Sen. Murkowski Proposes Disastrous EPA Amendment on Behalf of Dity Energy

A Senator from Alaska is moving to sabotage US efforts to create meaningful climate legislation before Copenhagen.

Online petitions are springing up

Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska has proposed an amendment to EPA’s fiscal 2010 spending bill that would strip EPA of the ability to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from coal plants and polluting industries.  Such an amendment could seriously undermine the US’ leverage in negotiating a sufficient climate treaty in Copenhagen.

On Monday, 32 environmental groups sent a letter urging the Senate to reject Murkowski’s draft amendment. Among the letters’ contentions:

“The Murkowski amendment seeks to exempt from the Clean Air Act the biggest global

warming polluters. The amendment would let Big Oil, dirty coal, and other big polluters off the

hook for their carbon dioxide emissions, undermining the Clean Air Act’s protections for public

health and the environment. These sources are responsible for the lion’s share of U.S. carbon

dioxide emissions.

The Murkowski amendment delays the transition to clean energy. Exempting the biggest

sources of carbon dioxide from the Clean Air Act will delay our nation’s transition to efficiency,

solar, wind, and other sources of clean energy – sources that won’t run out, will only grow

cheaper over time, don’t harm our environment or public health, and will create millions of

clean energy jobs.”

Lisa Jackson, Administrator of the EPA, and some Senators have indicated that they must fight this amendment in any way they can. “I don’t know that we can stop [Murkowski] from offering her amendment,” said Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) “We may want to table it. We may want to try and defeat it. We may want to offer a second degree. All of the above. Or one of the above.”  However, conservative Democrats are not as decided in their opposition to the amendment.  The vote could be close.  Online petitions are circulating right now, including:

CREDO: Tell the Senate: Hands off the EPA

1Sky: URGENT: Call your Senators and tell them to vote NO on the Murkowsky amendment

For a plain-English explanation of the role of the EPA in regulating carbon emissions, please read David Robert’s article in Grist, “Everything you always wanted to know about EPA greenhouse gas regulations, but were afraid to ask.”