President Barack Obama told the nation that he's prepared to "act before it's too late" and combat climate change through the White House if Congress is unwilling to lead.
Given that lawmakers couldn't agree on a landmark cap-and- trade agreement even when Democrats controlled both the Senate and the House, congressional action this year is unlikely. The administration should move forward on its own.
Fortunately, there are many ways to fight climate change without legislation, chiefly by enacting carbon-pollution limits for new and, more importantly, existing power plants. Stricter energy-efficiency standards for buildings, appliances and other equipment can also make a meaningful dent in carbon output, along with continuing the U.S. government's own effort to shrink its carbon footprint.
Over the past two decades, the United States has made significant progress in cutting carbon emissions. And last year, pollution from energy use fell to its lowest level since 1992, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Still, the U.S. accounts for about 19 percent of global emissions — emissions that are causing global temperature increases, rising seas, destructive droughts, floods and hurricanes, according to a government advisory panel report released last month.
The Environmental Protection Agency has already taken a critical first step in restricting power-plant emissions, proposing to limit new generators to 1,000 pounds of carbon dioxide per megawatt-hour.
While the rule will effectively ban new proposals for coal plants, it is expected to do little to reduce emissions. Utilities are already shifting from coal to cheaper natural gas.
The only way to get significant reductions is to limit emissions from the more than 500 existing coal-fired power plants, which spew some 2.2 billion tons of carbon dioxide a year, more than from any other U.S. source. Such a move would not be easy, given steep resistance from the coal industry and its many congressional protectors, who say carbon limits would drive up electricity prices, hinder the U.S. economy and make the electric grid less reliable.
It is possible, however, to take industry's concerns into account. The Natural Resources Defense Council has proposed setting individual state budgets for carbon emissions, with coal plants getting a higher allotment - 1,500 pounds of carbon per megawatt-hour - than natural gas. The EPA could work with states to set limits on total carbon emissions and then let local governments figure out how to get there - a model that's already in place for ozone and other pollutants. And in crafting the rules, the agency could give the power industry a seat at the table, as it did when it worked with carmakers to draft fuel-efficiency standards for automobiles.