Weekly angst

Congress has chance to lead on climate -- or not
Will automakers have to build more fuel-efficiency cars and SUVs? Will electric companies have to draw more of their power from clean sources like wind and solar instead of just coal? Will huge tax breaks be shifted from fossil fuels to renewable energy to give them a fighting chance of competing? And will the U.S. finally take a leadership role in the fight against Global Warming by mandating a cap on GHG emissions? Or will we just sit by and watch the world get warmer, the weather more extreme and the seas higher?

These things will probably be decided in the next few weeks. And you can help determine the outcome by telling your representatives in Washington how you feel. For sure, the auto and oil industries are making their wishes known.

So Capitol Hill is where the important Global Warming action is right now. And they really need to wind things up by the end of the year, with primary season looming in January. Here’s a weekly update:

• After starting informal negotiations Monday in an effort to reconcile the two summer energy bills, Democratic leaders are on the verge of launching a formal Conference Committee as GOP objections are withdrawn.
• The three main issues for Dem leaders and environmental groups are the Senate’s 35 mpg by 2020 CAFE standards, the House-passed 15% renewable electricity standard (RES) by 2020, and $15 billion in efficiency and renewable energy tax incentives funded by repeal of oil tax breaks.
• Opponents are demanding changes in the CAFE standards, especially different requirements for cars and light trucks (SUVs).
• The White House has threatened a veto unless some items are removed, including oil taxes, and CAFE standards and the biofuels mandate are modified.
• The Lieberman-Warner cap-and-trade bill was finally introduced Thursday with two main changes: a 15% cut in GHG by 2020 (instead of 10%), and no more free credits to manufacturers after 2036 (formerly 2050). Some subcommittee members find the bill too strong and others find it too weak, so prospects are uncertain. Environmental groups are split on this “compromise” bill.

More about the energy bill
Bipartisan, bicameral negotiations started this week with some of the less controversial items, such as efficiency, and went day and night after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi declared there’d be no formal Conference due to GOP objections. By week’s end those objections were being withdrawn and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid seemed poised to announce a Conference.

President Bush asked for the following:
• Separation of cars and trucks in the CAFE provision
• No renewable electricity standard
• Alternative fuels of about 35 billion gallons by 2017, including coal, natural gas and hydrogen.
• No removal of oil tax breaks
• No reduction of domestic oil and gas production
• Removal of “price-gouging” penalties and the ability to bring anti-trust action against OPEC.
Absent these changes, he threatened to veto the bill. Some lawmakers countered he is “too cozy” with the oil interests.

Bipartisan opponents of the CAFE standards in the Senate include Michigan’s two Democratic Senators, Carl Levin and Debbie Stabenow, and Sen. George Voinovich (R-Ohio), who sent a letter to leaders saying the bill is “overly stringent.” They asked for something more like the industry-approved Hill-Terry proposal of 32 mpg by 2022, with separate requirements for cars and light trucks and credit for flex-fuel vehicles. Also signing the letter were Sens. Mark Pryor (D-Ark.), Kit Bond (R-Mo.), Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) and Russ Feingold (D-Wis.).

House Speaker Pelosi said she is looking to wrap up negotiations on this bill by Nov. 16, before a two-week recess, and vote Dec. 3.

More on Lieberman-Warner (S.B. 2191)
The “compromise” cap-and-trade bill from Sens. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) and John Warner (R-Va.) was finally introduced this week. It draws from nearly a dozen other bills and mandates an overall GHG reduction of 63% by 2050, from power plants, transportation and manufacturing. Instead of mandates for residential and commercial buildings, it sets new efficiency standards for buildings and appliances.

It begins by auctioning 24% of the credits in 2012, up to 73% by 2036. The rest would be allocated free, mainly to manufacturers affected most by the law. That seems to be the main point of contention for those who want stronger action. Global Warming subcommittee Sens. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) called for auctioning more credits and insisted the federal law not pre-empt states from taking stronger action (which it doesn’t at this point).

Some environmental groups – Clean Air Watch and U.S. PRIG – are disappointed and want 100% of the credits auctioned, while others, such as Environmental Defense, Natural Resources Defense Council and World Wildlife Federation, praised the bill as a strong step in the right direction. The Sierra Club called for 20% by 2020 and more credits auctioned. The president of the Pew Center on Global Climate Change said, “This is the breakthrough we’ve been waiting for – a bill with a real chance of passing.”

Environment Chair Barbara Boxer has promised hearings, but the prospects for the bill are unclear at this point. A group of power companies have asked for a “safety valve,” a cap on the price they would have to pay for credits. Lieberman-Warner does not have a “safety valve” but does allow for flexibility if prices are too high for too long.

Original co-sponsors of the 200-page bill are Sens. Robert Casey (D-Pa.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Norm Coleman (R-Minn.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Elizabeth Dole (R-N.C.), Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.).

Lieberman’s Global Warming subcommittee will hold hearings on the bill this Wednesday. He plans on markup Nov. 1. If it gets out of committee, the bill will need 60 votes to pass the Senate.
(Sources: E&E Daily, E&E News PM, Greenwire)

Take action

Call your senators and rep in Washington and tell them why it’s urgent to come up with an energy bill that has both strong CAFE standards and RES. The Congressional switchboard number is (202)224-3121. Also tell your senators you want to see Lieberman-Warner strengthened and passed before year’s end.

Tell Toyota to stop lobbying against a strong CAFE provision. They just want to keep selling outsize trucks in the U.S. If you are a Toyota owner or thinking of becoming one, let them know that. Go to http://www.truthaboutToyota.com.

News in brief

Coal-fired plant in Kansas is first to be rejected based on CO2
The Kansas Dept. of Health and Environment is the first government agency to turn down a permit for a coal-fired electric plant citing the risks posed by carbon dioxide. Referring to the recent Supreme Court decision defining CO2 as a pollutant, the agency rejected Sunflower Electric Power’s proposal for twin 700-megawatt plants. In doing so, the agency overruled its staff’s recommendation. The plants would have emitted 11 million metric tons of CO2 annually. Environmental groups fighting new coal plants around the country were heartened by the decision. (Sources: Greenwire, Washington Post)

Burning Amazon signals deforestation on the rise again
In August, more than 16,000 fires were spotted by satellite, burning their way across Brazil, mostly in the Amazon rainforest. Despite a government announcement the same month that Brazil had cut forest destruction 30% in the past few years, there are signs the economics of cattle ranching, illegal logging and soybean crops are too great a temptation to many in the area. Loggers say they will continue to cut down trees until the government gives them a viable economic alternative. (Source: The Guardian, UK)

World Bank sets up fund to pay countries to preserve forests
The World Bank, which has been criticized for funding some of the activities that lead to deforestation, announced last week it has set up a fund of $300 million to help stop the practice. The Bank will pay developing countries to protect and replant tropical forests. The Forest Carbon Partnership Facility, which will be part of post-Kyoto negotiations in Bali in December, will be tested on 3-5 countries. Deforestation is responsible for an estimated 20% of the greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere. (Source: PlanetArk)

Wind project off Cape Cod denied permit by local board
The Cape Cod Commission last week denied the long-delayed Cape Wind project a permit to lay underwater transmission lines. The 130-turbine offshore wind farm proposed for Nantucket Sound would be in federal waters and a decision is expected from Washington next month. Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.), with family summer homes in the area, is a strong opponent. The state of Massachusetts approved the project last year after new Gov. Deval Patrick (D) replaced Mitt Romney (R), who opposed the plan. A state energy facilities board could override the local Cape Cod board. A statewide poll, taken this summer by the Patriot Ledger, found 84% favored the wind farm. Residents on Cape Cod, Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard were 53% in favor. (Source: Greenwire, Boston.com, Patriot Ledger)

Step it Up – Plan to participate in climate activities Nov. 3
A day of national action against Global Warming is being planned by StepItUp, which held actions all over the country last April. Go on http://www.StepItUp07.org to see what’s planned for your area. In Chicago, there will be a Education and Leadership Forum at High Risk Gallery, 1113 Belmont Ave., from noon-2:30 p.m. If you plan to attend, e-mail Tony Fuller at Tony@chicagoclimateaction.com. Several speakers from environmental groups and the city will talk about what’s happening now, followed by a forum for legislators. The event is co-sponsored by the Sierra Club, Climate Justice Chicago and Chicago Global Warming Meet-up.

Xtreme weather watch

Atlanta’s drought-plagued water source, Lake Lanier, drops a foot each week and could dry up in 3-4 months. So Georgia's governor has sued the Army Corps of Engineers for releasing too much water, some of which flows to Alabama and Florida. And now he’s asked the President to intervene. Meanwhile, North Carolina’s governor has warned he may have to declare a state of emergency soon if voluntary conservation efforts aren’t enough. The Southeast is living through an extreme drought. And unlike the Southwest, the area is not accustomed to dealing drought. (Atlanta Business Chronicle, New York Times, Greenwire, PlanetArk)

China, Nepal, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Vietnam will send experts to a 3-month UN course on flood-protection next month. Participants will map risks of downpours, overflowing rivers and rising seas, expected to worsen because of climate change. They will learn about better dyke design, weather forecasting and flood warnings, focusing attention on large urban centers. Asia suffers more from flooding than other regions. (PlanetArk)

Many Central American countries were hit by torrential rains, deadly flooding and landslides in the past couple of weeks. In Nicaragua at least 4,000 were evacuated. A mudslide in Costa Rica buried 14. Haiti, most vulnerable because 90% of the forests have been cleared, was hardest hit, with a death toll of at least 31. (PlanetArk)