The Political Climate: an ongoing commentary on the NH Primary and Climate Change

We are asking the presidential candidates to commit to a comprehensive climate change action plan to be implemented within 150 days of being elected.

The House is set to debate a new energy bill today, but this is by no means a climate change plan.  Many key provisions that would help our nation reduce its carbon footprint and achieve energy security are conspicuously missing. 

Even after the Senate passed an energy bill that raised CAFE standards to 35 mpg, there was no mention of raising fuel economy standards in the House.  Read about the Senate bill in our June 22 blog.  There is also no renewable energy standard included in the bill.  Both fuel efficiency and renewable energy standards would help free our country from the environmental burden of oil and ensure that American industry not fall farther behind the curve on clean renewable energy.

Here is what E&E News reported would be included in the bill:

“The underlying 786-page energy bill is a combination of measures reported out of roughly 10 committees. Major provisions include greater appliance, lighting and building efficiency; funding to boost biofuels development and delivery; a host of other renewable energy research program authorizations; a measure to make the federal government ‘carbon neutral’; programs to boost development and demonstration of carbon capture and sequestration; steps to create a ’smart’ electrical grid; repeal of some Energy Policy Act of 2005 royalty incentives; and many others.”

These provisions are improvements, but fall drastically short of actually combating climate change.  The title of today’s blog; “No energy bill can substitute comprehensive climate change legislation” was a direct quote from yesterday’s New York Times editorial “An Incomplete Energy Bill.“  The statement touches on the important difference between the issue of energy and climate change.