WASHINGTON, March 9 (Xinhuanet) -- The US Senate's Environment and Public Works Committee came into a deadlock Wednesday over a Bush administration plan on cutting air pollution from coal-fired powerplants, factories and refineries.

    The bill met a tie vote of 9-9 in the Republican-controlled committee after weeks of negotiations. A bare majority is needed to recommend it to the full Senate.

    Committee members from both parties said they hoped a compromise could be reached later this year.

    The bill introduced new changes to the 1970 Clean Air Act that was last amended in 1990. Opponents say the changes would weaken the Act, demanding a plan to regulate carbon dioxide emissions linked to climate change.

    In the bill named "Clear Skies," President George W. Bush proposed to reduce nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide and mercury in the air by allowing the utility industry to trade pollution rights among themselves within overall caps set by the government.

    The bill "uses the power of free markets to reduce power plant pollution by 70 percent without disrupting the energy supply or raising electricity prices," Bush said in a speech in Columbus, Ohio. Enditem