CQ Reader: Chapter 4 Response Paper

One of the most surprising pieces of information from this chapter, dealing with air pollution and climate change, was that it took over two centuries to discover that humans were the source of the problem. According to the chapter in Urban Issues, the burning of fossil fuels began in the 1700s with the Industrial Revolution and it was not until 1938, did Callendar present a theory that it was indeed humans who were contributing to global warming by burning fossil fuels. Upon discussing climate change, it was always mind boggling to me that despite Americans and more so the government knowing how negative an impact greenhouse gases have on the environment, they still continue to engage in the emission of those gases. The main argument against the Clean Air Act and other measures to curb carbon emissions is that it will hurt coal and other manufacturing industries. But think of it, if we really wanted to rely more on clean air technology, we would most certainly find a way to do so just like Germany and so many other European countries have already. What it comes down to just like everything does these days, is the politics surrounding the issue and how effective the government wants their incentives and policies dealing with climate change to be.

Under the Clean Air Act, funding was provided for research which sought to improve public health and welfare. This act was deemed relatively effective since through one of its provisions, cap and trade, emissions were reduced by three million tons in the first year. According to Urban Issues, the act also allowed citizens to sue violators and gave the EPA authority to shut down coal fired power plants and for solar plants to be built to replace them. One of the opponents, Jeff Holmstead, argued that the Clean Power Plan was not a good policy because it gave too much power to a federal agency. He claimed that the federal government in itself should be monitoring greenhouse gas levels instead, and authorize the removal of coal plants. I think that was a weak argument because at the end of the day the EPA is a federal agency and it is executing its task for the government itself. The real issue therefore, is who is in control of the situation and thus the major limitation the policy has on many businesses that rely on the burning of fossil fuels since it is a cheap factor of production.

As the chapter in Urban Issues stated, solar and wind power are experiencing record growth but so far solar power only accounts for 1% of the energy sector and wind power only accounts for about 4% of the energy sector. Based on these statistics, the implementation of renewable energy still has an incredibly long way to go. If citizens are more fully aware of how damaging greenhouse gases are to the environment and the major impact it can have on future generations, they can begin to make more environmentally friendly choices. They can even lobby and help to convince government officials that renewable energy is the best option moving forward in helping to reduce further carbon emissions.