NTL Record

Title	Climate Change Policy: Preliminary Observations on Options for Distributing Emissions Allowances and Revenue under a Cap-and-Trade Program
Record ID	31984
Personal Name Creator	Stephenson, John
Source	22p. in various pagings
Publisher	United States. Government Accountability Office
Publication Date	20090800
Language	English
Abstract	According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change—a United Nations organization that assesses scientific, technical, and economic information on the effects of climate change—global atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases have increased markedly as a result of human activities over the past 200 years. These gases trap heat that would otherwise escape the earth's atmosphere, contributing to climate change. Climate change is a long-term and global issue because greenhouse gases disperse widely in the atmosphere once emitted and can remain there for an extended period of time. Among other potential impacts, climate change could threaten coastal areas with rising sea levels, alter agricultural productivity, and increase the intensity and frequency of floods and tropical storms. Carbon dioxide is emitted in by far the largest volume of any greenhouse gas, and most emissions are caused by fossil fuel combustion. According to the EPA, carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel combustion accounted for approximately 80 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions in 2007.
Rosap ID	dot:17295
Rosap URL	https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/17295
TRT Terms	Climate change; Policy making; Emissions trading; Pollution control
Classification	NTL - ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT - Air Quality; NTL - ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT - ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT; NTL - ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT - Environment Impacts
Geographical Coverage	United States
Report Number	GAO-09-950T
Resource type	Tech Report
URL	https://ntlrepository.blob.core.windows.net/lib/31000/31900/31984/d09950t.pdf
Format	PDF
Database	NTL Digital Repository