Global Warming Reports
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Executive Summary
Extensive
scientific evidence demonstrates that global warming is real, that it is
affecting us now, and that human activities—particularly the burning of fossil
fuels—are the primary cause.
Science is also
clear about what we need to do to address the problem: immediately and
significantly reduce emissions of the pollutants that cause global warming.
Avoiding the worst consequences of global warming will require the United States and other
industrialized countries to stabilize emissions within the next decade and
reduce them by about 80 percent by midcentury.
Achieving those
reductions won’t be easy, but it can be done. By improving the efficiency with
which we use fossil fuels and increasing our use of clean, renewable energy,
the United States can reduce its global
warming emissions in the near future, while putting America on a path toward
dramatically lower global warming emissions in the decades to come.
This report
lists six challenging but feasible strategies that, if implemented, could
achieve these reductions, while improving America’s environment and our
energy security.
Global
warming is real, is happening now, and poses a serious threat to America’s future.
• Global
average temperatures increased by 1? F in the 20th century and are now increasing
at a rate of about 0.36? F per decade. Sea levels are on the rise, ice and snow
cover are decreasing, and hurricane intensity has increased.
• The consensus
view of the scientific community is that most of the global warming that has
occurred is due to human activities—particularly the burning of fossil fuels.
Fossil fuel consumption releases carbon dioxide, which traps the sun’s
radiation near the earth’s surface. Since 1750, the concentration of carbon
dioxide in the atmosphere has increased by 35 percent—a rate of increase
unprecedented in the last 20,000 years.
• Should the
world continue on its present course, global warming emissions could triple in
the next half century, with global temperatures increasing by 8? F by 2100. Sea
levels would rise by one and a half feet (and possibly more), threatening
low-lying coastal areas. And the ecological balance upon which life depends
would be irrevocably altered.
The United States has a responsibility to
take leadership in reducing global warming pollution.
• The United States is far and away the
world’s largest global warming polluter, accounting for 23 percent of the
world’s carbon dioxide emissions.
• Should
current trends continue, by 2030 the United States will emit 37 percent
more carbon dioxide than it does today, increasing the likelihood of dramatic
global climate change.
• To avoid the
worst consequences of global warming, scientists believe that the United States needs to stabilize
emissions within a decade, begin reducing them soon thereafter, and cut global
warming pollution by 80 percent by the middle of this century.
The United States can achieve significant
reductions in global warming pollution by improving the energy efficiency of
our economy and using more renewable energy.
The United States can reduce its global
warming emissions by as much as 19 percent by 2020 by taking a set of
aggressive but achievable steps toward improved energy efficiency and increased
use of renewable energy, within the context of mandatory limits on global
warming pollution.
1)
Stabilize vehicle travel. Americans drive nearly twice as many miles per
year as they did a quarter-century ago, leading to increased emissions of
global warming pollutants. Americans are already cutting back on driving as a
result of higher gasoline prices, but many Americans have few realistic
alternatives to driving. Through changes in public policy and development
patterns, Americans can be given more transportation choices, thus reducing the
growth in vehicle travel. Such changes include:
o Encouraging
the development of compact neighborhoods with a mix of land uses, where more
tasks can be completed by foot, bike or transit.
o Expanding the
reach and improving the quality of transit service.
o Supporting
programs to encourage carpooling, vanpooling, telecommuting and other
alternatives to single-passenger car travel.
2)
Increase vehicle fuel economy standards to 40 miles per gallon and set fuel
economy standards for large trucks. The creation of federal fuel economy standards
for cars during the 1970s succeeded in reducing gasoline consumption and oil
imports, as well as global warming pollution. But the fuel economy of new
vehicles is now lower than it was during most of the Reagan administration.
Several recent
studies show that we could increase the fuel economy of new vehicles to 40
miles per gallon within the next decade using technologies that already exist
or will be available soon. All types of vehicles— from SUVs to compacts—can be
designed to be far more energy efficient. And most of the improvements in fuel
economy can actually save money for consumers over the long term, especially
with gasoline prices at nearly $3 per gallon. Similarly, major improvements in
fuel economy are possible for heavy-duty trucks, which are currently exempt
from fuel economy standards.
3)
Replace 10 percent of vehicle fuel with biofuels or other clean alternatives. Ethanol and biodiesel
that are produced cleanly and sustainably have the potential to significantly
reduce global warming emissions from transportation—especially if these
biofuels are produced from plant wastes and cellulose. Other vehicle
technologies—like “plug-in” hybrids, electric vehicles and fuel cell vehicles—have
the potential to dramatically reduce global warming emissions in the future.
4)
Reduce energy consumption in homes, business and industry by 10 percent from
current levels. Dramatic improvements in energy efficiency are possible in
virtually every aspect of American life. Studies show that we could reduce our
electricity consumption by as much as 20 percent at no net cost to the economy.
For now, the U.S. can encourage
weatherization of buildings, deployment of more efficient appliances and equipment,
and efficiency improvements in industry. Soon, using new technologies such as
those in zero-energy homes, we can transform the way we consume energy and
achieve even larger improvements in efficiency.
5)
Obtain 20 percent of our electricity from new renewable energy sources. America has virtually limitless
potential for the generation of power from natural forces. By ramping up our
use of wind power, solar power, geothermal and biomass energy and other
renewable forms of energy—and using much of that energy to replace power
production at dirty, coalfired power plants—the United States could
dramatically reduce global warming emissions from electric power production.
6) Hold
emissions from other sources to current levels. The five strategies
listed above would address the largest sources of energy use and global warming
emissions in the United States But some other sources of global warming
pollution—such as emissions from air travel and emissions of some non-carbon
dioxide global warming gases—are projected to increase significantly in the
years ahead. The United States must remain vigilant
about stabilizing, and eventually reducing, global warming pollution from all
sectors of the economy. Mandatory limits on global warming emissions would help
to achieve that goal.
These six steps
would enable the United States to reduce its global
warming emissions by 19 percent below 2004 levels by 2020.
• Taking these
six steps would reduce U.S. carbon dioxide
emissions by about 23 percent and global warming emissions by about 19 percent
by 2020. (See Table ES-1.)
Table ES-1.
Global Warming Emission Impact of the Six Steps (million metric tons carbon
dioxide equivalent) Strategy Savings MMTCO2E Stabilize Vehicle Travel 0* 40 MPG
Fuel Economy and Heavy-Duty Truck Fuel Economy Standards 383 10% of
Transportation Fuel from Renewables 61 10% Reduction in Energy Consumption 400
20% of Electricity from New Renewables 511 Total Savings 1355 2004 U.S. Global
Warming Emissions 7122 Reduction Relative to 2004 19% * Avoids increase in
emissions resulting from projected increases in vehicle travel between now and
2020.
• In addition,
taking these steps will reverse the trajectory of global warming emissions,
putting the United States on a path to achieving
the even greater reductions in global warming pollution that will be required
in the decades to come.
The United States should adopt a series
of public policies designed to quickly and significantly reduce emissions of
global warming pollutants:
Cap
global warming emissions. The United States should establish
mandatory, science-based limits on carbon dioxide and other global warming
pollutants that reduce emissions from today’s levels within 10 years, by 15-20
percent by 2020, and by 80 percent by 2050.
Adopt
complementary policies to reduce global warming emissions. The United States should adopt policies
that would achieve the targets laid out in this report, including, but not
limited to:
•
Transportation policies designed to reduce growth in vehicle travel and promote
alternatives to automobile travel.
• An increase
in federal fuel economy standards for cars and light trucks. • Creation of
federal fuel economy standards for heavy trucks.
• A renewable
fuel standard requiring a significant share of transportation fuel to come from
renewables by 2020.
• Policy
support for the development and introduction of plug-in hybrid, electric and
fuel-cell vehicles.
• Stronger
appliance efficiency standards, energy efficiency programs and other policies
designed to improve energy efficiency.
• A federal
renewable energy standard requiring a large and increasing share of the
nation’s electricity to come from renewable energy.
Encourage
action at the state level. Federal action to reduce global
warming pollution should promote innovative approaches at the state level and
not impede individual states or groups of states from pursuing policies that go
above and beyond the commitments made by the federal government.
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