No one looks very convinced this is a good bill.

There are many varied reactions so far  to the American Power Act, the new energy bill presented on May 12. Analysis of it has also been pouring forth.   This bill is the Senate’s version of the Waxman-Markey energy/climate bill.  Everyone in the Obama administration and associated with the Obama administration is praising it, but many people outside it are not.   In a statement released by Kerry’s office, it was also disturbing to me just exactly who is backing this so-called climate bill:  General Electric; the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, T. Boone Pickens (tar sands developer and oil man); and others who aren’t exactly well-known  environmentalists.  According to Senator Kerry, oil industry executives like it too.  That should give anyone a few moments of worry.

Listening to the 31-minute clip of the announcement of this bill on CSPAN, I was not impressed.  I was more impressed with the hour-long version containing lots of testimonials and optimistic outlooks that I heard in the entire video, which I’ll be putting in a podcast soon so others can hear it (without downloading the 800 MB video on Sen. Kerry’s site).

Environmental groups that I respect the most are not impressed with this bill.  You can read many of these reactions here. Greenpeace’s reaction was this:

“We cannot support this bill unless the following elements change:
Inadequate Emissions Targets: The Nobel Prize-winning Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has shown that to avoid the worst impacts of global warming, the United States and other developed nations must achieve emissions cuts of 25-40 percent below 1990 levels by 2020 and 80-95 percent by 2050. But this legislation only sets the goal of reducing emissions by some 4 percent below 1990 levels by 2020. Rapid reductions in the short-term are critical to avoiding catastrophic impacts from global warming. With this weak start, it is clear that achieving the needed reductions would be impossible

Weakens the Clean Air Act: The bill strips authorities that the Environmental Protection Agency has to regulate emissions under the Clean Air Act and the states’ authority to set tougher emissions standards than the federal government. Money for Dirty technology: The bill includes financial incentives for, among other things, nuclear power, offshore oil and gas drilling, and coal fired energy. This includes billions for “clean coal” technology development, as well as free permits for heavy emitters like manufacturers, oil refiners, and merchant coal generators.

I agree with all but the inclusion of nuclear power, which is not dirty energy.  Natural gas emits CO2,  though.   350.org writes their  reaction to the bill, in part:

1) 350.org continues to focus on what’s scientifically required [that's what Obama promised us too, if you will remember]– The
American Power Act doesn’t meet the test of atmospheric science since thetargets are very weak, and the offsets mean even they won’t be met in time to prevent climate catastrophe.

2) If this is the best bill [...]