The Peak Oil Crisis: Capping Carbon

Seventeen years after the Kyoto Protocol was drafted, it appears that the U.S. is moving toward taking action to limit the nation’s emissions of greenhouse gases.

Last week, with White House blessing, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued a preliminary decision that carbon-dioxide emissions from burning fossil fuels constitutes a danger to the public. The ruling was in response to an April 2007 Supreme Court decision that said the government could restrict the emission of heat-trapping gases under the Clean Air Act if it found them a danger to health and welfare.

The importance of this decision cannot be overstated for, as all sides are well aware, it has the potential to lead to major changes in the amount and cost of fossil fuel energy consumed in the United States. This week, the Congress began hearings on what is certain to be a lengthy and brutal struggle between those who believe that global warming is at least partially caused by carbon emissions and those who don’t. The battle lines are being drawn with climate scientists and their supporters talking of irreversible, earth-destroying “tipping points” and those opposed claiming the economy will be devastated with needless taxes and expenses.

Some are skeptical that, considering all the pressure industry lobbyists will bring to bear, meaningful legislation can be passed. There is already a movement underway to delay any new regulations until after the economy recovers. The problem, however, is that in the wake of the Supreme Court decision, the Obama administration now has the authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions under the Clean Air Act without Congressional action. Given the choice between the legislative process and the Obama EPA, even the most ardent opponents of regulation would rather take their chances with the Congress where political pressures can be focused.

Falls Church News-Press