Abstract
With the recent realization that the United States will be unable to meet regulations set forth at the Kyoto Climate Conference and the excessive burden the energy shortage in California has placed on the southwestern portion of United States, U.S. companies are beginning to look for alternative means of energy production. Broad-based carbon taxes are among the most promising and important of the new tools for achieving reductions in greenhouse gas emissions and promoting the use of alternative energy resources. Many private sector entities are shifting vast amounts of resources to the research and development of alternative means of energy production, but these efforts are futile without a far-reaching governmental initiative to reach the same ends. With other global powers, including Japan and many European nations, producing inquiries into the benefits attained through greenhouse gas taxation, the United States is in a pivotal position to take the lead in efforts toward global sustainable development.
A carbon tax, phased in gradually sector-by-sector or implemented in an immediate fashion, would promote more environmentally friendly means of energy production while not hampering the competitiveness of one of the nation’s most important industries. This initiative would send a clear signal to all levels of corporate management that energy production and consumption issues must be addressed in order to continue thriving in a greener U.S. economy. The boom in alternative energy resources will trigger an increase in the development of new technologies and research opportunities, which would require more highly trained mechanical engineers in the workforce.
This paper will briefly discuss several carbon tax alternatives. Such a tax would allow the United States to realize three significant advantages not offered by today’s antiquated means of energy production: (1) generating a larger amount of total revenue from a smaller total tax burden, (2) evenly affecting the competitiveness of the residential, industrial, and commercial economic sectors so as not to punish any one disproportionately, and (3) promoting enhanced environmental quality through the increased research and use of renewable and other alternative energies. Mechanical engineers have an extremely important role in the growth of the alternative fuel industry, while the industry itself would have a major impact on many of the important decisions that will shape our futures.
Assessment of Energy Production Potential from Tidal Streams in the United States