As in not surprised. alongside the war in Iraq and supply-side tax cuts, the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) was one of the most predictable failures in the last quarter century, for exactly the reasons noted in this WSJ article. The basic point, as Jim Barrett and I wrote in a paper almost a decade ago, is that it is almost impossible to determine what measures in the developing countries are genuine reductions in emissions, as opposed to measures that would have taken place in any case. For example, if an 80-year old coal burning power plant is shut down, is that a reduction in emissions? It likely would be scored as one under the CDM, so a company could get money for shutting down the plant that they would have shut in any case and then build a new one that may be just as polluting across the street. Meanwhile, the rich country that coughed up the dough gets credit towards its emissions targets. What a great way to save the planet. Why doesn't this article name names? Where is the accountability? The policy people and "environmentalists" who pushed the CDM should be clearly identified as fools and hacks and never allowed to hold any position of responsibility again in their lifetime. This is yet another instance, where the people in power get to mess up, again and again and again, and never get held accountable. It is only people who clean toilets and drive trucks for a living who are held responsible for the quality of their work. The elite have a lifetime license for incompetence.
--Dean Baker
