Fundamentally, the change in energy prices affects the emission rates only on a short-term basis, but the sustained effect remains the same. Globally, the price elasticity in the energy sector has remained fairly constant with a few fluctuations recorded since the year 2010: this is in reference to the crude oil prices that are a reflection of the global energy consumption index. When the price of energy rises, the consumption per unit is reduced (on the short-term), and the emissions decline. However, from a long-term analysis, the total consumption of energy remains the same; hence, the rate of the emissions is sustained (Change 17).
The regulation of emission prices, offers a quick fix on the reduction of emissions, but the policy may not be sustainable due to the negative view that the public has towards taxes. For instance, the introduction of the green taxes in Europe did not bear much fruit in the control of emissions. Certainly, the determination of the reduction in greenhouse emissions from the institution of carbon taxes may not be accurately recorded, and this raises questions on the use of emission prices in the emissions control. The regulation of emission quantities presents a strong and compelling policy alternative to the use of prices: this is based on the efficiency in the emissions control. For instance, Poland, Japan and Britain have made proposals to cut down or completely eliminate on the coal industries. Markedly, the favorable alternative may vary from country to country depending on the economic factors (King 177).
The improvement of the long-term predictions that relate to the social-technical systems can be realized through technical change in the position of efficiency improvement in the autonomous energy. Another key strategy is the analysis of the relevant empirical estimates of the manner in which people spend (budget) their time and a further separation of the wishful thinking from probable scenarios. This requires an evaluation of the time expenditures as well as the budgets on the basis of the social factors (Change 17).
Policies geared towards the reduction in emissions matter, but only to a small extent. Majorly, the policies on the control of the population numbers through the use of the family planning initiatives impact on key social and economic factors: however, the results achieved account for a small percentage of the total reduction in emissions (about 15%) (Tompkins and WNeil 11).
There are immense collateral benefits that flow from the mitigation of the emissions to the environment, and they help to explain the case for the opportunity cost of the focus on the climate change. For instance, investments in the efficiency of water use, management of coastal regions (zones), and the investments in efficiency of energy (King 176).
Prosperity and technical progress can have a positive impact on the efforts to promote the control of climate change. A change in the cultural mindset and the perception towards energy management initiatives could go a long way in the regulation of climate change. Advances in science and information technology would drive the costs relating to the management of climate change downwards due to the elimination of waste and improved efficiency (Tompkins and WNeil 12).
Works Cited
Change, IPCC Climate. "Mitigation of climate change." Contribution of working group III to the fourth assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (2011).
King, David A. "Climate change science: adapt, mitigate, or ignore?." Science(Washington) 303.5655 (2014): 176-177.
Tompkins, Emma L., and WNeil Adger. "Does adaptive management of natural resources enhance resilience to climate change?." Ecology and society 9.2 (2013): 10.
