Last summer, a small group of economists, energy
company presidents, and policy specialists (including this author) met
to forge a set of strategies to dramatically accelerate the Kyoto
Process.
The strategies, embodied in a "World Energy
Modernization Plan," are based on the scientifically unambiguous
requirement that we cut fossil fuel emissions globally by about 70
percent in order to allow the climate to re-stabilize - an order of
magnitude more than the levels specified in the Kyoto Protocol.
Any
strategy that meaningfully addresses the climate crisis must begin with
substantial emissions reductions in industrial nations and,
subsequently, by all signatories to the Kyoto Protocol. Here are some
key components of such a strategy:
Eliminate subsidies for
fossil fuels in developed countries. In the US, those subsidies amount
to about $21 billion a year; globally the figure has been estimated at
$300 billion. The removal of subsidies would increase the price of oil
and coal and, thus, discourage excessive consumption.
Provide
equivalent subsidies for renewable energy technologies and for
retraining displaced workers in the fossil fuel industries. Subsidies
for renewable technologies would provide a significant incentive for
oil companies to become developers of fuel cells, solar and
photovoltaic sources, wind farms, etc.
Eliminate regulatory
barriers to energy competition in industrialized countries, especially
regulations that protect coal-burning utilities. This would create open
energy markets that would compete based on cost, efficiency, and
low-carbon content.
Focus on efficiency by incorporating
Fossil Fuel Efficiency (FFE) and Renewable Content Standards into the
Kyoto Protocol - for both industrial and developing nations. A
progressively more stringent FFE standard would immediately create a
worldwide market for renewable technologies, as their use would be the
logical way for nations to increase their efficiency rates. That
dramatically expanded market would provide the economies of scale to
make climate-friendly energy sources economically competitive with coal
and oil.
Fund technology transfers to developing countries
through a World Energy Modernization Fund. A quarter-of-a-penny tax on
international currency transactions could generate $200-$300 billion in
revenues to finance the transfer of climate-friendly technologies to
developing nations. Comparable levels of funding could also be achieved
through a global carbon tax, taxes on airline tickets, or diversions of
the portions of national military budgets currently used to secure oil
supplies.
Contrary to the economically defensive posture of
many nations and industries, a global transition to climate-friendly
energy sources would substantially expand the stability, equity, and
total wealth in the global economy. It would allow every national
economy to develop without regard to atmospheric limits through the
large-scale creation of jobs as well as through the eventual
elimination of costs associated with importing and protecting oil and
coal supplies.
Ross Gelbspan is the Pulitzer Prize winning author of The Heat is On: The Climate Crisis, the Cover-up, the Prescription (Perseus, 1998).
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