Tag - carbon

 
 

CARBON

Then-economy minister Yasutoshi Nishimura marks the opening of the carbon credit market at the Tokyo Stock Exchange in October 2023. The GX League, which includes the emissions trading system, already covers over half of Japan’s emissions.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 3, 2025
Japan poised to lead in a brighter carbon market era
The patchy, voluntary nature of carbon markets around the world is finally changing after world leaders agreed to a new system for trading emissions reductions across borders.
Volunteers place eelgrass seeds on slabs of agar gel with tweezers during an event in Shiogama, Miyagi Prefecture, on Nov. 9.
JAPAN
Dec 25, 2024
Seagrass bed restoration work spreads in Miyagi Prefecture
Seagrass and seaweed beds are capturing global attention as they absorb carbon dioxide.
Japan, which relied on coal and natural gas for more than 60% of electricity generation last year, has been slow to shift to lower-emission energy sources.
JAPAN
Dec 24, 2024
Japan aims for 60% emissions cut by 2035 in target seen as lax
The target was proposed last month, and was criticized by experts who said the plans don’t align with international ambitions to curb global warming.
The average retail gasoline price is expected to rise by over ¥5 per liter as the government has announced that it will reduce subsidies to oil wholesalers.
BUSINESS / Economy
Dec 19, 2024
Gasoline prices rise as Japanese government cuts subsidies
Until now the industry ministry has subsidized 60% of gasoline costs over ¥168 and under ¥185, but from Thursday the subsidy dropped to 30% for prices in that range.
While the prospect of Eneos Holdings offloading a majority stake in JX has been mooted for years, it is coming closer to reality amid a hot market for share sales in Tokyo.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 19, 2024
Eneos considers IPO of up to 70% of JX Advanced Metals
Japan has seen the highest volume of IPOs this year since 2018.
The Stratos direct air capture facility, a joint venture between Occidental Petroleum and asset manager BlackRock, in Ector County, Texas
ENVIRONMENT / Energy / ANALYSIS
Dec 14, 2024
Earthquakes and blowouts undermine case for carbon storage in Texas
Texas has seen surging interest from companies hoping to bury carbon dioxide in its oilfields.
President-elect Donald Trump plans to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Agreement on climate change and increase domestic fossil fuel production, putting international efforts to cut global carbon emissions in peril.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 13, 2024
Trump's election sets stage for new climate leaders to emerge
As Trump plans to put "America first," including before the planet, other countries must seize the opportunity to keep alive efforts to limit global temperature rise.
Kansai Electric Power's Takahama nuclear power plant's No.1 reactor (right) in Fukui Prefecture, which surpassed 50 years of operation in November. On the left is the No. 2 reactor.
JAPAN
Dec 9, 2024
Renewables eyed as biggest source of Japan's energy mix in fiscal 2040
The government is also expected to aim for a 20% share for nuclear energy as part of efforts toward decarbonization.
Trees in a forest in Nyanga, Gabon
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Dec 3, 2024
Scientists behind ‘net zero’ concept say nations are getting it wrong
Countries may be claiming carbon credits for work already being done by land and oceans — and the accounting mismatch has consequences.
A Toshiba film-based perovskite photovoltaic module on display at the Toshiba Energy Systems & Solutions booth at Smart Grid Expo in Tokyo on Feb. 28
JAPAN / Science & Health
Nov 26, 2024
Japan considers promoting the use of perovskite solar cells for energy
The plan is part of work to expand the use of renewable energy sources by supporting the introduction of next-generation technologies.
Titan Cement's factory in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria, Egypt
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Nov 23, 2024
How big fossil-fuel-producing countries export emissions abroad
A loophole in the 2015 Paris accord has allowed countries to say they are making climate progress while also exporting fossil fuels at breakneck pace.
The entrance of the COP29 United Nations climate change conference venue in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Friday.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Nov 23, 2024
Wealthy countries' $300 billion offer seeks to end COP29 stalemate
The two-week talks have been marked by division between wealthy governments resisting a costly outcome and developing nations pushing for more.
An oil pump jack and drilling rigs in an oilfield on the shore of the Caspian Sea, near the Aquatic Palace stadium in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Thursday.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Nov 23, 2024
At a climate conference in oil country, progress remains elusive
More than a third of Azerbaijan’s gross domestic product comes from fossil fuels, and about 90% of its exports are linked to oil and gas.
The Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power station in Niigata Prefecture, the world's biggest nuclear plant, on Aug. 5. Like many others in Japan, the plant is seeking clearance to restart, as the country grapples with how to shape its nuclear future.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Nov 19, 2024
Japan’s nuclear future: Caught between climate goals and reality
Japan is well short of hitting its nuclear power goals by 2030, with the challenging nature of reactor restarts likely impacting its emissions reduction targets.
A drone view shows a tree on fire in Humaita, Amazonas state, Brazil, on Sept. 8.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Nov 19, 2024
Can a COP29 deal clean up scandal-ridden carbon offsets?
Carbon trading is seen as one way for richer countries to meet their emissions reduction targets.
Japan will urge automakers to make all new passenger cars biofuel-compatible by the early 2030s, with an action plan from the industry ministry expected next summer.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 12, 2024
Japan to aim for all new cars to be biofuel-compatible in 2030s
The ministry will adopt an action plan around next summer and also plans to support the necessary renovation of gas stations.
Smoke billows from a chimney at a combined-cycle gas turbine power plant in Drogenbos, Belgium, on Dec. 6, 2023.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Nov 4, 2024
The world promised to tame methane, but emissions are still rising
World leaders and fossil fuel executives have declared tackling methane — and doing so quickly — a crucial priority.
Smog in Mumbai. India and China were home to 52 of the world's top 100 polluting plants in 2022.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Oct 30, 2024
Superpolluting coal plants power economies and the climate crisis
Analysis of coal power often miss the local contexts of the world's largest polluters and the development priorities they support.
Baku Olympic Stadium, the venue of the COP29 United Nations Climate Change Conference, in Baku, Azerbaijan.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Oct 26, 2024
Future of U.N. climate dialogue threatened by budget shortfall
An analysis found a budget hole of at least €57 million — or nearly half of the funding needed for the U.N. climate secretariat to run annual climate negotiations.
Neither Kamala Harris nor Donald Trump has outlined a comprehensive platform on climate, an issue that remains far from the center of the U.S. campaign despite the country being the world's second-largest emitter of greenhouse gases, after China.
WORLD / Politics
Oct 25, 2024
Trump vs. Harris: Competing visions for a warming world
The U.S. is the world's second-largest emitter of greenhouse gases, after China.

Longform

Visitors walk past Sou Fujimoto's Grand Ring, which has been recognized as the largest wooden structure in the world.
Can a World Expo still matter? Japan is about to find out.