Rep. Henry Waxman (D-California) and 127 other lawmakers in the House yesterday introduced a bill (.pdf) that would cap greenhouse gas emissions in 2010 and gradually reduce emissions over the next four decades to a level 80 percent lower than in 1990.
The Safe Climate Act of 2007, which would institute an economy wide cap-and-trade program along with incentives to develop new technology for renewable energy, is similar to legislation Waxman drafted in the last session of Congress. That bill never made it to a vote on the floor.
But with Democrats in control of Congress, Waxman is more optimistic this time around. "In just nine months, there has been remarkable progress in building consensus," he said in a statement. He also pointed to a coalition of environmental groups and corporations that have banded together to call for emissions reductions.
"All these groups recognize an important truth," Waxman said. "Unless we seize the opportunity to act now, and act decisively, our legacy to our children and grandchildren will be an unstable and dangerous planet."
Groups such as the Union of Concerned Scientists yesterday hailed the legislation, calling it "the best opportunity to protect future generations from the worst effects of global warming."
The bill would give the EPA control over the market-based cap-and-trade system, in which polluting companies would pay the government for each ton of carbon dioxide emitted over the legally determined limit. The bill would also impose California-style vehicle emissions standards on all cars, require that a certain percentage of electricity come from renewable sources and mandate that utilities improve energy efficiency.
Every five years, according to the bill, the National Academies would be charged with reviewing the nation's progress on avoiding dangerous climate change.
"The scientists have been proven right about global warming, over and over again, across the planet," Waxman said. "Now they are telling us that we have about ten years to act to avoid being locked into irreversible global warming on a scale that will transform the planet."
