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Press Office - Articles
NEEDED: CAP-AND-TRADE PLAN
Congress should use market to combat global warming
Author: Sen. Elizabeth Dole
Publication: The Charlotte Observer |
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November 4th, 2007 - Although debates continue over global warming, its causes and its impact, the consensus among the scientific community is that the earth is getting warmer and the emission of greenhouse gases, namely carbon dioxide, or CO2, is largely to blame. American leaders have a responsibility to future generations to address this problem in a way that not only cleans our air, land and water, but also strengthens our economy, competitiveness and security.
The burning of fossil fuels such as oil, coal, and gas emits CO2 and other greenhouse gases, which adds too much to the earth’s natural carbon cycle and traps more heat within the atmosphere. Today’s CO2 levels are higher than ever, well above any period of time in earth’s history, and the dramatic increase has taken place during our lifetime.
The predicted negative ramifications of global warming could initiate a chain-reaction of events – such as severe drought or floods that diminish food supply and displace millions of people. Or, take for example the effect of melting ice caps and glaciers on sea level, which is rising as the earth’s temperature increases. According to a report prepared by scholars at North Carolina universities, the losses in property value, recreation and tourism due to sea level rise is estimated at nearly $11 billion beginning in 2030 in New Hanover, Dare, Carteret and Bertie Counties alone.
After careful analysis and deliberation, I decided to cosponsor bipartisan legislation that confronts pollution and global warming head on by reducing the emissions of the electric power, manufacturing and transportation sectors, which together generate about 75 percent of the nation’s emissions. The bill, America’s Climate Security Act (ACSA), sets emission allowances starting in 2012 through 2050 for specific sectors and provides a framework for businesses to trade or bank unused allowances. Conversely, polluters that exceed their limit can buy or borrow leftover allowances from other sectors or auction. This is what is called a “cap and trade” system, and allowance amounts will decrease over time, thereby lowering total emissions.
The goal is to spur businesses to take leadership and develop technologies that will improve efficiency and reduce emissions. ACSA is projected to reduce total greenhouse gas emissions by 15 percent below the 2005 level in 2020 and 70 percent below the 2005 level in 2050. Small businesses, commercial buildings and homes are exempt under the bill.
There are a number of proposals, including other cap and trade plans, that purport to best address the climate change issue; however, America’s Climate Security Act does so without harming America’s economy. It uses the market – not big government and tax increases – to solve the problem at the lowest possible cost.
Instituting a responsible cap and trade system will provide American businesses with the certainty they require to make sound investments for the future. ACSA establishes a Carbon Market Efficiency Board, which will function in a manner similar to the Federal Reserve Board and ensure that implementation of the system is not causing harm to the economy.
ACSA is expected to create a clean energy sector as well as many thousands of related jobs. By encouraging new technologies and alternative sources of energy, it will help reduce our dependence on oil from unstable parts of the world. This bill also provides opportunities for North Carolina’s agriculture sector, which is not included under the cap, by rewarding farmers for reducing greenhouse gas emissions through low-carbon practices, such as no-till farming.
In addition, the legislation provides a safeguard especially important to North Carolina, where many of our industries have faced challenges from global competition. ACSA includes a mechanism to induce nations such as China and India to reduce their emissions or face penalties when importing products into the United States.
If we are complacent, our children and grandchildren very well may face disastrous and irreversible environmental and economic consequences. The Stern Review, the leading analysis of the economic aspects of climate change conducted by Sir Nicholas Stern, Head of the U.K. Government Economic Service and former Chief Economist at the World Bank, estimates that the monetary cost of inaction is equivalent to losing at least five percent, or $2.4 trillion, of global gross domestic product each year. In North Carolina and throughout the southeast, these costs are caused by extreme events such as coastal flooding, persistent drought, diminished agricultural yields and increased energy use.
For the first time, there is significant common-ground to build upon to address global warming in an economically responsible way. Now is the time for solutions – not inaction. We must reverse pollution and global warming while we have the chance.
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