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American Power Overrides Clean Air Act?

By Daniel Stouffer

Republish: EasyPublish™ Published: 25Jul2010 Word count: 553 Viewed: 401 time(s) Get Free Content For Your Site

It appears that there is some language within the new American Power Act that seeks to dampen the power of the EPA as written into the Clean Air Act. The latter is seen as a very successful piece of legislation, dating back to 1970, but in the judgment handed down by the Supreme Court in 2007, the EPA was granted powerful authority to regulate carbon emissions as part of that Act.

Critics of legislation passed by the House of Representatives to deal with climate change have made their voices heard during composition of the American Power Act. Specifically, as it appears that the EPA is ready to introduce regulation to curb stationary sources of carbon emissions, some members of Congress want new legislation to be written to pre-empt it.

It appears that there is some language within the new American Power Act that seeks to dampen the power of the EPA as written into the Clean Air Act. The latter is seen as a very successful piece of legislation, dating back to 1970, but in the judgment handed down by the Supreme Court in 2007, the EPA was granted powerful authority to regulate carbon emissions as part of that Act.

Provisions within the American Power Act mandate that the EPA may not bring the power of the Clean Air Act to bear on major emitters of carbon, specifically power plants and large factories. Critics have cited this regulatory potential to be a "backdoor" way for the Administration to effectively tax energy use and carbon emissions.

The American Power Act includes cap and rebate provisions dealing with energy producers, as well as a number of other provisions to deal with climate threats. While the political climate itself is far from palatable, the damaging events of the Gulf oil spill are prompting public opinion to push for legislation to curb energy usage. Many are calling for significant taxation on fossil fuels and investment in alternative sources of energy.

Pres. Obama has stated that the US will reduce carbon emissions by 83% in 40 years. The American Power Act vests authority for this in the EPA. Without such legislation it is very unlikely that regulation as part of the Clean Air Act would achieve anywhere near that kind of reduction.

There seems to be a closing window of opportunity in the summer of 2010. Midterm elections are on the far horizon and despite the events in the Gulf of Mexico, appetite within Congress for controversial legislation appears slim. Nevertheless, it seems clear that legislation will have to be addressed in the not too far distant future if promises made by Pres. Obama to the listening world are to be kept.

If Congress fails to pass a climate bill in 2010, the EPA is now mandated to follow up with regulation to curb carbon emissions from stationary sources. This would appear to be the least of the palatable options, but everything points to an additional premium on the cost of conventional energy, sure to be passed along to businesses of every size.

Carbon emission realization and ultimate reduction should be the goal of every business in the United States. Unrestricted energy use is fast becoming a sore subject and organizations that are not seen to be proactive risk damage to their reputations, quite apart from additional costs associated with an indirect or direct carbon tax.

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