5 Easy Steps To Climate Change

They have enough of these for consumers... so I thought I'd write one for the various governments. The Dan Morel 5 easy steps to making climate change effective, recommended for any policy maker.

1. Ban 200 year old technologies that are energy inefficient:
-such as Australia and banning the incandescent light bulb.
- make long term plans to ban coal burning

2. Use market solutions:

- Deregulate energy. Nothing makes people conserve energy better than high prices - just ask Victor Danilov-Danilyan, a member of the Russian academy of science,
"But in Russia, energy use per unit of GDP is 3.1 times greater than in the European Union (before the admission of new members).... it will not be difficult for Russia to abide by its commitments; it has amassed a huge reserve of emissions credits because of an economic decline in the 1990s. Despite its growing economy, by 2012 Russia will by no means exceed the level of emissions in 1990.The energy-saving process began in Russia in the 1990s entirely as a result of market prices."

- Cap n' trade - California has done it, the entire US north-east coast has done it, much of Europe has done it, China is doing it... just do it. Market-based solutions provide impetus for action.

- Introduce net metering. Its a fancy word that lets small generators and people with their own energy generators (solar, diesel, etc) sell back to the grid.


3. Grants & Incentives

- Create grants that incentivize corporates and industrials to upgrade old equipment.

- Create rebate programs that incentivize homeowners to upgrade old appliances and adopt new technology.

- Help create a healthy investment community for Green retailers, technologists, manufacturers, etc. Provide funds via grants to venture capitalists, banks and other investment sources.

4. Regulation
- Cars - regulate lower emissions on vehicles like in California, make city fleets use bio-diesel, introduce a carbon-tax and/or a luxury tax on poor fuel-economy cars.
- building codes, make them comply with the latest energy effiency standards
- appliances & industrial equipment - make them comply with the latest energy efficiency standards
- regulate laws that make you hit specific targets

5. Planning
- Stop urban sprawl
- Come up with a vision such as Toronto 2020.
- Take whatever urban planning the GTA-905ers did in the 1980s and 1990s and do the exact opposite.
- Invest in mass-transit,
- build up not out,
- Integrate services into the community and don't build strip malls that have to be driven to, etc.