Climate Change Plan B

This article is a stub. Please help Climate Lab by expanding it. (April 2010)

Climate Change Plan B refers to the bipartisan proposal to address climate change drafted by Senators Joe Lieberman (I, CT), Lindsey Graham (R,SC), and John Kerry (D, MA). The proposal was released publicly through a joint press conference on December 10, 2009.

The main component of the proposal aims to cut the cap and trade approach to reducing carbon emissions, which allows facilities to buy and trade pollution credits¹ . The new legislation would instead apply different carbon controls to individual sectors of the economy rather than setting a national emissions standard for all businesses² . Three major sources of emissions would be specifically targeted: electric utilities, transportation, and industry. Power plants would face an overall cap on emissions that would become more rigid over time and motor fuel may be subjected to a carbon tax that would enable the US to begin electrifying the transportation sector³ . Nuclear power is identified as an integral part of the strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions; the proposal stresses the need for federal assistance for the construction of nuclear power plants and training of nuclear workers⁴ .

The proposal also addresses energy independence through the expansion of oil and gas offshore drilling, development of clean energy technologies, and investments in energy efficiency. It aims to commit significant funds towards the development of clean coal technology and carbon sequestration and storage projects at coal fired utilities, ensuring the coal has a future in United States energy resources⁵ .

The bipartisan effort has garnered both positive and negative responses. Supporters of the proposal include President Obama, who deemed it a “positive development toward reaching a strong, unified, and bipartisan agreement in the US Senate.”⁶ Conversely, Senator John McCain (R, AZ) derided the bill as a ‘joke’, citing its failure to include plans for the disposal of toxic waste generated by new nuclear power plants⁷ .