Feb 27 - Record, The; Bergen County, N.J.

An effort to keep global warming from swamping North Jersey and the rest of the state advanced in Trenton on Monday despite worries even from supporters about the costs of tackling the problem.

Business groups warned the state Assembly that a bill to slash global warming emissions from New Jersey could send energy prices higher in a state that already suffers some of the highest electric rates in the nation.

"The concern really remains with us the competitive issue," Michael Egenton, an assistant vice president with the state Chamber of Commerce, told legislators. "Who's going to meet all the rising energy needs in the state?"

A lobbyist for the New Jersey Petroleum Council, a refinery group whose products are among the chief sources of greenhouse gases, warned that "this legislation could cause problems for the citizens of New Jersey."

Despite the concerns, the Assembly's Environment Committee approved the bill unanimously, releasing it for a final vote in the chamber that could come next month. The legislation would still need the approval of the Senate and Governor Corzine, who has called for legislation to tackle global warning.

The bill would require the state to reduce emissions of heat- trapping carbon dioxide and other gases by about 20 percent by 2020. The gases are mainly produced by burning coal, oil and gas.

Without cuts worldwide, most scientists believe the planet will continue to warm, leading to melting polar caps, flooded coastlines, more-damaging storms and other problems. In North Jersey, researchers and activists warn of increased flooding, sustained droughts and worsening air quality.

The two North Jersey assemblymen on the committee voted for the legislation, though John Rooney, a Northvale Republican, called it a "feel-good measure."

New Jersey's actions will mean little if the rest of the nation doesn't follow suit, and even the United States' greenhouse emissions could soon be overtaken by pollution from China and India, he noted.

Still, Rooney hoped the bill would spark more energy efficiency and conservation.

Assemblyman Robert Gordon, D-Fair Lawn, said the U.S. was nearing a "point of no return" to rein in climate change.

"This bill may not have great impact [on other countries]," he said. "But I do think we need to send a message, and when the federal government isn't acting, the state has to act. We have to be those laboratories of democracy that Jefferson talked about."

Supporters and critics of the bill agreed that only a nationwide effort could truly rein in warming. But the Bush administration has so far rejected the idea of mandatory greenhouse limits, saying they would hurt the economy.

Activists, however, noted that even the business groups worried about the measure stopped short of opposing it.

"I think that businesses in the state understand that what will come out of this bill will actually grow the economy," said Suzanne Leta Liou, a clean-energy advocate with the group Environment New Jersey.

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What's next

The proposal to combat global warming by reducing emissions from carbon dioxide and other gases by 20 percent by 2020 next goes to the Assembly for a final vote, possibly next month.

The bill must still be considered in the Senate.

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E-mail: nussbaum@northjersey.com

(c) 2007 Record, The; Bergen County, N.J.. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.