The facts about global warming
Editorial
Copyright 1999 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
March 22, 1999
The 10 warmest years on record have occurred in the past 15
years. The 1980s
were the warmest decade on record and will probably be surpassed by
the even
hotter '90s. Clearly, something is happening to Earth's climate,
and according
to the scientific consensus, that
"something" probably has two arms, two
legs and two or three cars in every garage.
The world's nations, alarmed at the prospect of tinkering
with something as
fundamental and poorly understood as the planet's climate, are
attempting to
work out a means to address the challenge together. The Kyoto
Protocol is an
imperfect but necessary first step toward creating that
international effort.
Under the proposal forged
in Kyoto, Japan, in 1997, the United States and other
industrialized nations
commit to reducing their greenhouse-gas emissions by 6 percent no
later than
2012.
That's a reasonable goal, and much of it can be achieved by
improving fuel
efficiency and switching to alternative sources of
energy. However, according to resolutions introduced in the Georgia
Senate and
House of Representatives, the energy reductions mandated by the
Kyoto treaty
would wreck the U.S. economy and would let developing countries off
scot-free,
without requiring them to make any reduction in greenhouse
emissions
whatsoever.
That doesn't seem
fair: Why should the United States and other industrialized
countries have to
bear all the burden?
Well, consider this: In 1994, the United States emitted
5.32 tons of carbon
dioxide per person into the atmosphere. With only 4 percent of the
world's
population, it alone accounts for a quarter of world
carbon-dioxide emissions. Other developed countries, such as Japan
and Germany,
emit half as much carbon dioxide per capita as the United States.
Developing countries, on the other hand, contribute
comparatively nothing to
the problem. China emitted 0.7 tons per capita in 1994, and
Bangladesh
0.04 tons per person.
In other words, demanding that China and other pitifully
poor countries cap or
even reduce their minuscule fossil-fuel use is simply an excuse for
doing
nothing.
Given those facts, it seems unlikely the sponsors of the
proposed resolutions
did much
homework before introducing them. And sure enough, the sponsor of
the Senate
bill, Harold Ragan (D-Cairo), says he introduced the measure at the
request of
Lt. Gov. Mark Taylor. Taylor's office says that Ragan acted on his
own and that
Taylor has reservations about the bill.
State Rep. Bob
Hanner (D-Parrott), chairman of the House Natural Resources
Committee, also
says he doesn't know much about the issue, even though his
committee approved
the House version of the bill.
The twin resolutions, which have also been introduced in
other state
legislatures, are part of a campaign by energy companies and others
opposed to the Kyoto Protocol. They are trying to create the
illusion of a
grass-roots rebellion against the treaty. Instead, they are harming
the
credibility of their cause and of the legislative bodies they are
trying to
manipulate.
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