The head of NASA's Goddard Institute of Space
Studies rails against the cap and trade schemes being
proposed in the United States and as part of a UN
treaty. (NASA GISS)
Dr. James Hansen of NASA’s Goddard Institute of Space Studies is one of the most outspoken advocates of taking immediate action to stop anthropogenic global warming. In a new editorial penned for the U.K.’s The Observer, Hansen rails against the cap and trade schemes being considered, believing them to be ineffectual.
Cap and trade systems have been shown to be ineffective in combating manmade climate change and reducing CO2 emissions. The European Union has enacted such a system and it has not produced the desired results. Despite this, next month’s United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen (COP15) will seek to form some sort of a global consensus on cap and trade.
Hansen writes that, “The fraudulence of the Copenhagen approach – "goals" for emission reductions, "offsets" that render ironclad goals almost meaningless, the ineffectual "cap-and-trade" mechanism – must be exposed.”
Governments going to Copenhagen claim to have such [emissions reduction] goals for 2050, which they will achieve with the "cap-and-trade" mechanism. They are lying through their teeth.
~ Dr. James Hansen, NASA GISS
Coal continues to be the biggest enemy according to Hansen. In the past he has said, “The trains carrying coal to power plants are death trains.” He avoids such over the top hyperbole in the new editorial but reiterates his belief saying the problems caused by CO2 emissions can be solved, “if we phase out global coal emissions within 20 years and prohibit emissions from unconventional fossil fuels such as tar sands and oil shale.”
Rather than a cap and trade system, Hansen advocates for a ‘fee and dividend’ system. Such a system would put a rising price on fossil fuels over time with the eventual goal being that they would become more expensive than alternative fuels. In doing so, the alternative energy sources would become more attractive to businesses and consumers thus forcing an end to fossil fuels.
“Cap and trade is an inefficient compromise, paying off numerous special interests. It must be replaced with an honest approach, raising the price of carbon emissions and leaving the dirtiest fossil fuels in the ground,” Hansen said.
- Related: EPA lawyers equate cap and trade to Challenger disaster
- More about James Hansen: Dr. James Hansen takes final leap from scientist to activist
Cap and trade legislation has passed the United States House of Representatives and a similar measure is expected to be taken up in the Senate next year. In the United States, it has been estimated that the tax could cost the average American taxpayer up to $1,700 per year.
The prospects for the legislation in the U.S. have continued to slide with mid-term elections on the horizon and an American electorate unwilling to accept any more financial burden. Two weeks ago, world leaders conceded that a 'political agreement' was the most likely outcome from the Copenhagen meeting.
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Comments
Obama's goal to reduce GHG 83% by 2050 would take us back to the late 1800's or early 1900's. How the hell could we compete like that much less live the lives we have become accustomed to?
Hansen knows his stuff.
Isn't Hansen a Warmist?
"How the hell could we compete like that much less live the lives we have become accustomed to? "
That's why people with imaginations and vision run things, and narrow-minded naysayers don't.
Best,
D
MAKE NO MISTAKE!JIM HANSEN IS I00% RIGHT COAL IS THE MOST FILTHY POLLUTER OF ALL. IT'S DIRTY, IT DESTROYES EVERYTHING IT TOUCHES . THE AIR YOU BREATHE THE LAND, THE WATER, THE PEOPLE THAT MINE IT.NO AMOUNT OF MONEY CAN REPAIR THE DAMAGE CAUSED BY COAL MINING. MY DAD DIED OF A DISEASE CALLED 'BLACK LUNG' HE WROKED IN THE MINES WHEN HE WAS ELEVEN YEARS OLDALONG WITH FOUR OF HIS BROTHERS AND THEY ARE ALL DEAD FROM THE SAME DISEASE. WAKE UP! WE MUST FIGHT FOR CLEAN ENERGY.
Hanson is an out and out nutter, simple as that. How the hell NASA continue to employ him is totally beyond me! Even his fellow workers are embarrassed by his antics!
Now is the time for prominent members in the science community to stand up and opine that the IPCC is not a disinterested holding tank of scientific data on the subject of climate but a supernational special interest group.
Look at the following from the IPCC's own website describing itself:
"It (The IPCC) does not conduct any research nor does it monitor climate related data or parameters. ... Review is an essential part of the IPCC process, to ensure an objective and complete assessment of current information. Differing viewpoints existing within the scientific community are reflected in the IPCC reports.
...
Because of its scientific and intergovernmental nature, the IPCC embodies a unique opportunity to provide rigorous and balanced scientific information to decision makers. ... The work of the organization is therefore policy-relevant and yet policy-neutral, never policy-prescriptive."
Hansen is an evil, ignorant troll who cares about nothing other than stealing your money - and ensuring you end up living in a cold cave eating grass and twigs.
In the past he has said, “The trains carrying coal to power plants are death trains.”
Sounds like a man with convictions. Convictions in the psuedo-religion that is AGW. Hope he finds a soft place to land when the Goracle falls.
I wonder if he realizes that we didn't use solar or wind power to put a man on the moon.
At least Hansen is telling the truth about the Cap and Trade scam, but he would be more credible if he would stop ignoring the Freedom of Information requests and let skeptics see how he reached his conclusions. Real science isn't done in the dark. The cost of what he wants is so high that no one should be willing to just take his word for it that his models and predictions are reliable.
QUIKSLVR, My grandfather also worked in coal mines and died of lung disease, but if lung disease is the issue then that should be the argument -- not man-made global warming. According to the past computer models and projections of the AGW scientists the earth should still be warming right now. Instead it's been cooling since 2005, and stopped warming in 1997. These are the same models that project future warming. Personally I'm skeptical of wild predictions from people who hide their data and who have already been proven wrong. Remember that in the 1970s it was global cooling and the coming Ice Age that graced the covers of magazines and text books. Dr. Hansen appears more honest than other "warmists", but he has tied his career and reputation to global warming. Don't underestimate that factor. Scientists are just human beings.
Hansen claims totalitarianism is scientific? Go to hell Hansen. CO2-alarmism, human-caused-global-warming and cap-and-tax-to-death are pure unadulterated global totalitarian government criminal enterprises. Hitler would be proud of this crowd.
Massive quantities of evidence have demonstrated that:
1: higher temperatures cause CO2 increase, not the opposite.
2: temps have fallen the past 10 years while CO2 continues to rise.
3: periods of MUCH warmer/cooler weather (and higher/lower CO2) have existed over 20,000+ years.
4: planets warm/cool together, wich means warming/cooling is primarily caused by the sun.
In other words, human activity is not causing significant much less dangerous increases in CO2.
We need 100% separation of science and state.
Government funded science == propaganda.
Plants absorb CO2 and emit O2.
Hang climate totalitarians.
End lies & pollution.
Every rational human wants to end pollution of air, water, products and environment. AGW == BS.
these people line their pockets with grant money for years and are willing to do ANYTHING to continue doing so! What they are talking about with cap and trade is a built in TAX of over $2000 dollars per person per year. Here comes Obama's $4 gallon of gas....
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