THE REAL COST OF TACKLING CLIMATE CHANGE

Many environmentalists claim that nothing less than an 80 percent reduction in emissions by the year 2050 will suffice to combat global warming, says Steven Hayward, a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.

Barack Obama has endorsed it. These targets would send us back to emissions levels last witnessed when the cotton gin was in daily use:

• In 2006 the United States emitted 5.8 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide, or just under 20 tons per capita, according to the Department of Energy.

• An 80 percent reduction in these emissions from 1990 levels means that the United States cannot emit more than about one billion metric tons of CO2 in 2050.

The United States last emitted one billion metric tons around 1910; but in 1910, the country had 92 million people, and per capita income, in current dollars, was about $6,000.

Source: Steven Hayward, "The Real Cost of Tackling Climate Change," Wall Street Journal, April 28, 2008.

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