Getting Started: A Quick Video Tutorial
If you’re new to CARMA, we’ve created a quick, 4-minute video tutorial (below) introducing you to a couple of CARMA’s more useful features. In particular, it shows you how to easily locate emissions information for any power plant or locale in the world — like your hometown, for example. I hope you find it useful.
CARMA 2.0 Up And Running!
We’re pleased to annouce that Version 2.0 of CARMA is now up and running. The Washington Post featured an article on the new data in today’s paper, focusing on the growth of emissions in China. We have posted the full press release for CARMA 2.0 on the Center for Global Development’s website.
We have also created a Version Tracker page that lists the release dates and changes made to CARMA as we go along. We hope you explore and enjoy the new information and, as always, I encourage you to stay informed of our work by signing up for our newsletter on the right side of the page.
New Data On The Way: CARMA 2.0 To Be Released Soon!
Since the launch of CARMA in November of last year, we’ve been working hard developing the next incarnation of the database. CARMA 2.0, to be released to the public in the near future, represents a significant expansion and improvement. The new data will provide information on the state of the global power sector as of early 2008, inlcuding planned expansions and corporate ownership. It also incorporates new data from environmental agencies around the world and benefits from a number of improvements to the CARMA emissions estimation model. We’ve also expanded the quality and reach of CARMA’s geographic data. And, as always, full information for all 53,980 power plants and their owners will be available for viewing, analysis, and download.
A quick preview: The new data show continuing rapid growth in power-related emissions, especially in China — but also in Europe and the United States. Marginal improvements in plant efficiency are being swamped by the sheer scale of expansion; CARMA 2.0 includes information on nearly 6,500 plants that are planned for construction in the future. And on a slightly lighter (but still serious) note, Antarctica, the last carbon-free continent in CARMA 1.0, now joins the ranks of the emitters.
To be notified when CARMA 2.0 is officially released, join our newsletter on the right side of the homepage.
Carbon Capture “Vaporware” No Alternative to Real Clean Energy Technology
In the software industry, vaporware is a great new product announced by a developer, but is never released or is seriously delayed. Besides getting users’ hopes up, it can make potential customers hold off purchases of alternative solutions as they wait for the latest and greatest, which the developer swears is just around the corner. While vaporware is annoying, it’s arguably not much more than that for most people. But when it comes to clean tech, there is a lot more at stake, and betting on “clean coal” and carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) instead of real clean tech is a terrible idea.
Where do the CARMA plant numbers come from?
CARMA’s operating philosophy is to maximize possible transparency, so it’s only fair to shed some light onto how we calculated plant data. For the full CGD working paper, please read Calculating CARMA, Global Estimation of CO2 Emissions from the Power Sector by David Wheeler and Kevin Ummel.
CGD decided to focus on the power sector because it accounts for the most CO2 emissions (26%), and because it’s better-documented any other CO2-emitting sector. With that being said, it was no cakewalk to process emissions data from numerous sources, and we recognize that our findings are still far from perfect.
Previous Articles
Welcome to CARMA
The objective of CARMA.org is to arm individuals with the information they need to forge a cleaner, low-carbon future. By revealing the unvarnished truth regarding both clean and dirty power producers, CARMA hopes to influence the opinions and decisions of consumers, investors, shareholders, managers, workers, activists, and policymakers. In other contexts, so-called “public information disclosure” techniques have proven successful in reducing traditional pollutants.
