Republicans to Curtail EPA's Ability to Mitigate Climate Change?

In a series of stunning opening salvos the Republican-controlled House of Representatives is doing all it can to stop effective responses to human-caused global warming. Yesterday, it disbanded the Congressional Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming. Today it drafted three pieces of new legislation attempting to curtail the EPA's ability to regulate carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. These actions appeared to be a nod to the Republican Party's political supporters -- including fossil fuel industries and the Tea Party who have both been pushing for more lenient standards.

The initial legislation, submitted by Tennessee's Marsha Blackburn, claims the EPA has no authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions. This declaration flies in the face of a 2007 US Supreme Court Ruling that determined the EPA did, indeed, have such an authority. The second bill came from Ted Poe of Texas and was nothing more than an out-right attempt to de-fund any government agency involved in Cap and Trade. The third, put forward by Shelly Capito of West Virginia, sought to delay any attempt by the EPA to regulate greenhouse gasses by at least two years.

Republican action takes place as the EPA began to implement new rules to regulate power plants and refineries that came into effect this month. And as Republicans like Tim Philips and Darrell Issa are lining up to halt EPA action, Democrats like Barbara Boxer are pledging to keep Republicans from interfering. "When the new chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee says EPA cannot pass by regulation what Congress failed to pass by law, let me correct him: Congress passed our Clean Air laws, Republican Presidents signed them, and those are the laws the EPA is following," Boxer said. "Let me send a clear message to Chairman Upton... I want to tell him that I will use every tool available to me as chair of this committee and as senator from California to oppose any legislative effort that threatens the health, or safety, or well-being of the people of America - that includes his desire to stop the Environmental Protection Agency from carrying out its responsibilities under the Clean Air Act."

The ongoing Republican attack comes before a backdrop of massive and readily apparent climate change (to any who care to look). The North Pole is melting, the globe is warming, property insurers are raising rates and refusing to insure some areas as the risks of violent storms rises. And the weather itself has become more extreme with hundred year droughts and floods occurring with decadal frequency. But the push to curtail global warming runs up against the push to grow world economies by accessing more energy supplies and conflicts with the interests of energy suppliers fighting to dominate markets. Each year an oil or coal company delays nuclear, solar, wind, and vehicle to grid technology is another year of record profits. So the irony here is that the incentive to change is in the hands of those with the least power to change it. Public support and rational action are desperately needed to move the debate forward. And attempts to curtail the EPA are, at this point, horribly misdirected.