( CNN ) -- The goals President Barack Obama set out Tuesday in his Climate Action Plan -- including cutting pollution from coal plants and aggressively pursuing clean energy alternatives -- wo n't solve all the challenges of climate change , but they are a big first step in protecting the planet from its worst effects . Getting serious about solutions is critically important , especially now and especially for the United States . Why the rush ? Climate change is driven by emissions of a range of heat-trapping gases , especially the total emissions of carbon dioxide , which have been pumping out since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution . How much ? Through 2012 , that total is about 1,700 billion tons of carbon dioxide from fossil fuel combustion and cutting down forests . In 2012 , carbon dioxide emissions in the U.S. were 19.4 tons per person or about 750 pounds per person per week . Per capita carbon dioxide emissions in the U.S. may be lower now than they were in 1990 , but the average American still emits three times the global average . Global annual carbon dioxide emissions continue to grow rapidly , with emissions in 2012 more than 50 % above 1990 levels . Recently , and for the first time in more than 2 million years , the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere climbed above 400 parts per million , 37 % higher than in 1800 . The resulting global warming , about 1.5 degrees Fahrenheit , will persist for at least 1,000 years . With every passing year , the pool of total carbon dioxide emissions grows bigger , causing more warming -- and more warming leads to greater damages from climate , weather extremes like heat waves , heavy rainfall , and coastal storm surge , as well as altered crop yields , threats to human health , and increased risks of wildfire . The first step ? Address the root of the issue , and this is why the action Obama outlined is smart . The plan recognizes the breadth of the problem and focuses on a wide range of emissions sources . It also recognizes that not all the damages can be avoided and that building resilience needs to be a part of the package . Taking action now is also cost-effective . Slowing and eventually stopping emissions will take time . The global energy system producing most of the carbon dioxide emissions is massive , and includes thousands of power plants and more than a billion vehicles . The components of the energy system are long-lasting : Cars are driven for one to two decades . Power plants are designed to run for up to a half-century . Buildings , which use energy for heating , cooling , lighting , and running equipment , can stand for a century or more . As things stand now , these realities commit us to continuing emissions into the future . Each new coal-fired power plant that goes online or inefficient vehicle that hits the road extends that commitment . In principle , we can retire existing infrastructure -- like energy-inefficient buildings and carbon-intensive power plants -- early , but such a rapid transformation of an entire energy system would be exorbitantly expensive , essentially because it involves scrapping equipment that has not lived out its useful life . Building the energy system for the 21st century ambitiously but gradually , starting now , controls the costs by building for the long run and by enabling markets to innovate and drive down costs . Why is U.S. leadership so important ? First , the United States has the necessary skills in science and technology , the tradition of innovation , and the mature capital markets to boldly seize opportunities . Building the energy system of the 21st century is perhaps the greatest business opportunity of the era . It will involve a wide range of technologies that emit little or no carbon dioxide , with greatly increased energy efficiency in vehicles , buildings , and equipment . Second , the U.S. is the only nation that can truly focus the world 's attention on the climate problem . When the U.S. hangs back , it is easy for other countries to question goals or get tangled in internal politics . U.S. leadership is critical in supercharging the international effort . Today is the day to start . The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Chris Field .
Chris Field : U.S. urgently needs to heed Obama 's Climate Action Plan . He says we 've been pumping massive amounts of CO2 into atmosphere since 1800s . He says our buildings , cars , power plants commit us to to a path that needs to change . Field : If we do n't , we face weather extremes , threats to human health .