WRI: Obama administration has tools to meet ambitious greenhouse gas emissions targets Crawford, Jonathan . SNL Energy Power Daily ; Charlottesville (Feb 07, 2013). ProQuest document link ABSTRACT According to the WRI, standards to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from existing power plants account for about 48% of the total emissions gap between a business-as-usual scenario and the 2020 target. FULL TEXT While the U.S. is off-track in reaching President Barack Obama's ambitious 2020 climate goals, the administration has the tools necessary to put the nation on course to meet them, according to a report released Feb. 6 by the World Resources Institute. "The Obama administration can take meaningful steps to achieve reductions in the near term and can do so without any new congressional legislation," WRI senior associate and report author Nicholas Bianco said at a news briefing in Washington, D.C. "It can do so using existing authority that it has for agencies such as EPA, DOE, DOJ, and FAA." According to the WRI's report, "Can the U.S. Get There from Here? Using Existing Federal Laws and State Action to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions," the administration has "four major opportunities" to use existing federal authority to meet its pledge made in 2009 at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Copenhagen to cut greenhouse gas emission by 17% below 2005 levels by 2020. The first and most important regulatory action the Obama administration needs to take to meet its goal, WRI said, is to set greenhouse gas new source performance standards, or NSPS, on existing power plants, a move that the administration is widely expected to take after it finalizes standards for new power plants. Power plants make up about 40% of combustion emissions, or one-third of the total U.S. greenhouse gas inventory. According to the WRI, standards to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from existing power plants account for about 48% of the total emissions gap between a business-as-usual scenario and the 2020 target. In the "go-getter" scenario, under which the federal government takes more aggressive action, existing power plants would see their emissions reductions cut by 38% in 2021, as compared to 2012 levels, and by 74% in 2035. The WRI's analysis assumes that the standards for existing power plants will be in effect starting in 2018. The administration also could seek to reduce methane emissions from natural gas systems and improve energy efficiency in the residential, commercial and industrial sectors. Together, those actions could close the total emissions gap between the business-as-usual scenario and the 2020 target by nearly 20%, according to the WRI. Outside of the energy sector, the total emissions gap between the business-as-usual scenario and the 2020 target can be closed by another 23% through the phasing out of certain hydrofluorocarbons, which are used as refrigerants. Bianco noted that the WRI's report differed from others that showed the U.S. is about on track to meet emissions goals because the group considered the full range of greenhouse gas sources from the U.S., including nonenergy greenhouse gas emissions, which have been trending in the "wrong" direction. A key part of meeting the administration's goal will come from states. Bianco noted that 29 states have renewable PDF GENERATED BY SEARCH.PROQUEST.COM Page 1 of 3 energy standards, 20 states have energy efficiency standards, and 10 states are involved in cap-and-trade emissions reduction programs. "When we do the analysis what we find is that, not surprisingly, states by building off all the authorities they have ... can achieve significant reductions and significantly complement action by federal agencies. But alone state action is probably not going to be enough to get us there," Bianco said. By the WRI's account, under a business-as-usual scenario, the Obama administration's commitment is in jeopardy. The group contended that the power sector's recent greenhouse gas emission reductions, stemming from a sluggish economy and a shift to natural gas, are not projected to continue in the future. Also, methane emissions and other non-CO2 emissions from other sources, including from landfills, natural gas systems and coal mines as well as the expanded use of refrigerants, are projected to increase by about 18% above 2005 levels in 2020 and by 36% above 2005 levels in 2035. These emissions, according to Bianco, "paint a sobering picture" in which the U.S. will be 5% over 2005 levels in 2020 and less than 0.5% over 2005 levels by 2035. As for what approach that the EPA takes in regulating existing power plants, the WRI underscored that the Clean Air Act affords the agency and states wide latitude, and permits the use of energy efficiency standards, renewable energy, as well as demand-response, fuel-switching and trading programs. The WRI asserted that the costs of such regulations will be manageable, an assessment at odds with industry groups that suggest the programs could seriously undermine economic growth at a time when the nation can least afford it. "Of the four major categories, two of the categories pay for themselves very quickly -- energy efficiency and the gas system. The other two will cost a fraction of 1% of GDP and certainly less than the cost we will bear with climate change," WRI President Andrew Steer said. Not only will meeting its emissions targets give the U.S. more influence and credibility in global climate negotiations, Steer said, but taking action sooner rather than later also could help put a lid on costs. "It's clear that the longer the U.S. waits, the harder -- and more expensive -- it will be. The administration has the tools. We look forward to seeing what steps they take to shift the country to a low-carbon pathway," Steer said in a statement. DETAILS Subject: Emissions; Natural gas; Environmental protection; Energy policy; Greenhouse gases Location: United States--US Company / organization: Name: Environmental Protection Agency--EPA; NAICS: 924110 Publication title: SNL Energy Power Daily; Charlottesville Publication year: 2013 Publication date: Feb 07, 2013 Section: SNL Extra; Electric Generation Publisher: SNL Financial LC Place of publication: Charlottesville Country of publication: United Kingdom PDF GENERATED BY SEARCH.PROQUEST.COM Page 2 of 3 Publication subject: Energy Source type: Trade Journals Language of publication: English Document type: News ProQuest document ID: 1286844870 Document URL: http://nauproxy01.national.edu/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/128 6844870?accountid=36299 Copyright: Copyright SNL Financial LC Feb 07, 2013 Last updated: 2013-02-13 Database: ABI/INFORM Collection LINKS Check for full text Database copyright 2017 ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. 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