Examples Of Environmental Policy

Fossil fuels and other power generates are slowly changing the world. Alternative power sources are slowly becoming more popular in everyday life while the technology progresses. Using these power sources that don’t pollute the atmosphere could be the change in the world that completely changes the way the world uses energy. Engineers and technicians have been producing these alternative ways for years and years. A few, but not limited to consist of: Solar panels, Wind turbines, Wave tech and much more.

This year we have seen more electric and hybrid vehicle startups than ever before.” (Morrison) Nearly everyone recognizes the benefits of the shift, both in terms of how it would help our environment in the long term, but also the economic impact it would have, (reduced gas costs, lower electric and other utilities bills... etc.) But still, many large companies work to impede the progress in favor of maintaining our dependence on fossil fuels. The American Petroleum institute has worked with many oil industry protection companies to stymie the renewable energy movement, even in some cases, “posing as environmentalist groups in order to attract the support of environmentalists while simultaneously pushing their anti-renewable agenda.” (Blankenhorn) Many of these companies striving against renewable energy also support the building of the Keystone pipeline, using the justification that the building of the pipeline would lower gas prices. But what they fail to acknowledge is the basic economic fallacy of this, “Fossil energy prices are not going to fall. The more you remove carbon-based resources from the ground, the more it costs to get more.”

Indeed, if we are to combat global warming, of course we need to stop the rampant use of fossil fuels. In its place, the grand vision and hope is to transition our economy from relying on fossil fuels to using renewable energy sources. (This becomes an additionally pressing issue for those who are concerned with the U.S.’s “soft power” as China vies to become the world leader in clean energy.)

The United States thrives or declines based in large part on its access to energy. It is also important for the American people to remember that many of the lifestyle changes that would need to be implemented in order to reduce fossil fuel use could have been undertaken many generations ago and simply were not. Therefore, we have a responsibility to our children to consider what American energy policy should be concerning exploration for oil in the Arctic, to ensure that failure to make energy use changes in the past does not simply become a can that we kicked down the road to our children. The ability to change the way cities use energy as they light streets and currently supply power to business for private advertising signs from a central grid source, over to a system of local solar panel power generation will take a lot of social education and political will. Absent major changes in the way the public thinks and political

On the same note, the energy revolution spoken of above brings forth another advance in the ongoing global climate situation. The nature of the Kyoto Protocol calls for nations to increase research and eventually semi-convert their energy usage to accommodate for cleaner energy. Products such as solar power, wind power, biomass, geothermal power, and hydropower are now widely being studying to create processes that use less coal, oil, and natural gas in production. Altogether the results have

Our society has faced two major energy related problems since the Industrial Revolution. The first is where our future energy resources are going to come from. The United States both consumes and produces an immense

America has always been the leader in science and innovation. It has the best universities and research labs. Many successful entrepreneurs have been raised from this nation. Thus, it has to take benefit from these significant comparative advantages to generate new pools of jobs for its people. As I mentioned in the introduction, we should let history to be our guide to plan for future. Toward the end of the last century Japan was getting ahead of U.S. in most aspects of technology and industry including in automotive and home appliance industries. Most economists at that time predicted that in near future Japan’s economy would pass America’s economy, but this did not happen. Thanks to Americans innovation and ingenuity, the Internet was born in U.S.A which became the prevalent technology of the future and revived the U.S economy. Today, America is in need of such innovations. The world is in shortage of energy and the oil and natural gas resources are running out. Therefore, the price of energy will definitely increase. I believe that the capability of storing and using alternative and renewable energies in day to day life can be the next big discovery that is very likely to revitalize the economy and to create a new generation of jobs. Thus, emphasizing on research on alternative energies can be a feasible strategy to maintain a healthy workforce in the mist of outsourcing.

The United States must re-examine many policies previously accepted as reasonable, especially its own national energy policy. As the largest overall and per capita energy consumer in the world, the U.S. needs to decide upon a reasonable source of energy for the foreseeable future, especially since its energy needs will increase dramatically during that time. With political instability likely to remain the norm in the Middle East, oil continues to be an energy source of questionable reliability; in addition, current estimates of worldwide reserves suggest we may in fact run out of oil entirely in the next fifty years. Natural gas reserves are in fairly short supply too, and costs limit its

This paper explores the economic impact the Clean Power Plan, as proposed by President Obama, would have on the coal industry and on society as a whole. The plan, also known as the CPP, has a goal of reducing carbon dioxide emissions by the year 2030. Many proponents of the coal industry claim that the CPP would harm the United States economy with little positive impact on the environment. The White House, other government agencies, scholarly organizations, and organizations regarding the protection of human health and the environment dispute these claims, stating that the CPP would actually lead to a net increase in employment, increased air quality, and an overall healthier society, all while promoting the renewable energy sector. After analyzing the data from both sides, it was determined in this paper that the overall benefits of the Clean Power Plan outweigh the costs, therefore the plan should go forward as planned.

The United States is driven by capitalism, which is, “an economic system essentially based on the private ownership of the means of production, distribution, and exchange” (Free). This brilliant system allows for a prospering economy that is created by the people. In this system, it is common that businesses fail because profit is the driving force that keeps them going and only the strongest remain standing. While it may seem odd to link energy production to capitalism, the case can be argued that they share a connection. Energy production is a main avenue to the core of what capitalism represents. Each year, many energy producing companies profit millions of dollars since the world is dependent upon it. Considering this, these

With true economic incentives in place for the development of green energy, new development in the future will take on a different character. A host of new industries will manifest themselves, moving the economy away from the old modes of production into an engine ready to take the United States through the 21st century. With the development of new jobs and reliable long term sources of income for the population will come the true economic growth and security needed to save people's homes. The United States' stature on the world stage has long been derived from its avant-garde status as a technological innovator

With American population expected to increase by approximately fifty percent over the next fifty years, some sort of energy reform is needed (Lehrman 2). The most commonly proposed idea is for America to stop relying so heavily on fossil fuels, and to turn its focus onto renewable sources of energy, such as solar power and hydroelectricity (Energy Information Administration). If the United States could realize the benefits of renewable energy, then much of the world’s energy problems could be solved.

However, despite overwhelming odds, in December 2015 a landmark agreement was reached by 195 countries to decrease global fossil fuel emissions and attempt to mitigate the effects of global warming. Just a few months later in April of 2016 it was signed into effect by all of them, and while it still needs to be ratified in many countries this is a historic step towards protecting the environment from the harmful effects of global warming. Ahead a brief outline of our domestic energy policy will be examined, followed by an overview of

In sum, for the United States to continue to compete with other major international economies, the country must further prioritize the cultivation of low carbon energy from the nuclear and renewable industries. Still yet, expanding the country’s nuclear and renewable energy infrastructure necessitates successfully addressing the prohibitive costs of initial development in both industries. At various points, the federal government has taken steps to do just that through the implementation of tax incentives and/or loan guarantees. However, the nation’s leaders have failed to institute a comprehensive and stable fiscal policy that the nuclear and renewable industries can depend on to make manageable the cost of developing both energies into the future. If the country’s energy infrastructure is to be adequately modernized to keep pace with international economic trends, that must change.

Research and Development (R&D) is necessary to the creation, development, and commercialization of new technologies and practices. “The assessment of emerging energy-efficient industrial technologies can be useful for identifying research and development projects; identifying potential technologies for market transformation activities; providing common information on technologies to a broad audience of policy-makers; and offering new insights into technology development and energy efficiency potentials” (Research & Development). Let us look at the promotion of energy efficiency, as our society has come to realize is so necessary for the future of a sustainable planet. "A diverse set of institutions, including federal and state governments, universities and utilities fund and implement R&D programs for the purpose of advancing energy