Are Goverments Efforts in Curbing GreenHpuse Emissions Enough - Essay Example

? Are Governments Efforts in Curbing Greenhouse Emissions Enough? Are Governments Efforts in CurbingGreenhouse Emissions Enough? The most defining issue of the 21st century is climate change. Climate change over a period of time is inevitable and is law of nature. But the pace and dynamics of current climate change is very disturbing and the consequences of the current climate change will be very drastic and damaging. Emission of green house gases is way out of control and the resulting global warming is unprecedented compared to any period in the history. Governments, environmentalists, scientists worldwide have recognised that there is a need to curb the emission of greenhouse gases (GHG). Failure to do so will result in irreversible changes in the climate. The price to pay for such negligence would be very costly and would not just be limited to human beings but to all life on the planet. Governments worldwide have been taking initiative and efforts have been made to curb the emission of GHG. But the efforts are falling short of producing any quantifiable results. This essay is aimed at establishing the fact that the Government’s efforts in curbing the emission of GHG are not enough and identifies the various reasons why Governments have not been able to put in the required efforts to producing quantifiable results and avoid drastic changes in the climate. The fact that many governments worldwide are putting in efforts to curb the emission of greenhouse gases is evident and promising. The efforts are there to see. But there is another factor that is not just equally but more disturbing. Since 1970’s the emission of green house gases worldwide has roughly doubled and with the current efforts and policies, it is believed to go up by 70% by 2050 (OECD, 2008). The two major contributors of greenhouse gases are USA and China. USA and China account for nearly 44% of the total carbon dioxide production on the planet. China is responsible for 23% of the total carbon dioxide production while USA accounts for 21%. According to the Fifth U.S. Climate Action Report, there has been a 17% increase in the emissions of the greenhouse gases in the US during 1990-2007 (EPA, 2011). Emission of greenhouse gases in China is increasing even more rapidly. From 1992 to 2002, there has been a 56% increase in the emission and since it has doubled. Going by the current pace, the emissions are expected to double or triple by 2025 (Hays, 2008). This is a clear indicator again, that the efforts of the 2 main contributors of greenhouse gas emissions are falling short by a long margin. The above holds good for the governments of other countries too. France and Britain have openly admitted that the goal to bring down emissions by 20% by 2020 is very low. Also the efficiency goal of improving by 20% by 2020 set by European Union has a big problem. According to the European Commission only half the 10% of improvement in efficiency will be achieved (The Economist, 2011). Slovenia has adopted numerous plans to curb the emission of greenhouse gases but has failed to abide by its commitment to Kyoto obligations. Karl Erjavec, Slovenia’s Environment Minister, had said in 2009 government session that the requirements of the Kyoto obligations were not met. In 2009, Slovenia’s carbon dioxide emissions were 1m kilo tonnes more than the Kyoto limit (EVROPA, 2009). It is now clear that irrespective of numerous initiatives and efforts, there has been a rapid increase in the greenhouse gases worldwide. This goes to prove that the efforts of the government in curbing the emission of greenhouses gases are not enough. There is an urgent need for Governments of all nations to take up this seriously and starting working towards reducing the greenhouse gas emissions before it is too late and the changes become irreversible. There are various reasons and challenges why governments have not been able to take strong actions and enforce stricter laws to prevent emission of green house gases. As said, reasons are numerous and range slowing down economic growth to political lobbying, lack of technology to lack of funds, etc. Following are some of the main challenges faced by the governments. Any major effort (current policies and actions) that goes towards curbing the emission of greenhouse gases comes at the cost of economic growth (Hays, 2008). Economic activities result in the emission of greenhouse gases. Activities like power generation, transportation, industrial activities, deforestation, forest degradation, etc. One of the major greenhouse gases, carbon dioxide, is a result of industrialisation. Carbon dioxide is mainly produced due to the burning of fossil fuels. Two main contributors to this are automobiles (as fuel) and power generation (burning of coal). Transportation and electricity are two of the main pillars of economic development of a country. The demand for electricity and automobiles has increased drastically over the last century and is continuing to increase at a tremendous pace. The developed countries need to meet the carbon dioxide requirements in order to maintain and build on the growth curve while developing countries need to meet the requirement in order to attain the growth required. Therefore, many countries cite the reasons of economic growth while other countries cannot afford to compromise economic growth for reduction of emission of greenhouse gases. Another aspect of economic growth that has to be considered is competition or relative growth. That is, country’s economic growth is not just related to the actual economic growth of the country but also related to economic growth of the immediate competitor. For example, India would be more worried with the economic growth and dominance of China. As there is no agreed ingle framework by all countries, a government would see an investment on curbing greenhouse gases at the cost of economic growth as a major competitive disadvantage with respect to its competitor. Therefore, countries prefer economic growth over irreversible climatic change. The cost of putting in place the plans necessary to bring about the change in greenhouse gas emission is very high. According to the European commission, to implement an effective part the plan of the European Union an average of 42 billion Euros would be needed every year over the span of next 40 years. This is just a part and the cost to implement the total plan would be 270 billion Euros a year (The Economist, 2011). Similar are the numbers in all other countries if there needs to be a drastic change. Therefore, costs are very high for governments to implement the plans while there are other problems such as poverty, job creations, etc. Funding is a major challenge to many countries, mainly developing countries who look towards developed countries for support. Another reason why governments are not able to enforce stricter laws to curb emission of greenhouse gases is political lobbying. Many companies (multinationals and powerful) and interest groups have been lobbying against climate change processes (Lavelle, 2009). Apparently these lobbyists have been powerful in keeping the governments away from enforcing stricter laws. Recent studies have shown that lobbying against climate change process is not just evident in the developed nations but also in developing nations. Industry lobbyists have been putting pressure on governments to maintain the status quo and weakened the commitment of the government. Lobbyists due to their domestic and business interests have been able cite reasons such as job losses and massive blackouts to keep the governments from acting. Earlier lobbying was focused at denying the science behind global warming but now the focus has shifted to weathering the commitment of the governments (McDermott, 2009). Governments have succumbed to this pressure. As of now, there isn’t the technology to bring down the emission of greenhouse gases to the desired levels. Power generation, transportation, etc are vital for a nation’s economic development. Technology needed to utilize alternate sources of energy on a large scale is still not available and hence, countries are dependent on the conventional sources which lead to the emission of greenhouse gases. This is holding back the governments on going all out in implementing plans to bring down the emission of greenhouse gases. There is definitely a possibility to come up with a climate change strategy that is both economically rational and cost effective. The price of inaction would be very costly and hence it is very important for governments all over the world to come up with ways to bring down the emission of greenhouse gases. There must be a universal framework that must be followed by all countries with respect to the emission of greenhouse gases. The framework must take into account if the country is a developed or developing nation. This framework must be strictly followed. There must be mutual assistance among governments and other bodies in ensuring that emission limits are met. Carbon tax must be imposed in ordered to reduce the emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. A survey in China has shown that imposing carbon tax is one of the most efficient methods of reducing emission of carbon in the industry (Young, 2010). Also this will also generate revenue and the revenue must be used in funding environmental friendly and energy-saving initiatives and industries. Climate change has been result of industrialization and tremendous economic development of developed countries over the last 50 years. Hence, developed nations must take responsibility and assist developing nations in reducing emission of greenhouse gas emissions. Governments must invest in new and innovative technologies that can use alternate sources of energy. This is vital as it can help bringing down emissions drastically. Technologies must be developed that can improve energy efficiency, increase fuel economy, use solar, hydrogen, wind and other renewable sources of energy (National Geographic, 2011). Climate Change, mainly emission of greenhouse gases, if not addressed immediately can lead to irreversible damage that can endanger life on the planet. The need for bringing about a change has been identified but there isn’t enough effort going into it. Government’s efforts are falling short to produce any quantifiable results. The various challenges that governments are facing in enforcing stricter laws are economic growth, lobbying, lack of funds, lack of alternate sources of energy, etc. It is high time that the governments start taking bolder and stronger actions in order to bring down the emission of greenhouse gases and save the planet. References EPA (2011). Greenhouse Gas Emissions. [Online]. Available at: http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/emissions/index.html. Accessed on 18 November, 2011. EVROPA (2009). Government Adopts Plan to Curb Greenhouse Gas Emissions. [Online]. Available at: http://www.evropa.gov.si/en/content/news/news/select/environment/news/government-adopts-plan-to-curb-greenhouse-gas-emissions/d5d0c06222/?tx_ttnews%5Byear%5D=2009&tx_ttnews%5Bmonth%5D=07. Accessed on 19 November, 2011. Hays, J. (2008). Global Warming In China. [Online]. Available at: http://factsanddetails.com/china.php?itemid=393&catid=10&subcatid=66. Accessed on 18 November, 2011. Lavelle, M. (2009). The Climate Change Lobby Explosion. Available at: http://www.publicintegrity.org/investigations/climate_change/articles/entry/1171/. Accessed on 21 November, 2011. McDermott, M. (2009). Lobbying Against Climate Change Progress Multinational, Powerful, and (Apparently) Successful. Available at: http://www.treehugger.com/corporate-responsibility/lobbying-against-climate-change-progress-multinational-powerful-and-apparently-successful.html. Accessed on 21 November, 2011. National Geographic (2011). Global Warming Solutions. What Can We Do?. [Online]. Available at: http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global-warming/gw-solutions/. Accessed on 15 November, 2011. OECD (2008). Climate Change Mitigation. What Do We Do?. [Online]. Available at: http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/30/41/41753450.pdf. Accessed on 15 November, 2011. The Economist (2011). Europe's climate policy. Being ambitious. [Online]. Available at: http://www.economist.com/node/18333149. Accessed on 20 November, 2011. Young, T. (2010). Reports: China to impose carbon tax from 2012. [Online]. Available at: http://www.businessgreen.com/bg/news/1806070/reports-china-impose-carbon-tax-2012. Accessed on 21 November, 2011. Read More