Since the dawn of the industrial age, we have come a long way and have made significant technological moves forward in what is essentially a short period of time. Once we had discovered that the fossil fuels that we find all around us could be converted to energy and thus make our way of life that much better, we did not look back. However, 300 years later we can now see how much damage the conspicuous consumption of these fuels has caused and this has lead to the call for greenhouse laws to try and reverse the damage to our environment and to stave off the potential for significant climate change.

Little did we realize as the decades went by and as we became more and more reliant on fossil fuels for our energy, that the byproduct of energy generation, production and usage was the release of damaging gases, which in large volumes created a warming effect in the atmosphere. We now realize that we must do something to severely curtail this problem and greenhouse laws are now being introduced to cut down on emissions of greenhouse gases.

Carbon dioxide equivalent gases are the main target of greenhouse laws as these products are very dangerous. A threat exists to all forms of life on the planet, as patterns change and weather events intensify. Those who are deemed to be the largest culprits, the biggest emitters of gases will be in the crosshairs of this new legislation and they will be forced to seek alternative methods of energy production.

Significant goals have been set by the UK government when it comes to reducing carbon emissions. It is intended that they will be reduced by as much as 80% within the next 40 years. To start the ball rolling, mandatory laws will come into place in that country in 2010 and 2011, requiring the major contributors to the problem to get their house in order.

A cunning “cap and trade” scheme will effectively force large emitters of carbon gases to reduce their figures, as a consequence of a value being placed on carbon itself. The scheme is part of the greenhouse laws being introduced in Britain and once the administration sets an overall limit on the total amount of gases that are permissible, market-driven forces will take care of the rest.

The British Carbon Reduction Commitment is a major step by a government and is a realization that large emitters of carbon gases will not act sufficiently through goodwill alone. Up until this point, mandatory greenhouse laws have not been tried, but it is felt that this is the best way to address the overall climate problem.

Environmentalists and scientists have long said that we need to take a serious look at the problem of climate change, although it has only been in recent times that governments have come on board. In the 90s, the Kyoto Protocol was the first significant step in the right direction but many countries did not actively follow up on their initial enthusiasm. To make any real changes work, mandatory greenhouse laws will undoubtedly be very likely.

There is considerable pressure on the United States to take some form of leadership role. Up until this point, various excuses have been given by the US administration and while the Congress is debating its own greenhouse laws, there seems some doubt as to whether they will soon be passed into law, as seen in the UK.