Environmental Defense Praises Sen. Obama's Push for Low-Carbon Fuels

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:

Tony Kreindler, 202-572-3378 or 202-210-5791

(Washington – May 7, 2007) Environmental Defense President Fred Krupp today applauded Sen. Barack Obama for proposing legislation that would help promote America’s energy independence while protecting the climate by expanding the use of low-carbon fuels.

The bill introduced today would establish a national baseline for greenhouse gas emissions from transportation fuels and set an initial target of reducing emissions by at least 15 percent over the next two decades.

“Senator Obama’s bill could be the starting gun in the race for low-carbon fuels,” Krupp said. “We can’t pursue energy independence without looking at all of our energy options, and we can’t have national security unless we fix the climate problem.”

Senator Obama has already cosponsored the Lieberman-McCain bill (S. 280), and the Sanders-Boxer bill (S. 309) that would cap greenhouse gas emissions. Promoting low-carbon fuels within that context is an important component of meeting an emissions cap, and the bill introduced today puts us on a path toward that goal.

“This bill is a step toward making sure that all fuels can be part of the climate solution. We look forward to working with Senator Obama and others in the months ahead on refining the language in the bill so as to lead to maximum reductions, and work well with an overall cap on greenhouse gas emissions.” Krupp said.

Greenhouse gas emissions from traditional gasoline use in the transportation sector accounts for roughly 30 percent of global warming pollution in the U.S.