14 DAY TRIAL // A recent survey shows that most Americans now believe that global warming is happening, and want the federal government to take action to limit its effects. But what form should this action take, and most of all, do they understand the financial costs involved?
Global water supplies shrink, and as they do, economic and social changes will be profound enough to become a threat to homeland security. Water - either too little or too much of it - is going to be the major problem for the United States, said scientists and military experts.
The survey investigated the response of a representative sample of American adults concerning three main ways of reducing greenhouse pollution: should the government tell companies just how they must generate electricity or manufacture vehicle fuel to achieve a cut in emissions? Should it tax these companies for their greenhouse gas emissions? Should the government impose a maximum limit on the gas emissions of each company, but also allow them to trade permits (which represent the right to emit a certain amount of pollution)?
The results show the concerns of average American citizens regarding the fact that fighting global warming should not take its toll on them, especially in what concerns the financial aspects. Thus, most people said that they would support specific policies to combat global warming, as long at they don't affect people's pockets too much.
Also, the general public seems to have a preference for action in the electricity sector rather than vehicle fuel, so none of the vehicle fuel policies gained majority backing, even at the lowest costs quoted.
They also favor standardizing, saying that companies should be told exactly what to do to curb emissions, and a standard for emissions in the electricity sector was backed by 73 percent of respondents who were told it would cause a typical monthly bill to rise by $10.
Other interesting aspects of the poll are the facts that citizens in the western US are more in favor of policies regarding global warming than the rest, and also that parents and people with higher incomes are also more likely to support action.
The conclusion is that most Americans want their government to take some action against greenhouse gas emissions, but at the same time, they don't want these actions to reflect on their financial wellbeing. Right...