by Jbs120309 h3 — December 7, 2009—The White House announced on November 25 that President Obama is offering a U.S. target for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the range of 17 percent below 2005 levels by 2020. The proposed target agrees with the limit set by climate legislation that has passed the U.S. House of Representatives, but the U.S. Senate is currently considering a bill that cuts GHG emissions to 20 percent below 2005 levels by 2020.
The White House noted that the final U.S. emissions target will ultimately fall in line with the climate legislation, once that legislation passes both houses of Congress and is approved by the president. In light of the president’s goal for an 83 percent reduction in GHG emissions by 2050, the pending legislation also includes a reduction in GHG emissions to 30 percent below 2005 levels by 2025 and to 42 percent below 2005 levels by 2030.
The White House also announced that President Obama will travel to Copenhagen on December 9 to participate in the United Nations climate change conference. A number of top White House officials and cabinet members will also attend the conference, including Energy Secretary Steven Chu. For the first time, the U.S. delegation will establish a U.S. Center at the conference, providing an interactive forum.
The U.S. Department of State has also established the “COP-15” Web site and a Facebook page to mark the event. The U.N. climate change conference is officially known as the 15th annual session of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, or COP-15 for short.
