Is Cap and Trade an Effective Way of Combating Global Warming?

Among many of the major issues in the world global warming seems to be the controversial problem that just will not go away. Global warming is a major problem throughout the world that, despite the arguing of its existence, many people believe needs to be solved now. Officials say that if action is not taken soon, it will be too late to prevent catastrophic climate change. There are currently many proposed solutions. Some of these ideas include taxing businesses on certain pollutants and investing in new technology, as the main focus. Cap and trade happens to be the best of the many ideas out there. Although cap and trade has some economic drawbacks in the short run, it should be implemented as a system to limit pollution and improve health in the general community and will be economically beneficial in the long run.

Currently, pollutants are destroying the environment and harming the health of U.S. citizens. Global warming threatens to change the lifestyle of many people around the world. Industries across the globe and goods that use or contain harmful contaminants have been the largest contributors to climate change. In recent years, there has been “artificially heightened levels of greenhouse gases in Earth's atmosphere” and a dramatic increase in other pollutants, “resulting in an unnatural upward trend in global warming” (Global). The level of pollutants currently in the air is not considered to be linked to the earth’s natural cycle. In fact, for the past century, “human activities…have increased the atmospheric concentration of CO2 to levels far higher than any measured for at least 800,000 years” and the concentration of CO2 is becoming a devastating and possibly irreversible problem with each day (Global). Although some...

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