ACC: Congress Must Delay EPA Stationary Source Regulations, Continue Its Work On Greenhouse Gas Reduction Policies
Lawmakers Should Assert Authority over Climate Policy, Pass Rockefeller Bill
The U.S. Senate is expected to schedule a vote on legislation introduced by Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) that would suspend U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulation of stationary sources of greenhouse gases for two years.
American Chemistry Council (ACC) President and CEO Cal Dooley issued the following statement:
"It's clear that lawmakers have concerns about the negative impacts of EPA regulating stationary sources of greenhouse gases independent of greenhouse gas emission reduction policies developed by Congress. We share those concerns. EPA's final plans for stationary source regulation, as laid out in the ‘tailoring rule' released last month, will cause various forms of uncertainty that will stifle investment and run counter to the nation's goals of economic recovery, clean energy development and GHG emission reduction. We believe Congress must assert its authority over policy development and pass legislation to suspend EPA's stationary source regulations. We urge lawmakers to consider Senator Rockefeller's bill as a top priority.
Under EPA's plans, businesses will face uncertainty when it comes to investing in new facilities and making energy efficiency or other modifications to existing facilities. They will also face permitting and technical uncertainty given that states lack the resources to review and issue permits and that their legislatures must amend state laws to conform with the federal tailoring rule. What's more, ‘Best Available Control Technology,' which facilities must understand to know how they must modify their facilities, remains undefined.
Senator Rockefeller has offered a sensible, measured approach that will allow Congress to continue its work developing energy and GHG reduction policies while preventing the economic and environmental harms that could accompany EPA's pathway for stationary source regulation. We also commend the leadership of those in Congress who, like Senator Rockefeller, understand the consequences of EPA's actions and the need for the legislative branch to develop a better path forward.
The chemical industry has not waited for Congress to act. Our GHG emissions fell 23 percent in absolute terms between 1990 and 2009, excluding emissions from purchased electricity (15 percent if purchased electricity emissions are included) – reductions that would have exceeded the Kyoto Protocol target."
SOURCE: American Chemistry Council