Washington (Electric Power Daily), June 22, 2005

The Senate on June 22 voted to add to its broad energy bill an amendment in which they agreed that greenhouse gases are accumulating in the atmosphere, that there is "a growing scientific consensus that human activity is a substantial cause" and that "mandatory steps" are necessary to slow or stop the emission of greenhouse gas emissions.

The amendment offered by Senator Jeff Bingaman (Democrat-New Mexico) and backed by Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chairman Pete Domenici (Republican-New Mexico) passed on a voice vote after an attempt to kill it by Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chairman Jim Inhofe (Repubicaln-Oklahoma) failed 43-54.

At press time, the Senate was on track to vote for the comprehensive energy bill on June 23. Once approved, the Senate will go to conference to negotiate a final energy bill with the House, where the majority opposes mandatory action to address climate change.

The Bingaman amendment put the Senate on record as finding that Congress believes global warming is occurring and market-based mandates must be laid down to stop it. The amendment also said that such a national climate change program should not "significantly harm" the US economy but should encourage comparable action by "major trading partners" and key contributors to global warming.

Domenici told his colleagues the amendment "says that there is problem [and] we ought to do something to reduce the problem." He noted that the amendment did not say when Congress should enact a comprehensive mandatory program with market-based incentives or at what level. "It is making a statement," said Domenici. "I think the time has come for us to make a statement on this issue. I choose this one."

The Bingaman-Domenici amendment also followed a second unsuccessful bid by Senator John McCain (Republian-Arizona) and Senator Joseph Lieberman (Democrat-Connecticut) to require industries, including electric power, to cap their carbon dioxide emissions at 2000 levels by 2010. The Senate voted 38-60 for the amendment, which was opposed by the environmental community because it provided loans for three new nuclear reactors and three integrated gasification combined cycle as alternatives to high carbon-emitting fossil energy. In 2003, the McCain-Lieberman proposal attracted 43 supporters on the Senate floor and did not contain the technology incentives for nuclear or coal.