Democrats Say White House Stalling to Avoid Decision on Climate Rules

Mar 27 - Detroit Free Press

Federal environmental regulators will propose the first rules designed to limit global warming gases from U.S. vehicles and factories later this spring, a move Democratic critics called an attempt by the Bush administration to avoid setting greenhouse gas limits before the end of President Bush's term.

In a letter to two congressional committees Thursday, the chief of the Environmental Protection Agency said he had ordered EPA staff to draft the rule after questions were raised about the scope of the agency's planned rules for cars and trucks.

A year ago, the U.S. Supreme Court ordered the EPA to set limits on carbon dioxide and other global warming gases from vehicles over objections from automakers. But business groups including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce had questioned whether federal law would force the EPA to then regulate any other source of global warming gases, from power plants to airplanes to construction sites.

"Rather than rushing to judgment on a single issue, this approach allows us to examine all the potential effects of a decision with the benefit of the public's insight," EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson said in the letter.

Johnson already had come under harsh criticism for delaying the vehicle controls after promising to release a draft by the end of 2007. In his letter, Johnson did not say when the EPA would issue any final rule, and did not commit to any other deadlines.

U.S. Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., one of the chief overseers of the EPA, said in a statement that it was "puzzling and disappointing that the Bush administration hasn't offered an alternative or joined the effort to design and enact comprehensive climate change legislation." Dingell said his House Energy and Commerce Committee would hold hearings on the EPA decision in the coming weeks.

Sen. Barbara Boxer, the California Democrat who heads the Senate Environmental and Public Works Committee, called the move "foot-dragging."

"There is no time to waste, but the Administrator's letter today makes it clear that EPA doesn't intend to take any real action to combat global warming before President Bush leaves office," Boxer said.

Automakers have been concerned that any EPA regulations on vehicle emissions would clash with new fuel economy rules from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Congress set a target of 35 miles per gallon by 2020 for the industry last year, and the draft of NHTSA's rules covering vehicles through model year 2015 are expected next month.

The Bush administration has proposed voluntary limits on carbon emissions by large nations to combat global warming, while European nations and environmental groups have called for worldwide mandatory reductions. The United States emits about one-fifth of the world's greenhouse gases, although developing nations such as China and India are increasing their emissions rapidly.

Scientists with the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change estimated last year that greenhouse gas emissions would need to be cut by 50 percent to 85 percent over the next four decades to contain global warming at a reasonable level _ roughly 4 degrees Fahrenheit on average.

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