Adirondack Council Thanks U.S.E.P.A. for New Carbon Rules
Adirondack Council Thanks U.S.E.P.A. for New Carbon Rules
Measure Moves Nation, World Closer to Greenhouse Gas Solution
For more information:
John Sheehan
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518-432-1770 ofc
For immediate release: Tuesday, June 3, 2014
ELIZABETHTOWN, N.Y. – The Adirondack Park’s largest environmental organization today praised the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) new rules requiring cuts in carbon pollution from electric power plants in an effort to curb the nation’s emissions that lead to global climate change.
“We are very pleased to see the EPA move us toward a national solution for the control of carbon emissions. This brings us another step closer to a global solution,” said Adirondack Council Executive Director William C. Janeway. “The Adirondack Park has a lot to lose in a rapidly warming climate. Climate change threatens the Park’s environment and its economy.”
Janeway noted that the Adirondack Park contains one of the coldest climates in the lower 48 states. This allows plants and wildlife to live in the Adirondack Mountains that normally survive only in the boreal forests of Canada and Siberia. Consistently warmer weather is expected to shrink that suitable habitat northward and upslope.
In the Adirondack Park, winter sports are still a major component of the economy. They too would be less viable in a warmer climate. Recently, strong storms and flooding related to rising temperatures have wiped out roads and destroyed buildings here in locations that have not flooded in 300 years. In addition, the cuts in carbon pollution needed to meet the new standard will require actions that reduce air pollutants that make people sick.
“It is unfortunate that Congress couldn’t reach an agreement on curbing carbon emissions,” said Janeway. “That makes it all the more important that the President and the EPA have recognized this threat and are taking action to protect future generations.”
The proposed federal carbon reductions use the same basic approach as the nine-state Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), in which New York is a participant. The RGGI rules allow states to determine the best way to meet the reduction targets, rather than dictating a specific method that may not be well suited to each state’s economy or regulatory agencies and rules. The proposed national rule does the same.
“The key is to protect the environment without harming the economy,” Janeway said. “This new rule can accomplish that task.”
Janeway noted that the Adirondack Council has been an adviser to New York State officials who oversee the state’s participation in the RGGI carbon program. The Council also purchases carbon allowances from the RGGI trading program and retires them so they cannot be used to create carbon smokestack pollution. Click here for more information.
The Adirondack Council is privately funded, not-for-profit organization whose mission is to ensure the ecological integrity and wild character of New York’s six-million-acre Adirondack Park. The Council envisions an Adirondack Park comprised of core wilderness areas, surrounded by working forests and farms, and vibrant rural communities. The Council carries out its mission and vision through research, education, advocacy and legal action. Adirondack Council members live in all 50 United States.
