A litmus test for any new law is whether voices from both sides of the political divide harangue against it. Last Friday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 2998, the American Clean Energy and Security Act. You can download the complete legislation, which is 1201 pages long. I will tantalize you with an example of what you can read with details such as -
"For a generating unit achieving the capture and sequestration of 85 percent or more of the carbon dioxide that otherwise would be emitted by such unit, the bonus allowance value shall be $90 per ton."
Yeah - I am afraid 1201 pages of that would take several days to decypher, along with several legal pads and roller pens. The Economist reviewed it In need of a clean. The bill will reduce greenhouse gases 17% by 2020 and 83% by 2050, referenced to 2005 levels. One of the big winners was farmers who can now obtain carbon credits for planting nothing. (The smart money had already been purchasing farmland, driving up prices and I had wondered why. Now we know.) The bill is at odds with the State of California which requires total carbon footprint to be considered for biofuels such as ethanol. The House bill delays that consideration for at least five years.
Forbes tells that Green Bill's Biggest Test Awaits in the Senate. The biggest obstacles in the House were the farm and coal state proponents who feared the climate bill would jeopardize the ethanol or mining industries. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated the bill will increase the average household energy cost by $175 a year, opponents fear much more than that.
On of my favorites - Bloomberg tells that Big Oil's Answer to Carbon Law May be Fuel Imports. Refiners will have to purchase carbon credits for when motorists burn their petroleum. One consulting firm has estimated $1 in carbon costs for a measure of gasoline that would only be $0.10 for imported fuel. The American Petroleum Institute predicts one of the six U.S. refineries will close as a result of the new law.
It sounds like everybody is unhappy.
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