY – a SAUDI paper changed this back correctly to GREEN ENERGY!  The article itself gives hope to efficiency but has no green items in it.  One better go back to the drawing board to look for the truest niche for Poland – this is in Agro-fuels..

Polish EU lead could yet set green energy example.

By Barbara Lewis, Reuters, posted as OPINION in the SAUDI GAZETTE. It appeared as news in the International Herald Tribune under the title POLAND TO LEAD IN CLEAN ENERGY. We find the Saudi change of name from CLEAN to GREEN as very significant.
Half way into its EU presidency, Poland still has the opportunity to lead eastern Europe in bringing on efficient energy technology and to prove wrong those who see it only as an obstacle to a greener agenda.
Its often tense ties with leading gas producer Russia could also sharpen the debate on how to secure reliable energy supplies as tensions once again mount between Moscow and Kiev, which dominates Russia’s gas transit route to western Europe.

Talks next Monday and Tuesday in Wroclaw, southwestern Poland, should bring together the EU’s 27 energy ministers to talk informally about the European Union’s external energy policy and the development of infrastructure within the bloc, crucial to meeting a so far elusive target to improve energy efficiency.

“Poland brings a new perspective on environmental policy,” said Dieter Helm, professor of energy policy at Oxford University.
“Poland is in a very good place to promote security of supply, especially since the Germans and Russians deliberately put the Nord Stream (pipeline to ship Russian gas) round the outside of Poland.”
Ahead of the talks in Wroclaw, a draft document obtained by Reuters on “engaging with partners beyond our borders” showed EU proposals to increase the Commission’s mandate to be involved in energy negotiations between member countries and those outside the bloc.

Analysts have interpreted that as an attempt to prevent cosy bilateral ties between big gas consumers, such as Germany and Italy, and their major supplier Russia.
The draft also urged closer EU-wide links with Russia and Ukraine, through which some 20 percent of the EU’s gas supply travels, according to EU figures, as well as giving mention to renewable energy and improved electricity networks.
_
Green campaigners want more. The answer, they say, to the security of supply problem for a bloc, which depends on imports for more than 60 percent of its gas and more than 80 percent of its oil, is greater efficiency, not more pipelines or more Commission involvement — often seen as meddling by the private sector — in their negotiation.

As the biggest economy in central Europe, Poland, which relies on a grid largely dating back to the Cold War era, is well-placed to lead from the eastern fringe of the EU. “Now is the chance for them to modernize the system and make it more efficient and suitable to renewable energy generation, rather than just replacing and expanding the existing structure that is largely based on centralised coal power production,” said Frauke Thies, EU energy policy advisor for Greenpeace European Unit.
“Unfortunately, Poland has not yet shown sufficient determination to move forward.”

At the start of its six-month tenure as EU president, Poland in June blocked an attempt by EU environment ministers to strengthen EU action to combat climate change.

However, the nation, which holds the presidency until Denmark takes over at the start of 2012, has pragmatic reasons for shifting towards a more environmental approach.

Its heavy use of carbon-intensive coal means it is keen to lower the cost of the carbon permits its factories and utilities have to buy under the EU Emissions Trading Scheme, designed to help Europe meet its target of a 20 percent reduction in carbon emissions by 2020 compared with 1990 levels.
Greater efficiency could lower a carbon price, which has already shrunk to less than 12 euros a tonne, but could increase once the ETS moves into its next phase in 2013 and a current glut of carbon permits declines.
“Poland will probably be quite pro-efficiency because it’s in favor of a low carbon price,” said Kash Burchett of IHS Global Insight.
For such a big carbon emitter, some argue progress is almost inevitable.
“As they are around 90 percent dependent on coal, it’s difficult for them to come up with higher emissions. There’s a lot of low hanging fruit,” said Peter Osbaldstone, European Gas & Research Analyst for Wood Mackenzie.
The opportunity of selling power to its neighbours, as the EU edges towards a single European energy market, provides another incentive for Poland to modernise and as a consequence become more environmental.
“If it is to be integrated into the rest of Europe, it has to move towards a lower carbon economy because that’s the direction its neighbours are going,” said Sanjeev Kumar of environment group E3G.
Poland’s geography has also led to difficult relations with Russia and arguments over the transit fees Poland charged for Russian gas to flow through it to Germany.

Equally, Russia has been at odds with another transit nation Ukraine, a neighbor of Poland, in a bitter pricing dispute that in 2009 led to the disruption of gas supplies to European countries, including Poland and Germany.
Tensions have flared again, coinciding with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s inauguration of the Nord Stream pipeline, which bypasses Ukraine and also Poland by shipping gas through international waters before making landfall in Germany.
As it seeks to reduce its need for Russian gas and move away from polluting coal, Poland is keen to develop its deposits of shale gas — the largest in Europe. Shale gas, however, is not free from controversy.
Following environmental concern about the hydraulic fracturing or fracking process for extracting gas from shale rock, An EU spokeswoman said the European Commission had ordered a legal study to assess whether EU legislation is adequate to cover any problems.
Results of the study are not expected before the end of the year.

Poland’s wisest strategy, could be to look on as the simmering Russia-Ukraine dispute provides a compelling argument for shale gas.
“Its best option is to sit back and watch the show,” said Burchett of IHS Global Insight.
The Saudi Gazette also picked for publishing:
Solar Energy Prices www.sonntec.at
———————————————————————–
Others say: Nuclear Power is the Only Green Solution,” James Lovelock.  Another source claimed the International Atomic Energy Agency said the International Herald Tribune, Mar. …. source of released radioactivity, full of heavy metals, including lead, arsenic, and …… “Swedes Get a Buzz Visiting Nuclear Plants,” Barbara Lewis
You see – Clean or Green or Nukes – some pick their choices in the need that evolves  to spew less CO2 into the atmosphere. We welcome the Saudi interest.
Also, we welcome the notion that Poland should be seen, like the Ukraine to its East, as the great source of biofuels – Green and Clean – for Europe.

###

Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on September 17th, 2011
by Pincas Jawetz (PJ@SustainabiliTank.com)

Occupy Wall Street Begins Tomorrow, September 17th, 2011.

By Laura Marcinek, Bloomberg, 16 September 2011.

Please see RSN Events Page for more information about Occupy Wall Street.  http://www.readersupportednews.org/news-section2/345-justice/7456-occupy-wall-street-begins-tomorrow-september-17th

Wall Street firms will be the target of a nonviolent demonstration in which organizers say they want 20,000 people to participate with tents, kitchens and “peaceful barricades.”

Dubbed “#OccupyWallStreet,” the goal of the protest in lower Manhattan is to get President Barack Obama to establish a commission to end “the influence money has over our representatives in Washington,” according to the website of Adbusters, a group promoting the demonstration. Organizers plan to start on Sept. 17 and want participants to “occupy” the area for “a few months,” according to the website.
“People have a right to protest, and if they want to protest, we’ll be happy to make sure they have locations to do it,” New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said yesterday at a press conference. “As long as they do it where other people’s rights are respected, this is the place where people can speak their minds, and that’s what makes New York New York.”
The New York City Police Department is aware of the protest and is “planning accordingly,” Paul Browne, a spokesman for the department, said in an e-mail.
NYSE Euronext, Deutsche Bank AG and Bank of New York Mellon Corp. are among firms with operations in the area. Bank of America Corp., JPMorgan Chase & Co., Morgan Stanley and Citigroup Inc. are among financial firms whose main offices aren’t on Wall Street.
Rich Adamonis, a spokesman for the NYSE, Duncan King of Deutsche Bank, and Bank of New York’s Ron Gruendl declined to comment on the demonstration.
A New Orleans-style jazz band led a rally against Wall Street yesterday from a dais in downtown San Francisco.
Protests also are planned for financial districts in Madrid, Milan, London and Paris, according to a bulletin from the National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center obtained by Bloomberg News. The NCCIC is part of the Department of Homeland Security. Chris Ortman, an agency spokesman, confirmed the bulletin’s authenticity.
The mayor is the founder and majority owner of Bloomberg News parent Bloomberg LP.
——————————————–

Also -

According to reports Friday, Geithner ignored a March 2009 order that asked the Treasury Department to consider dissolving Citigroup, one of the nation’s largest financial services companies. Citigroup was among the worst hit by the financial crisis in 2008, and needed billions in bailout money to stay afloat.

new book by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Ron Suskind reveals that Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner ignored a direct order from President Obama for the reconstruction of major banks during the financial crisis.

Many have criticized the Obama administration — and Geithner, the former president of the New York Federal Reserve, specifically — of being too focused on helping the banking industry after the recession. Critics on both the left and right argue that the government should not have bailed out banks that submarined the economy after issuing bad mortgages.

According to The Associated Press
, Obama acknowledged the Citigroup incident in an interview with Suskind. Obama tried to downplay his reaction upon discovering that Geithner had ignored his request, saying, “Agitated may be too strong a word.”

Obama went on to blame the slow-moving machinations of the federal government, saying, “the speed with which the bureaucracy could exercise my decision was slower than I wanted.”

For his part, Geithner told Suskind that “I don’t slow walk the president on anything.”

——————–

An investigative reporter, Suskind won a Pulitzer Prize in 1995 while working for the Wall Street Journal.

His other books include “The Way of the World” (2008), which focused on national security, and “The Price of Loyalty” (2004). That best-seller was an account of the Bush administration and its first treasury   secretary, Paul O’Neill, that includes what became a widely cited remark by then-Vice President Dick Cheney: “Reagan proved that deficits don’t matter.”

Suskind’s 1998 book, “A Hope Unseen,” grew out of the series of articles that won him a Pulitzer for feature writing.

——-

Our comment – most financial and economics officials working in the Administration were connected in the past to Citibank/Citigroup. There is not much daylight coming through between them.

————————————————

Also,

from – WROCLAW, Poland — The United States has long been considered a financial adviser to the rest of the world. But these days, American officials come carrying baggage.

Financial officials from the United States, once called “the committee to save the world” after the Asian crisis in the 1990s, now find themselves uttering apologies for the harm caused to the world by the 2008 financial crisis and coating their advice to European nations with the knowing nod of the battle-hardened.

The change in tone was on display here on Friday when Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner made an unusual appearance at a meeting of euro zone finance ministries. Mr. Geithner had been invited to offer some advice on fixing Europe’s sovereign debt and banking problems.

European leaders, who have been slow to react to the root causes of the problem, emerged from the meeting dismissive of Mr. Geithner’s ideas and, in some cases, even of the idea that the United States was in a position to give out such pointers.

=========================

We found on internet the call:
September 17,2011 – Occupy Wall Street (Testify – Rage Against The Machine) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z8hxdc16hWw


###

Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on September 10th, 2011
by Pincas Jawetz (PJ@SustainabiliTank.com)

We were informed of a Press Briefing

at the Vienna International Cenre, Thursday, September 8, 2011, 1:30 p.m. on

Adaptation to Climate Change by Spatial Planning in the Alps.

This was to be about: The main results and outcomes achieved under the CLISP Project “Adaptation to Climate Change by Spatial Planning in the Alpine area” will be discussed at the CLISP international final conference organized by the United Nations Environment Programme and the Federal Environment Agency Austria, held at the Vienna International Centre at that date – on 8 September 2011, at which the Head of the UNEP Vienna Office, Harald Egerer, stressed the importance of the particular study as a platform for the development of an integrated, transnational approach toward adaptation to impacts of climate change in the highly sensitive area of the Alps.

It also said  at the margins of the Conference, high level representatives from the European Union, the Alpine Convention and Austrian agencies will take part at the Press Briefing with the purpose of illustrating present and future strategies to tackle negative effect of climate change in the Alpine space.
Speakers include:

Rosario Bento Pais
DG Climate Action, European Commission

Andre Jol
Head of vulnerability group, European Environment Agency

Marco Onida
Secretary General, Alpine Convention

George Reberning
Managing Director, Federal Environment Agency Austria

————-

Having shown interest, later we also received a Press Release:

Climate Change Adaptation by Spatial Planning in the Alpine Space.

VIENNA, 8 September (UN Information Service) – One hundred participants from the Alpine States have gathered today at the Vienna International Centre to discuss the main results and outcomes achieved under the Adaptation to Climate Change by Spatial Planning in the Alpine Space Project (CLISP). Organized by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Federal Environment Agency Austria, the CLISP Final Conference was opened with a video-message from UNEP Executive Director, Achim Steiner.
Climate change is expected to affect spatial development in the Alpine Space, including land use, socio-economic activities and life-sustaining ecosystems services more severely than in other European regions. Temperature increase, decreasing snow cover and more severe weather extremes could cause a variety of adverse climate change impacts. Growing risks from water scarcity, heat waves and natural
hazards might threaten settlements, physical infrastructure, utilities, material assets and human lives.
Vulnerability assessment:
Funded under the EU Alpine Space Programme, the CLISP Project in its three years focused on the challenges to spatial planning in the face of climate change. The 16 CLISP partner organizations have analyzed ten Alpine model regions according to their vulnerability to climate change. Results have shown that regions, which are already sensitive to the climate extremes, are expected to be the most vulnerable regions also in the future. Even though technical measures are mostly well implemented “soft” adaptation strategies like a proper “climate-proof” spatial planning, better coordination of actions within institutions, and better risk-communication are often missing.
Climate change fitness of spatial planning systems analyzed:
The investigation of the “climate change fitness” of spatial planning systems has shown that there are already strong formal planning instruments and important informal practices at hand that could be used to respond to climate change and to coordinate cross-sectoral adaptation activities. Nevertheless, climate adaptation needs to be addressed more directly and defined as an objective of spatial planning in legislation and other frameworks.
Transnational Planning Strategy:
One of the main outcomes of the CLISP project is the Transnational Planning Strategy (TPS) that is mainly aimed at policymakers, decision-makers and political actors in spatial planning in the Alpine space as a decision-making tool for the development of suitable adaptation strategies and actions in response to climate change.
Strategic project in the field of climate change adaptation and spatial planning:
The findings of the CLISP project as well as the pan-European perspectives of climate change adaptation have been discussed with representatives from the European Commission – Directorate General for Regional Policy, Directorate General for Climate Action, the Alpine Convention, the European Environment Agency as well as with participants from other international institutions attending the CLISP final conference.
CLISP Project is a pioneering project in the field of climate change adaptation and spatial planning. Its outcomes are not only of strategic relevance for the coordinated development of climate change adaptation policies in the Alpine region, but with the support of the United Nations Environment Programme the CLISP results and experience can also be shared with other mountain regions, such as the Carpathians, Balkans and the Himalaya region.
The CLISP project can be found at www.clisp.eu
For more information please contact:

Giulia Sechi
UNEP Vienna – Interim Secretariat of the Carpathian Convention
Telephone: (+43-1) 26060 – 4454
Email: giulia.sechi[at]unvienna.org

—————————————————————

At the Press Conference there were just two journalists – myself and the Vienna editor for an industry magazine 4C, Ms. Margarette Endl who came as a guest of the organizers of what turned out to have been the “graduating” event – the release of the final documents of this stage inthe CLISP Project.

Other people in the room were part of the conference and thus asked no questions. Ms. Endl asked questions on the basis of her attendance at the morning session.
I ended up asking on the base of my general interest in the subject, and learned that since the three poles concept the subject has evolved, and I have now much more to learn about the mountain regions. As evidence of this large area – I already posted several items today based on other sources of information.

Coincidently, years ago, I was present when Ambassador Dr. Irene Freudenschuss-Reichl  introduced for Austria and UNIDO the subject of Mountain Regions to the UN Commission on Sustainable Development. At the UN Mountains were always a synonym to the Himalayas like deserts, arid and semiarid lands are a synonym to Africa – but she was already then speaking about Austria and the Alps. Now the subject has evolved and we speak of regions within this large area previously included in the Alpine region.

I mentioned the three poles where the Himalayas are the third pole – and asked if we should talk now of five poles – including the Alps and the Andes – while leaving out the lesser areas like the mountains of New Zealand – because the region is rather small or Africa where the melting of the snows of Kilimanjaro has sort of eliminated the problem. I knew this was a rather provocative question and got a very good answer from Mr. Pier Carlo Sandei where he explained that the mountain regions are not just about the disappearance of the glaciers – but rather about the moving up of vegetation lines – thus a general  changing in the nature in the mountains because of Climate Change and other reasons. This is a general UNEP interest and the subject has progressed through a series of Conventions.

I stayed for the afternoon sessions that were chaired by Ms. Sabine McCallum, the department head for the subjects of Environment Impact Assessment & Climate Change of the Austrian Department of the Environment. she was actually the head of the project and her Minister – Helmut Hojesky, Federal Minister of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment, and Water Management, was the main speaker at the High-Level Panel Discussion: “Taking action towards climate-proof spatial development – What is the way forward?”

Others on the panel were Thomas Probst, Swiss Federal Office for the Environment; Rosario Benito Pais and Jose Ruiz de Casas, both from the European Commission one from  Climate Action and the other from Regions; Andre Jol, Head of group Vulnerability and Adaptation, European Environment Agency; and Marco Onida, Secretary General of the Alpine Convention.

What happened here was that the area of the Alpine Convention has been divided into 10 regions that the study dealt with separately. It is obvious that the problems of the Swiss Alps that are dedicated mainly to tourism are very different from the problems in the newer members of the EU from the Balkans and the Carpathian regions where there are also States that do not belong to the EU altogether. The project did not just reshuffle data – but produced data and starts proposing plans of action – this being the ultimate goal of the project that after being absorbed by the States involved – will then be continued in order to come up with further plans of action.

We were told not to forget mitigation. While adaptation is a defense for the countries here – if there are no tangible results on mitigation here and elsewhere – there will be need for more adaptation in the future.

The European Commission told us that CLIMATE ACTION is now a new DG (that means a Department with Department Head and Stuff and a mandate to act). All these studies and Plans of Axtion will be under this department.

THE minister said that his people learn the Swiss and German experience – AND WE HAVE TO ADAPT TO CLIMATE CHANGE – BECAUSE IT WILL HAPPEN – WHATEVER WE DO.

UNEP declared that they are here because they want to learn from the A-B-C … the Alps, Balkans, Carpathian regions. The countries that were parts of Yugoslavia and Albania have lot of historic experience but having become independent of each other, whatever centralized poiicy there was it is now worse – there is no communication between them. Cooperation is needed and this project provides a unified platform and future regional adaptation. The Balkan region is actually a Balkan and Dinaric Arc Region that covers the Adriatic Coast.

So far as Vienna goes – as always – it finds itself in the middle – this time in the middle between the Alps and the Carpatians with the “B” region to the South.

There was the need for a Carpathian Convention in addition to the Alpine Convention. The Carpathian Convention includes The Ukraine and Serbia that are not part of the EU. 66% of the Carpathian region is still covered with forests – this provides extra-potential to preserve biodiversity, landscape and quality of air.

Pier Carlo Sandei spoke of SUSTAINABLE GROWTH in the context of the 21st Century – rather then the 20th Century. He gave me the feeling that Sustainable Growth as understood earlier is a no=no today when we must think of TRANSNATIONAL REGIONS that will aim by 2020 to be sustained by 20% Sustainable Energy.

He also used in the summary the conclusion: MITIGATION IS GLOBAL – ADAPTATION IS LOCAL & REGIONAL. One will have to look at climate costs – if you invest or you do not invest. This reminds us of the situation that compares the way industry looks at their strategy to answer CO2 emissions decrease requirements.

If you do something overseas – you get the credits and you can apply the full amount right now – but if you reduce your own emissions at home, you do not get the immediate full credit – you rather get the credit apportioned for the long range of the project – and that is what sends corporations to buy credits overseas. AHA! You Kyoto Protocol; affectionados – hear it from us = we warned you that the system never made sense!

——————————

Looking at the nice collection of material I took along – I would like to give here references for the benefit of our readers:

A – ALPINE CONVENTION, 2nd efition, January 2011, Permanent Secretariat of the Alpine Convention, Herzog-Friedrich-Strasse 15, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria with a branch office in Bolzano-Bosen, Italy.  www.alpconv.org

B – BALKAN VITAL GRAPHICS – Environment Without Borders. Published by UNEP/GRID=Arendal in 2007. It was backed by Austria and canada and was used as part of the Belgrade October 10-12, 2001 Ministerial Conference on Building Bridges To The Future Environment For Europe. It deals with mining, water and nature.

C – A COLLECTION ON THE CARPATHIAN CONVENTION, material prepared for the Second Convention of the Parties, Bucharest, June 17-19, 2008. Published in
Bolzano, Italy. www.carpathianproject.eu  —– This material was followed by the Carpathian Project headed by Mr. Harald Egerer of UNEP Vienna. www.carpathianconvention.org … Harald.Egerer@unvienna  … The Partners to the project are institutions from Austria, Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Italy, Greece, Czech Republic, Germany, Romania, The Ukraine.

###

Posted on Sustainabilitank.info on September 9th, 2011
by Pincas Jawetz (PJ@SustainabiliTank.com)

You cannot leave the EURO but you can be expelled from the EURO says a
European Central Bank Legal Study from 2009. The Spanish European
Commissioner lashes out at Germany and The Netherlands leaders of the
CORE EUROZONE States that invoked recently this sort of ideas.

a. Brussels: ‘No one can leave the euro’ – 08/09/2011 17:34:05
—————————————————————————-
The European Commission has insisted that no member of the eurozone can
leave the single currency. However, a European Central Bank legal study
from 2009 argues that while voluntary withdrawal is legally not possible,
expulsion remains “conceivable”.

euobserver.com/9/113563

=======================

b.  Spanish commissioner lashes out at core eurozone states -
09/09/2011 09:18:14
—————————————————————————-
Spain’s European commissioner has lashed out at core eurozone states in the
wake of suggestions from the Netherlands and Germany that heavily indebted
members of the single currency could be booted out of the club.

euobserver.com/19/113568

=============================================================

The International Herald Tribune as distributed in Europe – on September 6, 2011 had two large front page articles dealing with the Euro zone that make it clear that the deep belief is that Europe willl not solve its problems without looking like the USA. So – to solve the EUROZONE there must be a structural change that will bring the EU to have something like the US Constitution that replaced the weak Articles of Confederation that were not enough as it was shown by the civil war and the demise of the initial union of the 13.

The articles are:

(1)  the News Analysis – “To Break Logjam, E.U. veers towards U.S. model” – by Louise Story and Matthew Saltmarsh.

(2) from Paris – “Euro Zone admonished to act with one voice” – by Liz Alderman and James Kanter.

###