http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=655&ncid=655&e=6&
u=/oneworld/20031010/wl_oneworld/4536701211065787498
Fri Oct 10, 2003, 8:03
AM ET
Ten States
to Sue EPA on Global Warming
Brad Knickerbocker,
Christian Science Monitor
WASHINGTON, D.C., Oct.
10 (CSM) -- Confronting climate change--which
most scientists now say is real--is a worldwide effort. That's
why
it's called "global warming."
But as nations continue
to argue over the Kyoto agreement and other
multinational approaches, and as Congress considers an energy
bill
that would expand fossil-fuel production, state governments are
taking the lead in reducing the greenhouse gases that seem to
be
sending temperatures upward.
Ten states are about
to sue the administration to force the EPA
to regulate greenhouse gases. Fourteen states, including President
Bush's home state of Texas, now require utilities to generate
part
of their power from renewable sources.
One region--the Northeast--is
following its own Kyoto-like path.
New England states and five eastern Canadian provinces have set
goals to reduce greenhouse gases to 1990 levels by 2010, then
reduce them another 10 percent by 2017.
Similarly, governors
on the West Coast recently announced
a joint strategy to reduce global warming. Included in this
effort: using their combined purchasing power to buy
fuel-efficient vehicles for official use; developing
uniform appliance-efficiency standards; collaborating
to measure and report greenhouse-gas emissions; reducing
the use of diesel generators on ships in California, Oregon,
and Washington State ports.
It's not just a matter
of wanting to enjoy a clearer view
of the region's spectacular mountains and coastlines.
"This is a matter
of economic necessity," says Oregon
Gov. Ted Kulongoski (D). "Global warming is a real
phenomenon, which affects us in many ways, from increasingly
costly forest fires to encroaching seas."
Barry Rabe, who teaches
environmental policy and political
science at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, finds
that "the current level of state activity surrounding the
issue of climate change is striking."
In a study of state
programs for the Pew Center on Global
Climate Change, Dr. Rabe found a variety of initiatives
around the country - many of them far in advance of what
the federal government is doing.
"Measures that
have proven controversial at the federal
level, such as renewable portfolio standards and mandatory
reporting of greenhouse-gas emissions, have been implemented
at the state level, often with little dissent," he says.
For example, says Eileen
Claussen, president of the Pew center
and former assistant secretary of state in charge of environmental
and scientific affairs, Texas and 13 other states now require
utilities to generate a specified share of their power from
renewable sources.
"Three [states]
have established reporting programs for
greenhouse-gas emissions, and two of these are mandatory
programs," Ms. Claussen recently told state environmental
officials from around the country at a meeting in Salt Lake
City. "In addition, two states have overall caps on their
emissions, and one state, California, is working on direct
controls on emissions from motor vehicles."
Then there is New York
State, she said: Under Republican
Gov. George Pataki, New York has created a regional market
in which power plants can buy and sell carbon-dioxide credits.
Nine of 10 states have told the governor they're interested
in collaborating on emission reductions across the region.
One striking thing
about such efforts to stem global warming
is that both Republicans and Democrats generally support them.
Even Arnold Schwarzenegger,
governor-elect of California
and an enthusiastic owner of a General Motors gas-guzzling
Hummer, vowed in his campaign that "Under my administration,
the state will lead by example - identifying and permanently
retiring those heavily used vehicles that do the greatest
harm to our air quality." Mr. Schwarzenegger also embraced
a new state law that requires cars and trucks to emit less
carbon dioxide, suggesting that he would retrofit his Hummer
(with a gas mileage of 10 to 13 m.p.g.) to run on
clean-burning hydrogen.
At issue between states
and the Bush administration
(and the subject of the lawsuit) is whether to consider
carbon dioxide - one of the main greenhouse gases--as a
"pollutant" regulated under the federal Clean Air Act.
The Environmental Protection Agency under Bush says "no";
the states say "yes."
California officials
are particularly concerned that the
EPA's position will make it easier for auto manufacturers
to challenge the state's first-ever law restricting vehicles'
greenhouse-gas emissions. Connecticut, Illinois, Maine,
Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Washington,
and Vermont are expected to join the suit.
Rabe at the University
of Michigan and other observers
see such state efforts as models for federal action.
Still, they acknowledge that state programs addressing
climate change are no substitute for a nationwide effort
directed by Washington.
Whether acting alone
or in groups, states also face stiff
obstacles. They are constitutionally limited in what they
can do in areas involving international relations. And many
are cash-strapped, required to balance state budgets that
are as shaky as they've been in decades.
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