Washington, DC (October 2, 2007)- The EPA released a report that compares the long-term impacts of three different climate change bills being proposed in the Senate. By the end of the century, the EPA reports, each of the three bills will reduce the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere by 23 to 25 parts per million (ppm). The three bills, one proposed by Sens. Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) and Arlen Specter (R-PA), another by Sens. Joe Lieberman (I-VT) and John McCain (R-AZ), and the third by Sens. John Kerry (D-MA) and Olympia Snowe (R-ME), each call for a cap on CO2 emissions for cars, industry, and power plants with a goal of reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 60-65 percent by mid-century.
The EPA analysis was requested by Sens. Bingaman and Specter as discussion over climate legislation continues. In response to the report, Sen. Bingaman said that it “shows that inaction is the real danger with regards to climate policy.” The report’s findings were disputed by the World Resources Institute, which said the EPA analysis of federal bills “omits key assumptions.”
Related Resources:
Roanoke Times
Portland Press Herald
Environmental Protection Agency
World Resources Institute