Let's keep working to make the cap-and-trade bill better Posted by Joe Lucas on 05/21/2009 10:03:06 PM

The news from Capitol Hill tonight is that a House committee passed the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009 (ACES).

As Steve Miller, CEO and president of the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity, said: "We look forward to working with the members of the House of Representatives during the coming weeks to make additional, vital modifications to the ACES Act so that the legislation ultimately enacted by Congress and signed by the president produces environmental benefits, promotes economic prosperity and advancement of technology, and ensures greater energy independence."

Click here for the full statement from Steve Miller.

Comparing climate change goals to weight loss Posted by Joe Lucas on 04/24/2009 12:04:25 PM

In her remarks commemorating Earth Day yesterday, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton paralleled global climate goals to weight loss. It may seem like a goofy analogy, but the secretary has a point:

"Oftentimes when you face such an overwhelming challenge as global climate change is, it can be somewhat daunting. It’s kind of like trying to lose weight—which I know something about. It's kind of like trying to lose weight — which I know something about. Where you think, you know, 'Oh, I only have to lose X number of pounds.' But it can seem like such a faraway goal."

Secretary Clinton goes on to imply that we can achieve large goals by breaking them down into smaller, easier to hit targets. This stair-stepped approach is one we’ve been talking about for months: 1) slow emissions growth; 2) stop emissions growth; 3) reverse emissions growth.

The idea of setting ourselves up to succeed is one that ACCCE has been talking about for a long time, especially in regard to developing climate legislation. By working together to develop commercial carbon capture technologies and set incremental standards for utilities, we can reach our long-term global emissions reductions goals while protecting American families and businesses from higher energy costs.

Taking the time to do climate legislation right Posted by Joe Lucas on 03/26/2009 11:57:22 AM

We’ve said that climate change legislation was too important of an issue to attempt to tackle by using back-door methods. It seems like more people are agreeing—a collection of House and Senate members on both sides of the isle have encouraged leadership to hold off on fast-tracked climate change legislation.

Said Sen. Susan Collins (R–Maine), "I'm a strong supporter of climate change legislation and continue to be. But this is a major policy change, and it should not be jammed through using reconciliation. We should have a full debate, and ample opportunity for a lot of different amendments."

If you look at the big picture, climate legislation, while certainly important for the environment, will also affect U.S. families and businesses. Like President Obama has said, “If [a cap-and-trade system] is too onerous that people can’t meet it, then it defeats the purpose.”

An optimistic realist's view on climate legislation Posted by Joe Lucas on 03/24/2009 11:07:33 AM

It might come as a surprise to some folks, but our views on climate change legislation are not unlike others, including the Pew Center on Global Climate Change.

Last week, the president of the Pew Center told the House Energy and Commerce Committee to be cautious about burdening energy-intensive industries with the inherent costs of climate legislation, noting that creating free allowances to begin with could lessen the likelihood that developing nations not bound by emissions standards—like China and India—could gain a manufacturing foothold over the United States.

As President Obama said (of a CO2 cap-and-trade system), "If it's so onerous that people can't meet it, then it defeats the purpose."

To keep America competitive in the global economy while jump starting things here at home, we'll have to take a realistic approach to climate change legislation. We believe this transition can be made in a way that helps us meet our environmental responsibility, protects America's energy security and ensures reliable, affordable energy for Americans.

We look forward to working with President Obama, his administration and Congress to strike that all-important balance.

The debate over climate change is moving (video post) Posted by Joe Lucas on 03/20/2009 03:38:35 PM

I wanted to share my thoughts on the state of the climate change debate in Washington these last few weeks. Rather than write it out, I hopped outside and put together this video post. Let me know what you think!

Finding a CO2 plan that strikes the right balance Posted by Joe Lucas on 03/17/2009 09:48:31 AM

All through the America’s Power campaign, we’ve said we would support climate change legislation that strikes the right balance between environmental goals and economic realities.

It seems we’re not the only ones who feel that way.

Last week, President Obama offered what journalists called his most extensive remarks on global warming policy since taking office, essentially making that very point.

Speaking about a carbon dioxide cap-and-trade system, the president said he would be careful to avoid plans that lean too far in either direction. “If it’s so onerous that people can’t meet it, then it defeats the purpose,” the president said.

There’s no doubt that striking a balance between reducing greenhouse gas emissions, protecting America’s energy security and holding down energy costs for consumers will require hard work. But we believe it can be done, and that President Obama, his team and the 111th Congress will work together to shape legislation that accomplishes these very goals. We look forward to being part of the process.

Climate change low priority for Americans Posted by Joe Lucas on 03/13/2009 05:16:46 PM

According to the latest poll conducted by the Pew Research Center, climate change is at the bottom of the barrel of Americans’ top priorities for 2009—it came in last.

While climate change may be a low priority for Americans right now, it’s anything but for ACCCE. As we’ve outlined in our climate change principles, we advocate climate strategy that recognizes the importance of energy efficiency, conservation, and using our diverse suite of domestic energy sources to generate electricity. We’re working hard to bring the next generation of clean coal technologies to commercial scale, equipping today’s coal-based plants with technology that can safely capture and sequester carbon dioxide emissions.

Climate change is also an important issue for Congress and the EPA, as we’ve noted before.

There are plenty of issues worthy of national focus. Here at ACCCE, we’re working diligently to create long-term solutions for a healthier economy and a cleaner environment.

The real discussion about carbon dioxide Posted by Joe Lucas on 03/06/2009 04:35:00 PM

We’ve seen a fair amount of commentary over my recent CNN appearance, which makes my point exactly: the debate over the science of climate change is keeping us from moving on this issue.

Let me be clear on two things:

1. Discussing whether CO2 will be regulated is a moot point. We know that CO2 emissions will soon be regulated, be it via Congress or through the U.S. EPA.

2. ACCCE supports federal carbon management legislation, as we’ve said before and outlined here in our climate principles.

We shouldn’t focus on whether carbon dioxide will be regulated (it will), or if ACCCE could possibly support regulation (we do). The conversation now should be about how we’re going to reduce CO2 emissions.

We’ve made great strides in curbing emissions, and I know we can do it again. And with so many great minds focused on the task at hand, I’m confident we’ll come up with a balanced energy approach that meets our demands, encourages job creation and protects the environment.

On CO2, don't let debate over science stop us from taking action Posted by Joe Lucas on 03/05/2009 09:27:24 AM

Let’s talk about the issue of the science of climate change.

Recently in an interview on CNN, they played a part of a quote in which I said “I’m not a scientist” when asked whether or not emissions from coal plants contributed to climate change.

Here’s what you didn’t hear: I pointed out that the United Nations International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has a whole list of things about which there is great certainty, other things about which there is some certainty, and still other things about which there is less certainty. We do know that there has been an increases in greenhouse gas emissions and that some warming has taken place.

According to the IPCC, the exact extent that human-made emissions will contribute to climate change is less certain. However, the remaining uncertainties do not provide a reason to not take action.

Especially when you take into consider the advances that we are making with advanced clean coal technologies to capture and store CO2 from power plants. By focusing on technology to ensure a cost-effective means of meeting new emissions standards, we can reduce greenhouse gas emissions, promote energy independence, create jobs and keep energy costs affordable for American businesses and families.

As the IPCC, International Energy Agency, MIT and others have said: this approach is actually the only way meet the challenge of reducing greenhouse gas emissions on a global scale.

The many facets of climate change and carbon management Posted by Joe Lucas on 02/05/2009 04:00:18 PM

A recent piece from the London Guardian outlines a number of action items for President Obama in efforts to curb climate change.

I was particularly struck by this passage:

The president must also instruct his cabinet to clarify the impact of global climate change on each of their respective portfolios. Global warming has been crammed into a "green" box for the sake of political expediency. Instead, it must be appreciated for its cross-cutting immensity — it is fundamental to national security, global commerce, economic recovery, energy security, public health and safety, agricultural policy, land-use planning, and environmental protection.

This sentiment meshes well with our 12 legislative climate principles, which call for federal carbon management legislation that preserves the reliability of electricity generation, transmission and distribution system; promotes energy security and reliability; and maintains America’s competitiveness in a global economy.

We believe this can be done, in part, through clean coal technologies—including the capture and storage of carbon dioxide, a belief shared by the UK’s former prime minister, Tony Blair and The Climate Group. In their June 2008 report, they concluded that carbon capture and storage was “a critical and urgent priority” and that “it will be very challenging, if not impossible, to hit significant abatement targets without CCS.”

As we’ve said before, striking a balance between reducing greenhouse gas emissions, protecting America’s energy security and holding down energy costs for consumers will require hard work. But we believe it can be done, and that President Obama, his team and the 111th Congress will work together to shape legislation that accomplishes these very goals. We look forward to being part of the process.