What would happen to the U.S. economy if it were to go green?

Question

That's a broad and vague question. Nothing would make me happier than if this utopian idea were possible, but wouldn't the U.S. economy collapse, or at least decline if it were to drastically reduce CO2 emissions and use manufacturing processes that caused less environmental damage?

Answer 1

I don't think the economy would decline or collapse. It would just change, as it always has. If the US economy became less defendant on petroleum products, the demand for other products would rise. This would create companies and jobs to produce eco-friendly products, therefore sustaining (and improving) the economy.

Answer 2

Broad and vague question is an understatement!

There is a thing called energy intensity. It is the amount of energy needed to make a dollar of GDP. If you just cut the amount of energy, then the GDP goes down. Just cutting energy use in half without addressing energy intensity simply cuts the economy in half. Now the real goal should be to reduce the energy intensity, not cut energy use. But nobody here ever seems to talk about that. They just say we should give up oil and use solar, but they don't know or even care how much solar costs. They seem to think the cost of solar should not count as part of the GDP or whatever. They seem to think it is a moral issue and not an economic one. They seem to think evil oil companies are somehow preventing cheap solar technology from being developed or that solar engineers are just lazy or stupid or that solar companies are just greedy and over charging for solar panels or whatever. It is crazy the kind of statements I see here all the time.

And by the way, the US does not have the most energy intense economy in the world. It just has the largest economy in the world.

Answer 3

I laugh inside as I ponder an answer to your question, habaceeb. I am respected by some and hated by most for being a proponent for peace and all of the positive things that it would bring. If everyone in the United States went, as you call it, green, here's what would happen. All of the money that we spend on oil would be spent on something else such as food, housing, and education. We would be free to pursue scientific experiments and better ourselves. Who knows, maybe we could even be a world leader again, but not by killing one another. Some may call me a dreamer, but at least I have low blood pressure and I sleep quite well at night. No, our economy would not collapse. One the contrary, we would be quite wealthy in my opinion.

Answer 4

Well in Britain it has BOOSTED the economy like you wouldn´t believe. Also in Germany does well.

We were just clever enough to move first since its a move that has to be done anyway and there is a "first player advantage".

Which industry is more booming than the Wind and Solar ? Germany controls worldwide 60% of the first and close to 40% of the second... while beeing 1% of the world population.
This improves an already excellent trade balance, especially with developping countries.

Britain is the absolute champion of Carbon Finance and project finance in the field.

300 000 british work in the environmental field with a large share of highly payed and qualified jobs.
Germany has over 250 000 jobs only in renewable energies.

Answer 5

It would thrive, my friend. Just like the natural environment..it would thrive.

I decided to edit my answer after reading some more posts. To back my argument, it would hurt at first due to the upfront cost. Just like solar energy would put a "hurtin" on our wallets...the last time I checked, the sun doesn't have the means to send us a bill. So, there would be no costs after the initial set up fees. I honestly believe that Going Green is something that everybody should just buck up and get it over with. Just like a kid being forced to eat his veggies and lay off the junk food. He might not like it at first, but he'll appreciate it later. Yes, i cannot afford (at the moment) to just go out and buy a hybrid vehicle. However, I'm doing 1,000 other things that are eco-friendly because I have an obligation to this planet. I might not have chosen to live here, but I'll be damned if I'm going to aid in killing it.

Answer 6

I was wondering the same thing. I would like to see our government lead the way in assisting all of us in converting our cars to be able to use an alternative fuel choice. With the degree of intelligence and technology that we have, I know this is possible. As well, it could be done at a minimal cost to consumers. But would that not cause the US government to lose a great deal of money? Perhpas they could find a way to do it without great cost to the government.

Answer 7

This is absolutely something that is achievable. currently there are no incentives for industrial, commercial, or residential interests in america to go green. If there were tax incentives to use green power and install solar panels we could cut pollution and spurn new clean industries. I am hoping that congress acts to increase automotive fuel efficiency and starts approving broader packages to start to encourage green development and green power usage. I am hoping that mixed use development will become the standard in america and that there will be tax incentives to encourage development where high density housing, shops and industry are located together within walking distance. this type of development conserve land, resources, cuts pollution and allows people to live without the necessity of a car. it creates downtown town centers of the past and encourages smart green growth. hopefully suburbs are an idea of the past, in which you must have a car and commercial and industrial interests are nowhere near the homes. wake up america.

Answer 8

No, it wouldn't collapse. In fact in the long run it would be
a lot more productive, it would level things out more where there wouldn't be only the very rich and the very poor, everyone would be extremely healthier, therefore happier,
(except the power mongers) - my opinion

Answer 9

basically nothing. its just a political issue becasue if the US would go green it could mean a change in the peoples lifestyle and the american public is not readu for that. but now is the time to change the lifestyle the americans have. use cars less, buy less powerful but green cars, use energy less. that will be a very big issue. no politicians would press on it otherwise it will be an election nightmare.

Answer 10

green? define that for us. Would we stop using all fossil fuels to create electricity? Would that include coal? would we stop using petroleum products to ship goods and services? Would that include gas and diesel? how pray tell would we function if we "drastically" reduce these items?

You question is so hypothetical it makes it tough to respond to. IMHO, we will go "green" when the price of other sources of energy no longer become economical. To ignore the market forces at play is naive.