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ERMUSR MISC MEMO 05-13-2008
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ERMUSR MISC MEMO 05-13-2008
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Tomorrow represents -- representatives of the world's major economies will gather in Paris to discuss climate <br />change. Here in Washington, the debate about climate change is intensifying. Today, I'll share some views on <br />this important issue to advance discussions both at home and abroad. <br />Climate change involves complicated science and generates vigorous debate. Many are concerned about the <br />effect of climate change on our environment. Many are concerned about the effect of climate change policies on <br />our economy. I share these concerns, and I believe they can be sensibly reconciled. <br />Over the past seven years, my administration has taken a rational, balanced approach to these serious <br />challenges. We believe we need to protect our environment. We believe we need to strengthen our energy <br />security. We believe we need to grow our economy. And we believe the only way to achieve these goals is <br />through continued advances in technology. So we've pursued a series of policies aimed at encouraging the rise <br />of innovative as well as more cost-effective clean energy technologies that can help America and developing <br />nations reduce greenhouse gases, reduce our dependence on oil, and keep our economies vibrant and strong for <br />decades to come. <br />I have put our nation on a path to slow, stop, and eventually reverse the growth of our greenhouse gas <br />emissions. In 2002, I announced our first step: to reduce America's greenhouse gas intensity by 18 percent <br />through 2012. I'm pleased to say that we remain on track to meet this goal even as our economy has grown 17 <br />percent. <br />As we take these steps here at home, we're also working internationally on a rational path to addressing global <br />climate change. When I took office seven years ago, we faced a problem. A number of nations around the world <br />were preparing to implement the flawed approach of Kyoto Protocol. In 1997, the United States Senate took a <br />look at the Kyoto approach and passed a resolution opposing this approach by a 95 to nothing vote. <br />The Kyoto Protocol would have required the United States to drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The <br />impact of this agreement, however, would have been to limit our economic growth and to shift American jobs to <br />other countries -- while allowing major developing nations to increase their emissions. Countries like China and <br />India are experiencing rapid economic growth -- and that's good for their people and it's good for the world. <br />This also means that they are emitting increasingly large quantities of greenhouse gases -- which has <br />consequences for the entire global climate. <br />So the United States has launched -- and the G8 has embraced --anew process that brings together the <br />countries responsible for most of the world's emissions. We're working toward a climate agreement that <br />includes the meaningful participation of every major economy -- and gives none a free ride. <br />In support of this process, and based on technology advances and strong new policy, it is now time for the U.S. <br />to look beyond 2012 and to take the next step. We've shown that we can slow emissions growth. Today, I'm <br />announcing a new national goal: to stop the growth of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by 2025. <br />To reach this goal, we will pursue an economy-wide strategy that builds on the solid foundation that we have in <br />place. As part of this strategy, we worked with Congress to pass energy legislation that specifies a new fuel <br />economy standard of 35 miles per gallon by 2020, and requires fuel producers to supply at least 36 billion <br />gallons of renewable fuel by 2022. This should provide an incentive for shifting to a new generation of fuels <br />like cellulosic ethanol that will reduce concerns about food prices and the environment. <br />We also mandated new objectives for the coming decade to increase the efficiency of lighting and appliances. <br />We're helping states achieve their goals for increasing renewable power and building code efficiency by sharing <br />new technologies and providing tax incentives. We're working to implement a new international agreement that <br />
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