WASHINGTON, June 26 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. House of Representatives on Friday narrowly passed a bill aimed at capping and reducing U.S. greenhouse gas emissions and lowering the country's dependence on foreign oil.
The bill, named the American Clean Energy and
Security Act, was passed by a vote of 219-212 after hours of bitter debate. It
calls for a 17-percent reduction in emissions of heat-trapping gases from the
2005 levels by 2020 and an 83-percent reduction by 2050.
It establishes a cap-and-trade program to control
climate-altering emissions, dictates an increase in the use of renewable energy
sources, and sets new efficiency standards for buildings, lighting and
industrial facilities.
Democrats hailed the legislation as historic, while
Republicans said it would damage the economy without solving the nation's energy
woes.
It is "the most important energy and environmental
legislation in the history of our country," said Representative Edward Markey of
Massachusetts. "It sets a new course for our country, one that steers us away
from foreign oil and towards a path of clean American energy."
However, House Republican leader John Boehner called
the measure "the biggest job-killing bill that has ever been on the floor of the
House of Representatives."
U.S. President Barack Obama praised the House of
Representatives for passing the legislation, saying "it's a bold and necessary
step that holds the promise of creating new industries and millions of new jobs,
decreasing our dangerous dependence on foreign oil."
"Now it's up to the Senate to take the next step," he
added.
The U.S. Senate is expected to try to write its own
version of a climate change bill, but prospects for this year were uncertain.
WASHINGTON, June 26
(Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack Obama said Friday that he would like to see
the United States play a greater leadership in climate change issue.
At a White House news conference after meeting with German
Chancellor Angela Merkel, Obama said some European nations have moved faster
than the United States to combat global warming. Full story
WASHINGTON, June 23 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack
Obama on Tuesday called on members of the House to pass a climate bill aimed at
capping and reducing U.S. greenhouse gas emissions and lowering the country's
dependence on foreign oil.
Obama told reporters at a midday news conference that the
legislation would "finally spark a clean energy transformation." Full story
