President Bush's Six-Year Record On Addressing Climate Change

"First, we know the surface temperature of the earth is warming. … There is a natural greenhouse effect that contributes to warming. … Concentration of greenhouse gases, especially CO2, have increased substantially since the beginning of the industrial revolution.  And the National Academy of Sciences indicates that the increase is due in large part to human activity."

− President George W. Bush, 6/11/01

Today, Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Stephen Johnson, And NOAA Administrator Conrad Lautenbacher Will Hold A Press Conference To Discuss The Fourth Assessment Report Of The Intergovernmental Panel On Climate Change (IPCC). The press conference will take place at 10:00 a.m. in the Energy Department's Small Auditorium.

The Administration Is Committed To Addressing Climate Change. Background information on the Administration's actions to address climate change:

The Administration's Commitment: The President has set a target of cutting our greenhouse gas intensity by 18 percent through the year 2012 and his budgets have devoted nearly $29 billion to climate-related science, technology, international assistance, and incentive programs – more money than any other country.

Twenty In Ten Energy Plan: In the State of the Union Address, President Bush a nnounced a plan to reduce U.S. gasoline usage by 20 percent in the next ten years that will help confront climate change by stopping the projected growth of carbon dioxide emissions from cars, light trucks, and SUVs within 10 years. By 2017, the renewable fuel and fuel efficiency components of the plan could cut annual emissions from cars and light trucks by as much as 10 percent, about 175 million metric tons – equal to zeroing out the annual emissions of 26 million automobiles. The plan could cumulatively prevent the buildup of more than 600 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions.

Asia-Pacific Partnership On Clean Development And Climate: Launched the Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate, in concert with partners Australia , China , India , Japan , and South Korea , representing 50 percent of the world's economy. The Partnership is accelerating investment and opening markets for cleaner, more efficient technologies, goods, and services while fostering sustainable economic growth and poverty reduction. Nearly 100 programs and actions are underway in eight public-private task forces: aluminum, building and appliances, cement, cleaner fossil energy, coal mining, power generation and transmission, renewable energy and distributed generation, and steel.

Working With G-8 Leaders: Worked with G-8 leaders on a wide range of initiatives, including the 2005 launch of the G-8 Gleneagles Plan of Action for Climate Change, Clean Energy, and Sustainable Development, which encompasses more than 50 practical, results-oriented actions to address the interlinked issues of energy security and access, air pollution control, and climate change.

International Technology Partnerships: Launched and actively contributed to major international technology partnerships to share breakthroughs and advances in fusion, hydrogen, next-generation nuclear power, renewable energy, energy efficiency, capture and underground storage of carbon dioxide emissions, and profitable capture of methane emissions from coal mines, landfills, inefficient oil and gas systems, and agricultural operations.

Cooperation With Private Industry: Obtained specific commitments from 14 industrial sectors and the Business Roundtable, led by more than 100 major corporations, to address greenhouse gas emissions in partnership with the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Agency.

Advancing Lower Carbon, Clean Coal Technologies: Awarded nearly $1 billion in tax credits last year, and will award $650 million more this year, to help offset the cost of nearly $10 billion in total investment to build more than nine highly efficient, advanced coal projects in at least nine states, using technology that cuts emissions through efficiency and holds the promise of cost-effective carbon capture and storage. This experience will culminate in 2012 with the construction of the $1 billion FutureGen demonstration power plant, a public-private international partnership to build the world's first coal-fired power plant that produces electricity and hydrogen with nearly zero-emissions. The Administration is also pursuing large-scale tests in the United States  designed to advance carbon sequestration technologies which can have the potential to store more than 600 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide, the equivalent of more than 200 years of emissions from energy sources in the United States.

Methane To Markets Partnership: The United States and several major international partners formed the Methane to Markets Partnership, a new and innovative program to increase energy security, improve environmental quality, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions throughout the world. Under the Partnership, members will work in coordination with the private sector to share and expand the use of technologies to capture methane emissions that are now wasted in the course of industrial processes and use them as a new energy source.

New Source Review: Proposed reforms to the New Source Review (NSR) program to eliminate regulatory uncertainty for power plants, refineries, and manufacturing facilities that want to improve efficiency, pollution control, and reliability. In the power sector, NSR reform will allow immediate efficiency investments and significantly lower carbon dioxide emissions, even as the power plants invest about $50 billion over the next 15 years to cut their pollution to satisfy the new clean air regulations.