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With global temperatures spiralling, is carbon pricing the only way to put consumerism and the environment on a symbiotic path?
Today’s economists, governments and multinationals are placing carbon at the centre of future strategies, signalling a paradigm shift in how things are bought and sold. Giles Crosse looks at the emerging carbon economy.
Most experts agree some form of building CO2 costs of goods into their actual price is essential to limiting climate change. But science behind life cycle analysis, presently the best way to estimate such costs, remains in its genesis. Supermarkets are signing up to carbon labelling, hoping to show us how heavy a price our weekly shop exerts in carbon terms. But does it really mean anything?
“The vast majority of emissions caused by the major economies of the world are driven by individual consumer demand.” says Robin Dickinson, Senior International Projects Manager for the Carbon Label Company.
“Consumers want to act to address this, but feel the major barriers to their action are a lack of understanding and information. Labelling seeks to empower consumers to overcome these barriers at the point of purchase.”
Can it be done?
Dickinson explains while labelling science is at the limits of scientific knowledge, experience is growing all the time. And this can highlight surprising truths about where the real damage in carbon terms is found:
“Most of the footprints the Carbon Trust have verified to date, have overturned a fundamental supposition that underpinned the operation of the organisation funding the work. Perhaps one of the key findings is that, in many cases, food miles are much less significant than other factors in the carbon footprint of foods.”
Given this information, supermarkets can seek out suppliers doing better in such areas. By showing this information to us through labelling, we can support more environmental producers through what we buy at the shops.
Fair or foul?
But commentators worry this could damage growing economies, or Fairtrade agreements. It’s tough to see how a fairly traded product from Africa might compete with locally grown goods on this basis.
“By measuring carbon, these communities can find ways of improving the environmental and financial efficiency of their operations,” reveals Dickinson. “Particularly for food, the upstream producer emissions are so significant that the food processors, who wish to lower their product’s footprint, start working more closely with their suppliers to help them reduce the footprint of the raw materials.”
“There appears to be a good correlation between good environmental practice and a lower carbon footprint, ” he continues. “If Fairtrade supports better environmental practice, it should also support lower carbon products.”
Dickinson believes we can fit this into a changing, worldwide carbon economy, and make it work. “Uptake of the measurement and label communication scheme by retailers and manufacturers in the major economies, will generate an increasing virtuous circle of greater awareness, and therefore greater demand for information and action.”
Greening business
It’s also about applying pressure on carbon to businesses and governments. Rashid Wahab works for Carbon Metrics, building worldwide commercial and governmental uptake.
“When it comes to a carbon currency, I think for example we’re very close in the UK, with the Conservative Party looking to instigate and develop business in this way. We need ways and means to bring down emissions in products, and this could, for me, be less than a year and a half away.”
“There are many advanced ways to develop this,” he explains. “But countries need thought leadership put into meaningful terms. Labelling can help guide the mindset change, as part of the transitional strategy to educate and bring us to that point of arrival where this all becomes doable.”
This could even lead to carbon credit cards, or in a brave new world a mode of transaction whereby carbon units replace existing currencies. “The trick is to save money and at the same time be sustainable.” says Wahab.
“This is why sharing policy to make carbon a unit, money in your pocket, use it as a way to transact, going for countrywide standardisation, is the way forward.”
Third world leaders.
Intriguingly, less developed countries like Guyana can be further ahead than the West. Poverty levels trigger deeper understanding of valuing and protecting resources, which is what carbon’s all about. This makes governments well placed to appreciate the arguments.
“We also work in Guyana on low carbon development strategies.” says Wahab. “We work in South Africa where they are emulating UK work, with South African Standard (SAS) 204 governing energy efficiency in buildings, automated metering and structures. It’s not fair to say this can damage emerging economies or push them back in terms of what they can achieve.”
Dickinson agrees: “Measurement is highlighting that poor countries are often competing better on these scales, and it is in the interests of their customers to increase the efficiency of their production.”
It’s key to remember carbon shouldn’t always triumph over other environmental assessments, like social impact or toxicity. Nonetheless, it looks more and more likely carbon will become the regulator of tomorrow’s worldwide economy.
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