Isramart : EPA seeks to regulate carbon

Isramart news:
The EPA this week found that carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases threaten public health, a strategically timed action that is likely to resonate internationally as the world begins talks on a climate change treaty at a U.N. summit in Copenhagen.

The so-called endangerment finding triggers a requirement that the federal government regulate fossil fuel emissions under the Clean Air Act (PL 101-549) and puts new pressure on Congress to enact climate change legislation.

"The message to Congress is crystal clear: Get moving," said Sen. John Kerry , D-Mass., the point-man in efforts to write a bipartisan Senate global warming bill.

The White House has held the threat of the endangerment finding over the heads of Congress for months, and it rolled out the announcement on the first day of international climate change negotiations in Copenhagen.

With climate change legislation stalled behind the health care debate, the announcement gives President Obama something tangible to demonstrate that the U.S. is serious about following through on promises to cut carbon emissions. That could have a profound impact on the outcome of the climate negotiations — which, in turn, could give momentum to prospects for a climate bill in the Senate.

"This is the price of admission," said Kevin Book, managing director of research at ClearView Energy Partners, a strategy and consulting firm. "We can’t credibly negotiate with other countries unless we do something. Today, legally speaking, we will have done something. The final endangerment finding means that we will have committed irrevocably to action. And the first and most likely response is that Congress will pass a new law. This is a checkmate for Congress."

EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson called the findings "long overdue" and said they "cement 2009’s place in history as the year when the United States Government began addressing the challenge of greenhouse-gas pollution and seizing the opportunity of clean-energy reform."

But many lawmakers, business organizations and interest groups see the blunt instrument of EPA regulation as a nightmare scenario. They would prefer Congress to write legislation that they could play a significant role in shaping.

"It means we can’t ignore the issue," said Senate Majority Whip Richard J. Durbin , D-Ill. "If we don’t come up with a reasonable way to reduce [carbon dioxide] and greenhouse gas emissions working with business and labor and interest groups, then we may face decisions by the EPA which are very tough on a lot of people."

The EPA said its finding reflects a thorough examination of the scientific evidence and careful consideration of public comment. The agency found that emissions of heat-trapping gases such as carbon dioxide can lead to longer and more intense heat waves that threaten the health of the sick, poor and elderly and can increase ground-level ozone pollution linked to such respiratory diseases as asthma.

The findings respond to a 2007 Supreme Court ruling that greenhouse gases fall within the Clean Air Act definition of air pollutants. The EPA action does not impose any new emission reduction requirements, but it allows the agency to proceed with rulemaking.

"I think this is going to provide incentive for people to engage on climate change," said Sen. Kent Conrad , D-N.D. "The prospect of EPA regulation is a significant incentive to engage, no doubt about it."