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Soils have the potential to sequester and store significant amounts of carbon, contributing towards climate change mitigation. Soil carbon markets are emerging to pay farmers for management changes that absorb atmospheric carbon, governed by codes that ensure eligibility, additionality and permanence whilst protecting against leakage and reversals. This paper presents the first global comparative analysis of farmland soil carbon codes, providing new insights into the range of approaches governing this global marketplace. To do this, the paper developed an analytical framework for the systematic comparison of codes which was used to identify commonalities and differences in approaches, methods, administration, commercialisation and operations for 12 publicly available codes from around the world. Codes used a range of mechanisms to manage additionality, uncertainty and risks, baselines, measurement, reporting and verification, auditing, resale of carbon units, bundling and stacking, stakeholder engagement and market integrity. The paper concludes by discussing existing approaches and codes that could be adapted for use in the UK and evaluates the need for an over-arching standard for soil carbon codes in the UK and internationally, to which existing codes and other schemes already generating soil carbon credits could be assessed and benchmarked. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One hundred percent renewable energy systems have the potential to mitigate climate change, but large fluctuations in energy supply and demand make ensuring reliability a key challenge. A hypothetical future energy system developed for the UK features reduced total energy demand, increased electrification and 100% renewable and carbon-neutral energy sources. Hourly modelling of this system over a 10-year period shows that even in an integrated energy system there will be significant electricity surpluses and shortfalls. Flexible demand and conventional electricity and heat stores reduced the extremes but could not provide the capacity required. Carbon-neutral synthetic gaseous fuel could provide a flexible and quickly dispatchable back up system, with large storage and generation capacities comparable with those in the UK today. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers the effects of the Camp for Climate Action, or “Climate Camp,” on climate change mitigation and public discourse in the UK on climate change, drawing on participants' views and media coverage in addition to academic sources. Climate Camp was an activist movement best known for summer protest camps in the UK in 2006–2010, which targeted high-profile sources of greenhouse gas emissions, including Heathrow airport and Drax power station; engaged in radical, anti-capitalist critique of climate change; and demonstrated sustainable living. The ongoing effects of Climate Camp on climate change mitigation are analyzed, including specific campaigns, public discourse and mobilization of activists. The paper finds that while specific campaigns were successful and Climate Camp has contributed to a renewal of environmental activism and mobilization of “bystanders,” the movement has (so far) failed to shift public discourse on climate change, let alone effect the deep systemic change it deemed necessary to mitigate climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]