THE US will 鈥渓ead by example to reduce our carbon footprint鈥�, President Barack Obama pledged at the G20 summit in London last week. But back in Washington, the message from Congress was 鈥渘ot so fast鈥�.
Obama鈥檚 plan to reduce US greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2020 relies on a cap-and-trade system, in which emitters will be charged for the carbon dioxide they put into the air. The cash raised 鈥� tens of billions of dollars 鈥� will help fund 鈥済reen鈥� jobs to revive the US economy by developing renewable energy and a smart grid to deliver that power.
Last week, when Congress began considering the laws necessary for cap-and-trade, Democrats in coal-mining Midwestern states came out in opposition. 鈥淭he odds are [the legislation] will slip to 2010,鈥� says Eileen Claussen, president of the Pew Center on Global Climate Change in Arlington, Virginia.
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In London, G20 leaders said they would leave a deal on a successor to the Kyoto protocol to December鈥檚 Copenhagen talks. The big question now is what Obama will be able to offer. Bill Clinton signed at Kyoto, but Congress blocked the protocol.