JWST131-fm JWST131-Newell.cls (1994/07/13 v1.2u Standard LaTeX document class) The New Carbon Economy 11-30-2011 :894 JWST131-fm JWST131-Newell.cls (1994/07/13 v1.2u Standard LaTeX document class) 11-30-2011 Antipode Book Series General Editor: Dr Rachel Pain, Reader in the Department of Geography, Durham University, UK Like its parent journal, the Antipode Book Series reflects distinctive new developments in radical geography It publishes books in a variety of formats – from reference books to works of broad explication to titles that develop and extend the scholarly research base – but the commitment is always the same: to contribute to the praxis of a new and more just society Published The New Carbon Economy: Constitution, Governance and Contestation Edited by Peter Newell, Max Boykoff and Emily Boyd Capitalism and Conservation Edited by Dan Brockington and Rosaleen Duffy Spaces of Environmental Justice Edited by Ryan Holifield, Michael Porter and Gordon Walker The Point is to Change It: Geographies of Hope and Survival in an Age of Crisis Edited by Noel Castree, Paul Chatterton, Nik Heynen, Wendy Larner and Melissa W Wright Privatization: Property and the Remaking of Nature-Society Edited by Becky Mansfield Practising Public Scholarship: Experiences and Possibilities Beyond the Academy Edited by Katharyne Mitchell Grounding Globalization: Labour in the Age of Insecurity Edward Webster, Rob Lambert and Andries Bezuidenhout Privatization: Property and the Remaking of Nature-Society Relations Edited by Becky Mansfield Decolonizing Development: Colonial Power and the Maya Joel Wainwright Cities of Whiteness Wendy S Shaw Neoliberalization: States, Networks, Peoples Edited by Kim England and Kevin Ward The Dirty Work of Neoliberalism: Cleaners in the Global Economy Edited by Luis L M Aguiar and Andrew Herod David Harvey: A Critical Reader Edited by Noel Castree and Derek Gregory Working the Spaces of Neoliberalism: Activism, Professionalisation and Incorporation Edited by Nina Laurie and Liz Bondi Threads of Labour: Garment Industry Supply Chains from the Workers’ Perspective Edited by Angela Hale and Jane Wills Life’s Work: Geographies of Social Reproduction Edited by Katharyne Mitchell, Sallie A Marston and Cindi Katz Redundant Masculinities? Employment Change and White Working Class Youth Linda McDowell Spaces of Neoliberalism Edited by Neil Brenner and Nik Theodore Space, Place and the New Labour Internationalism Edited by Peter Waterman and Jane Wills Forthcoming Banking Across Boundaries: Placing Finance in Capitalism Brett Christophers Fat Bodies, Fat Spaces: Critical Geographies of Obesity Rachel Colls and Bethan Evans Gramscian Geographies: Space, Ecology, Politics Edited by Michael Ekers, Gillian Hart, Stefan Kipfer and Alex Loftus Places of Possibility: Property, Nature and Community Land Ownership Fiona D Mackenzie Radical Democratization: Inventing Networks of Equivalence Mark Purcell :894 JWST131-fm JWST131-Newell.cls (1994/07/13 v1.2u Standard LaTeX document class) The New Carbon Economy Edited by Peter Newell, Max Boykoff and Emily Boyd A John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., Publication 11-30-2011 :894 JWST131-fm JWST131-Newell.cls (1994/07/13 v1.2u Standard LaTeX document class) 11-30-2011 This edition first published 2012 Originally published as Volume 43, Issue of Antipode Chapters © 2012 The Authors Book compilation © 2012 Editorial Board of Antipode and Blackwell Publishing Ltd Blackwell Publishing was acquired by John Wiley & Sons in February 2007 Blackwell’s publishing program has been merged with Wiley’s global Scientific, Technical, and Medical business to form Wiley-Blackwell Registered Office John Wiley & Sons Ltd, The Atrium, Southern Gate, Chichester, West Sussex, PO19 8SQ, United Kingdom Editorial Offices 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148-5020, USA 9600 Garsington Road, Oxford, OX4 2DQ, UK The Atrium, Southern Gate, Chichester, West Sussex, PO19 8SQ, UK For details of our global editorial offices, for customer services, and for information about how to apply for permission to reuse the copyright material in this book please see our website at www.wiley.com/wiley-blackwell The right of Peter Newell, Max Boykoff and Emily Boyd to be identified as the authors of the editorial material in this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 All rights reserved No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, except as permitted by the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, without the prior permission of the publisher Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books Designations used by companies to distinguish their products are often claimed as trademarks All brand names and product names used in this book are trade names, service marks, trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners The publisher is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered It is sold on the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering professional services If professional advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication data is available for this book The new carbon economy / edited by Peter Newell, Max Boykoff and Emily Boyd p cm Includes index “Originally published as Volume 43, Issue of Antipode.” ISBN 978-1-4443-5022-7 (pbk.) Energy industries–Environmental aspects Energy consumption–Environmental aspects Energy policy–Environmental aspects Carbon offsetting Carbon dioxide mitigation Environmental policy Climactic changes–Economic aspects I Newell, Peter (Peter John) II Boykoff, Maxwell T III Boyd, Emily IV Antipode HD9502.A2N485 2012 363.738 746–dc23 2011038340 Set in 11pt Times by Aptara Inc., New Delhi, India 2012 :894 JWST131-fm JWST131-Newell.cls (1994/07/13 v1.2u Standard LaTeX document class) 11-24-2011 Contents List of Contributors The “New” Carbon Economy: What’s New? Emily Boyd, Maxwell Boykoff and Peter Newell vii The Matter of Carbon: Understanding the Materiality of tCO2 e in Carbon Offsets Adam G Bumpus 13 Making Markets Out of Thin Air: A Case of Capital Involution Mar´ıa Guti´errez 41 Between Desire and Routine: Assembling Environment and Finance in Carbon Markets Philippe Descheneau and Matthew Paterson 65 Ecological Modernisation and the Governance of Carbon: A Critical Analysis Ian Bailey, Andy Gouldson and Peter Newell 85 Accounting for Carbon: The Role of Accounting Professional Organisations in Governing Climate Change Heather Lovell and Donald MacKenzie 107 Realizing Carbon’s Value: Discourse and Calculation in the Production of Carbon Forestry Offsets in Costa Rica David M Lansing 135 Resisting and Reconciling Big Wind: Middle Landscape Politics in the New American West Roopali Phadke 159 Index 183 :629 JWST131-fm JWST131-Newell.cls (1994/07/13 v1.2u Standard LaTeX document class) List of Contributors Ian Bailey University of Plymouth Emily Boyd University of Reading Maxwell Boykoff University of Colorado Adam G Bumpus University of Melbourne Philippe Descheneau University of Ottawa Andy Gouldson University of Leeds Mar´ıa Guti´errez Consultant David M Lansing University of Maryland Heather Lovell University of Edinburgh Donald MacKenzie University of Edinburgh Peter Newell University of Sussex Matthew Paterson University of Ottawa Roopali Phadke Macalester College 11-24-2011 :629 JWST131-c01 JWST131-Newell.cls (1994/07/13 v1.2u Standard LaTeX document class) 11-24-2011 Chapter The “New” Carbon Economy: What’s New? Emily Boyd, Maxwell Boykoff and Peter Newell Introducd commercial drivers for 95 project processes 6, 66, 69, 97 value of transactions 1–2, 94 Climate Action Network (CAN) [cited] 56, 61n[26] Climate Care [cited] 30 climate change economical optimism about solution 87 landscape reconfiguration in response to market-based responses 2–3, 5–6, 107 role of accountancy profession in governing 107–30 technological optimism about solution 87 Climate Change Capital, advertising by 74–5 Climate, Community and Biodiversity standards 98, 99 11-16-2011 187 Climate Disclosure Standards Board (CDSB) 127, 129 Technical Working Group 109, 124, 127, 129 ClimateChangeCorp [cited] Coase, R 79n[1] Cohen, J 24 Cole, J C 14, 29 collaborative conservation/development of wind energy projects 177, 179 “command-and-control” regulation and climate change compared with “cap-and-trade” schemes 90 commodification 81n[18] of carbon, as environmental “fix” 138, 153 of carbon sinks 58 of emission reductions 17, 19–24 of nature 16, 23, 136, 153 compliance markets 1, 94 see also Clean Development Mechanism (CDM); Joint Implementation (JI) mechanism constitution of “new” carbon economy 4–5 Convery, F 92 Cook, A 111, 117, 119 cookstove projects as carbon offsets 29 see also improved cookstoves (ICS) project Coomes, O T 14 Copenhagen Conference [2009] 78, 100, 121, 124 ACCA position paper 121, 124 Corbera, E 136 Cordell, K 175 cost–benefit calculations, land use practices 135, 139, 145–9, 152 Costa Rica, carbon forestry offset projects 135–54 “counterfactual material nature” 21, 25, 34n[6] “counterfactual” scenarios 16, 34n[6] Court of First Instance [cited] 92 credit rating agencies, in carbon markets 75 Crotched wind energy project [New Hampshire, USA] 165 Culp, S 178 :1076 JWST131-bind JWST131-Newell.cls (1994/07/13 v1.2u Standard LaTeX document class) 188 “cultural circuit of capitalism” 68 “cultural circuit of carbon markets” 70 cultural political economy 66–7, 69 Dahlquist, R M 140, 144 Dalby, S 73, 80n[9] Dean, M 109, 113, 115 Deegan, C 118 defensive localization 162, 164 deforestation see avoided deforestation; REDD initiatives DEFRA 107 della Porta, D 168 Deloitte [cited] 117 Department of Energy [DoE, USA], wind energy report 165, 170 DePillis, P 168 Depledge, J 42, 66 derivative products 76 Designated Operational Entities (DOEs) 97 desire [to good], carbon markets mobilised by 70–5, 79 development, and liberal capitalism 138 Devine-Wright, P 171 Diani, M 168 diet analogy in carbon marketing 71 discursive formation, and agricultural cost–benefit calculations 136, 138, 139, 148 Dominguez, L 144 Doody, H 127 du Gay, P 67 Duke Energy Corporation wind energy project 159, 172 see also Searchlight Project Duncan, J S 163, 164 Duncan, N G 163, 164 Earth image, use in advertising 73, 81n[12] ecological modernisation (EM) as institutional learning 102, 103 as technocratic project 88, 102, 103 ecological modernisation (EM) theories 85 critical perspectives 88–9 and emissions trading 90, 93 11-16-2011 Index and environmental governance 9, 86–9 and offset markets 95, 96 eco-Marxist analysis, of carbon markets 67, 68, 78–9 Edwards, J 172 Edwards, R 30 Ellerman, A 90 Ellis, G 165 emission allowances compared with offsets 13 financial accounting of 116–17, 131n[4] emission reduction credits market, risk and time factors in access to 57 emission reductions “creation” of 13, 16, 19 problems of defining and measuring 22 see also Certified Emission Reductions (CERs) Emission Reductions Purchase Agreements (ERPAs) 20, 80n[5] emissions reductions treaty difficulties in producing market-based solutions 2–3, 95 emissions trading 1, compared with regulation and carbon tax 90 reframed by ecological modernisation principles 90, 93 see also European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) “environmental fixes” 137, 138, 153 environmental impact assessment for carbon sink projects 56 for wind energy projects 169, 172 environmental issues, accountants’ views [in 2003] 118–19 epistemic communities 113–15 accounting professionals in 119, 126–7, 129 contrast with governmentality approach 114 defining features 114 environmental scientists in 114, 115 meaning of term 113–14 mechanisms by which influence is exerted 115 Escobar, Arturo 14, 29, 162–3 :1076 JWST131-bind JWST131-Newell.cls (1994/07/13 v1.2u Standard LaTeX document class) Index EU emission allowances (EUAs) and CERs 76, 92 financial accounting of 116–17, 131n[4] European Commission 91, 93 powers over ETS 91–2 European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) 6, 66, 89–94 carbon accounting in 108–9, 116–17, 129 carbon governance through 89–94 concessions and dispensations 91 coverage of scheme 89, 117 environmental effects 92–3 factors affecting consensus 91, 100 future developments 101 linking with CDM 76, 91, 97 organising and maintaining 90–2 political drivers for adoption of 89–90 political effects 93–4 questionable practices 92 strengthening of regulatory framework 91–2 facilitator state 88 fallow land 135 value/carbon-fixation ratio 147, 148 Fenhann, J V 14, 22, 32 Ferguson, J 138 Figueres, C 13, 22 financial accountancy 108 financial accountancy professional organisations, climate change activities 108, 118–19, 121–3, 124, 125 Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB, USA) Emerging Issues Task Force 119 Emissions Trading Schemes Project [with IASB] 117, 120, 130 financial practices, routinisation of carbon markets through 7, 68–9, 75–7 Fine, B 80n[2] Fisher, D 88 FitzSimmons, M 14 flexibility mechanisms 2, 46, 56, 96 political and commercial drivers for 95–6 11-16-2011 189 see also Clean Development Mechanism (CDM); emissions trading; Joint Implementation (JI) mechanism Fly, M 175 Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), definition of forest 49 forest fires, as carbon loss 51 forests canopy cover based definition 49 definitions 44, 48–51 FAO definition 49 IPCC definitions 49 and plantations 50 Fortmann, L 163 fossil fuels, consequences of regulation Foster, J B 59, 61n[27] Foucault, M [cited] 109, 112, 139, 148 Foucault’s archaeological method 139, 148 Foucault’s governmentality approach 112–13 fraud in carbon markets 92, 99 Freudenberg, W 88 Friends of the Earth (FoE) [cited] 1, 96, 129 Fry, I 41, 61n[17] fuel switching 92 functional abstraction, in carbon offsets 20–2 fungible commodity carbon emission reduction as carbon offsets as 23, 96 carbon sink as 43, 44 futures contract, carbon sinks market as 59 Gareau 80n[2] Geertz, C 42, 57, 58, 60 Germany, emissions trading 90 Gibbs, D 89 Giddens, A 3, 85 Gidwani, V 138 Gilbertson, T Gillenwater, M 24 Gipe, P 170 Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) 119, 123, 128 global warming potential (GWP) 15, 45, 60n[5], 99 :1076 JWST131-bind JWST131-Newell.cls (1994/07/13 v1.2u Standard LaTeX document class) 190 Gold Standard 24, 28, 30, 99 Goldenweiser, A 42, 43, 58 Gonzalez, J 145 Goodman, D 14 Goodman, M K 14 Gorman, H 79n[1] Gough, C 114 Gouldson, A [cited] 85, 87, 88 governance of “new” carbon economy 5–8 governmentality approach 112–13 climate change accounting 120 contrasted with epistemic community approach 114 Graham, J B 180n[8] Gray, T 165, 179 Green, J 96 greenhouse gas accounting 119 greenhouse gas reductions, carbon dioxide equivalence 4, 15 Greer, J 72 Grubb, M 46, 47, 101 GTZ [cited] 29 guilt motivation, and carbon markets 71 Gunther, M 22 Guti´errez, M [cited] 60n[1] Guzm´an, J 136 Haas, P 109, 113, 114, 115 Haggett, C 165, 179 [The] Hague Conference [2000] 47 Hajer, M A 60n[3], 86, 88, 102 Hamilton, K 5, 17, 24, 29, 72 Hardie, I 69 Harrington, J 71 Hartwick, E 24 Harvey, A 30 Harvey, C A 145 Harvey, D 43, 56, 57, 59, 60n[3], 163 Hatherly, D 127 Hawn, A 17, 72 Helleiner, E 69 Hepburn, C 13, 129 Herbert, H J 170 Herbohn, K 118 Heynen, N 67 Hills, P 85 Hindmarsh, R 165, 171 Hinojosa Sardan, V R 140, 144, 145 Hobley, Anthony 80n[6] 11-16-2011 Index Holifield, R 80n[2] Honduras, carbon mitigation projects 15, 25–31 biomass efficiency project 15, 26–7, 28, 29–30 renewable energy project 15, 25, 26–7, 27–9, 28 Hopwood, A G 109, 110, 111 House, J C 66 HSBC 72 Hughes, A 112 hydroelectricity project [Honduras] 15, 25, 27–9 material dimensions and responses 28 principal components 26–7 hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), reduction/destruction of 17, 21, 99, 130 IASB [cited] 120 see also International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) ICAEW [cited] 118, 119, 122, 125 see also Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales IETA [cited] 70, 117 see also International Emissions Trading Association improved cookstoves (ICS) project [Honduras] 15, 29–30 material dimensions and responses 28 principal components 26–7 indigenous agricultural system in Costa Rica complementary production systems in 141, 142 factors affecting 140 “improvement” projects 141, 143 indigenous land manager 136, 140 as rational economic agent 148 individuation 20 in carbon offsets 20–2 in cookstove project 29–30 Indonesian agrarian economy [in 19th/20th century] 42, 57–8 industrial gas destruction projects 17, 99, 130 see also hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) :1076 ... develop and extend the scholarly research base – but the commitment is always the same: to contribute to the praxis of a new and more just society Published The New Carbon Economy: Constitution, Governance. .. 41 Between Desire and Routine: Assembling Environment and Finance in Carbon Markets Philippe Descheneau and Matthew Paterson 65 Ecological Modernisation and the Governance of Carbon: A Critical... Inc., New Delhi, India 2012 :894 JWST131-fm JWST131-Newell.cls (1994/07/13 v1.2u Standard LaTeX document class) 11-24-2011 Contents List of Contributors The New Carbon Economy: What’s New? Emily