 At an April 4 senate conference hearing on Global Warming, leaders representing eight big energy companies, including General Electric, Shell, and the two largest owners of utilities in the U.S., Exelon and Duke Energy said they would either welcome or accept mandatory caps on their greenhouse-gas emissions. Wal-Mart too spoke in favor of carbon caps.
However, many environmentalists maintain that the proposed caps are not very ambitious. The proposals have polluters gradually curb and then halt the GROWTH of their greenhouse-gas emissions by 2020, but not actually REDUCE those emissions from current levels. Also, the proposals include an upper limit on the price for pollution credits in the US at $7 per metric ton of emissions, which is very low compared to the European market that is currently trading at $30 per ton. According to many speakers at the conference, the climate issue is too hot a topic for a Senate vote in 2006, and fear real federal climate legislation won’t be enacted until President Bush is replaced in 2009. David Doniger of NRDC doesn't think the country can wait that long. "We're facing very real dangers that require real action,'' he told the gathering. "These emissions cuts must come within the next 10 years. Delay makes the job much harder. A slow start means a crash finish." The growth of nuclear energy was a big fear voiced in a blog comment soon after the original article was posted. Maybe energy companies are welcoming carbon emission caps because they are planning on focusing their efforts toward further nuclear energy growth.
I sure hope not. by
Erin Swanson
ESwanson@enviance.com | 
