The global warming due to greenhouse gases is now the hottest issue all over the world. The world has been under $CO_2$ war since the Kyoto Protocol was opened for signature on December 11, 1997 in Kyoto, Japan. The Kyoto Protocol now covers more than 164 countries globally as of July 2006. Countries that ratify this protocol commit to reduce their $CO_2$ emissions, or engage in emissions trading. Korea is also expected to obey the Protocol starting in 2013, which will give a serious shock especially to the electric power industry. The power plants burning the fossil fuel produce more than 20 percent of national total $CO_2$ emission. This paper resents the calculation of the amount and cost of $CO_2$ emission w.r.t. generator MW output and its application to power system operation. The $CO_2$ emission function is derived using the input-output coefficients of the thermal power plants. The optimal power system operation considering $CO_2$ emission and its cost is demonstrated on a five-bus sample power system.