This was largely expected, but it's big news that the Environmental Protection Agency is readying to issue finally issue its finding that greenhouse-gas emissions endanger public health. Under the provisions of the Clean Air Act, this means that the EPA will be able to begin regulation carbon as a pollutant. In essence, this now gives the energy industry an easy way and a hard way to deal with carbon emissions. The easy way is the congressional process. There, they'll have local representatives and friendly senators willing to protect their interests. If that process breaks down, however, they'll face the hard way: Tight regulation by the capricious and unsympathetic bureaucrats who staff the EPA. Ed Markey put it bluntly: "Do you want the EPA to make the decision or would you like your congressman or senator to be in the room and drafting legislation? ... Industries across the country will just have to gauge for themselves how lucky they feel if they kill legislation." It's the "do ya feel lucky, punk?" theory of congressional pressure. Or, to put it slightly differently, it's the executive branch's version of the reconciliation process. If this can't go through the normal congressional order, then they'll use a tool that's much blunter and whose impacts are much harder to predict, but that's essentially immune to obstruction. MORE: Kate Sheppard has a good article outlining the likely next steps. Brad Plumer offers some analysis. For technical commentary, check out ClimateIntel's piece on the Implications Of Regulating CO2 as an NSR Pollutant.
