June 30, 2009 - To tackle the Climate Change crisis, the United State’s House of Representative (Congress) voted for Waxman – Markey Bill into "American Clean Energy and Security Act” The Act if made into a law with the ratification of the Senate will put the US economy under a "cap-and-trade" system for managing carbon emissions. However, Act has created a debate on whether the U.S needs to follow the “cap – and –trade” for carbon emission or the more traditional carbon tax system. At first the Act was passed in a Democratic Party majority Congress with a wafer thin margin of 219-212.
 
Under this cap and trade system, the Federal government will limit the amount of CO2 that U.S companies could emit per year and new permits could be issues to have for each tonne of CO2 emitted. The Act envisages cutting America’s production of greenhouse gases by 17 percent by 2020 and 83 percent by 2050.
 
Experts believe that the Act has some serious shortcomings.  First an independent study this week shows that implementing the legislation would cost 80-111 dollars per US household per year which will huge burden on the householders with little or no effect on the global warming. Also, the Act will not ensure any alternative or renewable energy sources. 
 
Cynics of the Act especially the Republicans argue that as the Act envisages to cut the emissions of 83% of 2005 by 2020 which will not have any major change in the climate change as other developing countries such as India, China and Brazil have not committed themselves to any reduction in emissions through the international climate change treaty of Kyoto Protocol.
 
As per the Kyoto Protocol treaty which came into effect in February 2005, the developed countries or the Annexure I countries need to cut their emissions by 5% during 2008-2012. This was re-emphasized in the Bali convention on Climate Change held in Indonesia in 2007.  Now, the U.S withdraws from the Kyoto Protocol treaty in 2001 citing the non-participation of emerging economies such as India and China.
 
Meanwhile, at the end of the year in December 2009, Copenhagen, Denmark Climate Change conference will be held to discuss the future of Kyoto Protocol beyond 2012. Now, many believe that to circumvent any restrictions on it, the U.S has enacted this Clean Energy Act to.
 
On the other hand, the pressure is now on the emerging economies of India, China and Brazil to enact laws to either relate to cap and trade or the carbon tax system to prevent climate change. This could be the centre of discussion in Copenhagen Climate Change Conference in December 2009.