Frequently Asked Questions

Q. Why should my state create a greenhouse gas (GHG) database?

A. Global warming is of urgent importance and demands immediate action. In the absence of a cohesive national policy, states have a responsibility to track emissions and encourage voluntary greenhouse gas reductions. A greenhouse gas database will allow businesses to establish baselines against which to measure their progress in the (likely) event of future regulatory schemes. Companies can take the lead in solving this critical problem, creating a model for others to follow. Reducing emissions makes financial sense for businesses because it increases operational efficiency and is a wise risk-management strategy to meet emerging federal and international regulation.

Q. Why should businesses care about reducing their greenhouse gas emissions?

A. Businesses that take steps to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions are likely to see an increase in efficiency, helping them save money and setting the bar higher for their competition. Considering that most lawmakers and citizens believe regulatory limits on GHG emissions are inevitable, companies that are early to respond to climate change and pollution will have a technological and economical advantage over their competitors. That’s why more and more businesses are taking the initiative to voluntarily reduce their emissions. In the likely event of future national or global cap-and-trade emissions program, a business that has been taking small but decisive steps toward emissions reduction will be in an excellent position to benefit economically and socially compared to businesses that were reluctant to change.

Q. How much would this legislation cost my business?

A. Because the bill only requires reporting of greenhouse gases for facilities that either already report their emissions or have large GHG emissions, costs should be minimal. Programs requiring third party verification of reduction information may require companies to pay for their own quality assurance. Other programs may simply require transparent accounting and measuring standards. In addition, the sample bill does not require the use of continuous emission monitors or other capital investments.

Reducing greenhouse gas emissions is not required. Many businesses, however, have found that reducing emissions streamlines efficiency and saves money in the long run.

Q. What is the greenhouse effect?

A. Greenhouse gases cause the earth’s surface to warm by letting in energy from the sun, but trapping heat emitted from the planet’s surface. This natural warming, or greenhouse effect, is what sustains life – without some GHGs in our atmosphere, surface temperatures would be 0°F.(1) Since industrialization, humans have rapidly increased the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere through fossil fuel combustion and deforestation. This greenhouse effect is the primary contributor to global climate change.

Q. What are greenhouse gases?

A. Carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, and sulfur hexafluoride.

Q. What is global warming?

A. The 1990s was the hottest decade of the last 1,000 years.(2) The global surface temperature has risen by about 1°F in the past century, with accelerated warming during the past two decades, partly because of human-created greenhouse gases.(3) The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change projects that the earth’s temperature will increase between 2.5°F and 10.4°F between 1990 and 2100, if no major efforts are undertaken to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.(1)

Q. Why does this temperature increase matter?

A. This warming could cause disastrous effects including:

• Droughts that will increase desertification;
• Rising sea levels that flood coastlines;
• Increased tropical disease transmission to North America;
• Glacier loss in Alaska and Montana;
• Increases in extreme weather events;
• Stresses to biodiversity and fragile ecosystems; and
• Agricultural production disruption.(1)(2)