How Global Warming Threatens U.S. Businesses
By HAROLD FURCHTGOTT-ROTH
December 4, 2006
One of the greatest threats to suburban America, and potentially to thousands of American companies, is global warming — or at least the potential governmental reaction to it.
The European Union and other countries have begun programs to limit greenhouse gases, using carbon permits and regulations that will ultimately lead to even higher energy prices in Europe. If America were to follow suit, this country, too, would have even higher energy prices.
Companies as varied as General Motors, NVR, Wal-Mart, and Weyerhauser have at least one element in common: They offer products and services that help support suburban America. Threats to suburban America imperil these companies as well.
No one really knows the costs of combating global warming. Higher energy prices would likely alter much of suburban America. Unlike most Europeans, most Americans live in large houses, commute by car, and have lifestyles premised on relatively low energy prices. Those patterns would ultimately change with higher taxes on greenhouse gases. The result would weigh heavily on the many companies that support a suburban American lifestyle.
To some Americans, much higher energy prices are worth the effort because global warming is seen as the greatest ever threat to humanity. To others, global warming is a quaint fairy tale with Chicken Little and Henny Penny as protagonists. To most in this country, though, global warming is little more than a frequent sound bite on television news. We do not know the subtleties of either the apocalyptic forecasts of global climate change or the economic consequences of government intervention.
Global warming is not merely a metaphysical debate relegated to college campuses. It is discussed in boardrooms, in the halls of Congress, and, last week, even in the Supreme Court. If you have doubts about the capabilities of these venues evaluating science, you are not alone. Some justices of the Supreme Court were clearly uncomfortable in reviewing science last week in the case Massachusetts v. EPA.
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