Obama and his global warming carbon cap

October 13th, 2007 Politics, climate change, global warmingTags: Barack Obama, carbon caps, global warming, Vermont

Democratic Presidential aspirant Barrack Obama has briefly outlined his global warming plan on his website here. It is carbon cap based, and makes a distinction between “short” and “long” cycle carbon sources. This is disappointing but not, unfortunately, surprising.

Once carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere, there is no distinction as to its source. The increasing levels of carbon dioxide means just that; more is being put into the atmosphere than the carbon cycle is able to remove over the same time interval. Carbon caps, whether on “long” cycle versus “short” cycle carbon – or some other plan – is nothing more than a tax on energy. It will not provide a “solution” to global warming or provide a means to mitigate its effects. In fact, reducing the supply of energy while simultaneous taxing the economy would only further limit – and make more costly – steps that will be needed to address the social and political consequences of climate change whether carbon induced or not.

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