The environmental movement has met it's newest enemy: a fledgling economy. As the stock markets do their best yo-yo impressions in recent weeks, hardly anyone is talking about initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, despite it being the topic du jour only a few short months ago. Now politicians - namely the two U.S. presidential candidates - have shifted their focus to stablilizing the economy, setting aside issues such as passing laws to reduce greenhouse gas emissions for the time bieng. In fact, some say implementing such a law could add further stress to an already volatile economic situation.

Democratic politicians including Barach Obama see potential for economic growth with a cap-and-trade bill, which would allow companies that emit greenhouse gases to obtain credits and then invest in technologies that would help reduce their emissions or purchase credits from other companies who have met these targets. Obama believes auctioning off the permits and funding alternative energy with the money is the right answer. Meanwhile Republicans are arguing that attempting to pass a climate bill that would increase energy costs and endanger jobs would increase public uncertainty.

So who will it be up to? Senator John Warner, R-Va thinks the next president should make that decision.

 "We must continue to think and devise a piece of legislation that will enable the president of the United States to control timing ... dependent on the president's analysis for the ability of the economy to assume the financial burdens," he said.

Glocal warming experts including Nobel Peace Prize winner Rajendra Pachauri believe the lack of interest in the climate change issue is likely only temporary.

"I'm absolutely sure that climate change will be the last thing people will think about at this point in time," he said. "Sooner or later, they will come back to it."

» Associated Press