Errata for the Analysis of The Climate Change 1. On page 71, last paragraph, 7th sentence should read: "EPA has recently announced its intention to ban MTBE as a gasoline additive because of the past experiences with contamination of groundwater in many States; MTBE is made from methanol and a decline in MTBE used for blending in gasoline could negatively impact methanol production and fuel availability in the future when fuel cell methanol vehicles may be available." instead of: "MTBE is a precursor to methanol that is used to produce methanol, however EPA has recently announced its intention to ban MTBE as a gasoline additive because of the past experiences with contamination of groundwater in many States. (Change made on 5/01/2000) U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Report to the Senate Appropriations Committee Regarding EPA's Climate Change Activities February 24, 2000 Overview of EPA Climate Change Programs and Performance Measures Overall Program Performance and Effectiveness Through 1999 Performance Measures and Accomplishments by Key CCTI Program 3.3 Benefits of Requested Increased Funding by Key Program Accomplishments of the Green Lights Partnership Industry: Programs to Reduce High Global Warming Potential Gases Transportation: Partnership for a New Generation of Vehicles Executive Summary Introduction For a second year, Congress has requested additional information on EPA's climate change activities as part of EPA's annual budget justification. The report language included with the year 2000 VA, HUD and Independent Agencies Appropriations Act is as follows: "The Committee recognizes... that there are... longstanding programs which have goals and objectives that, if met, could have positive effects on energy use and the environment. The Committee does not intend to preclude these programs from proceeding, provided they have been funded and approved by Congress. To the extent future funding requests may be submitted which would increase funding for climate change activities prior to Senate consideration of the Kyoto Protocol (whether under the auspices of the Climate Change Technology Initiative or any other initiative), the Administration must do a better job of explaining the components of the programs, their anticipated goals and objectives, the justification for any funding increases, a discussion of how success will be measured, and a clear definition of how these programs are justified by goals and objectives independent of implementation of the Kyoto Protocol. The conferees expect these items to be included as part of the fiscal year 2000 budget submissions for all affected agencies... With regard to these submissions, the Committee expects all affected agencies to comply fully with the letter and spirit of the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993 (GPRA). The GAO is directed to prepare a report that evaluates the Agency's completed plan and submit its report to the Appropriations Committee 90 days after receipt of the Agency's plan." This report addresses the request of the Appropriations Committee as it relates to EPA's climate change activities. It also incorporates changes from EPA's 1999 report to Congress on Climate Change Activities in response to comments that the General Accounting Office (GAO) made on EPA's 1999 report.' 'GAO commented on EPA's report in a report entitled, Climate Change: Observations on EPA's April 1999 Climate Change Report. Overview of EPA Climate Change Programs EPA is meeting the United States' climate change objectives by working in partnership with business and other sectors to deliver multiple benefits - from cleaner air to lower energy bills - while improving overall scientific understanding of climate change and its potential consequences. In FY 2001, EPA expects to continue expanding on the significant accomplishments of its Climate Change Programs. The core of EPA's climate change efforts are government/industry partnership programs designed to capitalize on the tremendous opportunities consumers, businesses, and organizations have to make sound investments in efficient equipment and practices. Thousands of equipment purchases are made every day, and generally people buy the equipment that is the least costly and least efficient, thereby committing themselves to higher energy bills for ten and twenty years at a time, depending upon the life of the equipment. The opportunity to save on our nation's $500 billion annual energy bill over the next decade while reducing air pollution is tremendous. The opportunity to reduce greenhouse gases emissions is also large. We currently expect that more than half of the nation's greenhouse gas emissions in 2010 will come from equipment that we purchase between now and then. Current Programs Overcoming Barriers in the Marketplace Numerous studies document the potential for government programs and policies to spur greater Lack of Reliable Consumer Information. The ENERGY STAR® Low Incentive to Manufacturers for Efficiency R&D. Through Lack of Corporate Data. Due to the low cost of fuel, many companies do not even know how much energy they use in a year, let alone have a comprehensive view of the potential benefits of actions they could take to reduce energy use and emissions. The Climate Wise program, in addition to providing information on industrial energy efficiency opportunities, helps companies track and report corporate energy use and emissions |