Are you now or have you ever been a member of the environmental party? 2

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1. 

   archigeek Posted 2:23 am
   16 Jan 2009

   Oh, brother...Someone get the straight jacket, I believe Mr. Inhofe has finally gone over the edge.
   
   The mellotron is your friend.

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2. 

   F James Handley Posted 4:57 am
   23 Feb 2009

   Browner is no socialist, but she is a regulatorBrowner / EPA are regulators. But there are 3 general approaches to reducing GHG emissions:
   
   
   Regulate,
   
   Market-based (cap/trade),
   
   Price (carbon tax or fee).
   
   
   EPA's oft-cited 1990 SO2 (acid rain) program uses tradeable permits. But it's volatile, covers a very small sector of the economy and didn't need to provide incentives for major innovation or capital investment over decades.  
   Testifying on 9/18/08 to Ways & Means, Browner advocated a "predictable market signal" (which would suggest pricing) but embraced cap-and-trade.
   The committee didn't ask: What magical enforcement process will assure compliance with a cap? Would EPA shut down power plants when they've run out of CO2 permits? Wouldn't trading result in seconardy markets like those that crashed our mortgage and banking systems?  
   Browner concluded: EPA has authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions under the Clean Air Act, but "Given the magnitude of the problem, and the scale of the solution required, I believe it is important that Congress provide national leadership on this issue."  
   She's worried that Congress will punt GHG emissions policy to EPA without clear instructions. A preview of the nightmare: EPA's Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking: twist existing Clean Air Act authorities into a cap-and-trade rule. Battle it out in the federal courts where the rule (and EPA's authority to make it) will be challenged and delayed for years. Then slug out the years-long process of implementation. Even if you believe cap-and-trade would work, can we really wait another decade to find out?  
   British Columbia enacted and implemented a revenue-neutral carbon tax in 5 months. EPA used a fee system to quickly phase out ozone-depleting CFCs.
   Regulation isn't the only way, and tradeable permits aren't the only alternative. Pricing mechanims are simple, direct and effective.
   Hope Browner is talking to new budget director Peter Orszag, whose CBO reports concluded that carbon taxes would be five times as effective as fixed caps.  
   See http://www.carbontax.org.

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