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Environment Pollution has become a major issue during the 20th century as today’s society produces goods which are very harmful to the environment. The Land, water and air are all increasingly affected by a range of pollutants like; noises, heat, smoke, chemicals, manure and radioactive isotopes. Once in the environment, many pollutants are diluted, dispersed or broken down into harmless materials, but other may be concentrated or transformed into more damaging forms. And more importantly , damage caused by pollution may not be covered immediately, because it is not as easy as it seems. Every year, the burning of fossil fuels releases about 5. 6 billion tons of carbon dioxide in the air- an amount that is expected to increase”(Teaser 35). Even though carbon dioxide is a gas that plants survive on, an excess amount proves to be harmful. Carbon dioxide molecules absorb heat energy. The greater the amount of carbon dioxide in the air, the greater amount of heat energy is absorbed, which results in global warming. “In fact, America is the largest carbon dioxide producing nation (Schneider- 33-34). There are several ways to reduce pollution; however, considering the economic problems America is going through, it’s a difficult issue. One of the ways to deal with pollution considering the economic problem is to give out marketable pollution permits. Marketable pollution permits are a combination of command and control and market-based technique to the task of restricting pollution emissions. Major polluters can bid for a permit that allows them to generate a fixed amount of pollution.
These permits can be resold: The government can systematically decrease the amount of pollution permits available so that total pollution emissions can be controlled. For instance, if the government allows two companies A and B to produce 30 units of pollutants. However, the companies produce 32 units of pollutants and company A finds a way to reduce their pollutants to 28, allowing company to sell the permit to produce two units of pollutants to other company at any price.
Hence, making pollution a market. This system has been proven to reduce pollution in several countries such as Singapore, and Germany. Another more economically sufficient plan proposed by Barrack Obama is to get car companies to improve gas mileage on their car models by 2 MPG every year. This will increase competition in the automobile to produce more environmentally friendly cars. Furthermore, eventually his plan is to reduce oil consumption by at least 35 percent, or 10 million barrels per day, by 2030.
This will more than offset the equivalent of the oil we would import from OPEC nations in 2030. Furthermore, one of the main problems causing pollution is the lack of information for people. The government should provide information on how to cause less pollution or providing enviromental-friendly alternatives. For instance, “If everyone in the UK upgraded their old cold appliances to an Energy Saving Recommended product, energy wastage would be cut by over two thirds and enough carbon dioxide would be saved to fill 24 million double-decker buses.
There would also be enough electricity saved to run the UK’s streetlights for 6 years. ” This information would not only save the citizens money, but also significantly reduce the amount of carbon dioxide released in the air day. In conclusion, the economy plays a major role in pollution. In the end, the cheaper way for companies to produce good is by pollution. However, the government has to step in and control the problem.
The government necessarily does not have to spend billions of dollars of taxpayers money to control pollution. The government can simply promote certain ideas and educate its citizens in order to bring the current problem under control. Teaser, Jenny. Global Warming. New York: 1991 Thompson, Sharon. The Green House Effect. San Diego: 1992 www. indiana. edu/~econed/pdffiles/summer02/weber. pdf March 25, 2008. http://www. barackobama. com/issues/energy/ March 25, 2008.