Don't Wait for Obama on Climate Deal

With the inauguration of President-elect Obama close at hand, anticipation of a radical reorientation of United States climate change policy has reached a fever pitch. Referring to the recently concluded UN climate conference convened in Poznan, Poland, a December 14th Op-Ed published by the Independent boldly declares “Obama can outgreen Poznan”.

But before we declare ‘case closed’ on the climate crisis, let’s remember how far behind the emissions curve the United States has fallen in recent years. Federal legislation that regulates GHG emissions has yet to make it to President Bush’s desk. A few proposals cleared the House of Representatives, but stalled in the Senate. Second, it is instructive to note that the bill that almost passed in the Senate, the Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act of 2008, does not come close to meeting either European Union or Kyoto emissions reduction promises. The Climate Security Act proposes reducing emissions by 19% below 2005 levels by 2020. Also, California’s recently passed ‘sweeping curbs’ on emissions only commit the state to reaching 1990 levels by 2020. In contrast, European Union member states recently agreed to a 20% cut in emissions by 2020, compared with 1990 levels (which are also too low to get the job done).

The moral of this story is: the World should not wait around for America to take the lead in the fight against global warming. Yes, positive change is coming. But it is overly optimistic to think that the United States can ‘turn on a dime’ on this still contentious issue and champion the kinds of cuts that are necessary to avert significant warming of our planet.