• New ENERGY STAR Products. EPA will play a key role in advancing the efficiency of all buildings, including federal facilities, by expanding beyond its existing partnerships and support the launch of 25 new ENERGY STAR product lines by 2000.

• PATH. As part of the Partnership for the Advancement of Technology in Housing (PATH) initiative, EPA will implement a nationwide ENERGY STAR Home Improvement program. This would deliver consumer-based technical tools for identifying what consumers/homeowners can do to reduce the energy used in their homes, improving the comfort level and lowering utility bills with less impact on the environment. Home owners can potentially reduce their energy bills by $400 annually.

⚫ ENERGY STAR Buildings Label. In commercial buildings, EPA will be able to expand beyond its existing partnerships and sign up 2,000 additional small business and school partners in 2000. The ENERGY STAR Buildings label, a critical benchmarking tool, will be rolled out for several commercial building types. This tool will continue to be developed to meet the needs of other buildings types and by the end of 2000 EPA expects to see more than 300 commercial buildings with the ENERGY STAR Label.

• Federal Energy Efficiency. EPA will play a key role in advancing the efficiency of the federal government. EPA will enhance the ability of the federal government to procure energy efficient products as well as assist agencies in benchmarking and labeling their high performing buildings.

• Million Solar Roofs. EPA will also support DOE and the Million Solar Roofs Initiative by working with partners to use renewable energy applications where cost-effective. Emissions reductions from this initiative will exceed 7.9 MMTCE (29 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent) annually by 2010.

The Industrial Sector

There are substantial opportunities for greenhouse gas emissions reductions in the Industrial Sector. By 2000, EPA's programs in the industrial sector will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 37.9 MMTCE (140 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent) annually. With additional funding, EPA working with DOE and other agencies, will expand existing programs as well as introduce new initiatives working with American business to achieve the goal of doubling the rate of energy efficiency investments in industry between now and 2010. Combined with partnerships to reduce the emissions of potent greenhouse gases such as methane and HFCs, administration efforts and partnerships with the industrial sector have the potential to reduce U.S. emissions by 140 MMTCE (513 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent) by 2010. EPA will work to advance the following initiatives:

• Industry Consultations. The President has invited industries to work with the Federal govemment to take actions to meet voluntary reduction targets. EPA will take a lead role in support of the industry consultative process for a number of important US industry sectors. EPA → is working with key energy intensive industries, such as cement, chemicals, steel, petroleum, iron and steel, pulp and paper, airlines, and food processing. The work required to support successful consultations includes: identifying "stretch goals" for reducing emissions over the next decade including detailed technical work on greenhouse gas inventories, analysis of future emissions baselines, analysis of options for reducing emissions, and goal negotiation and review.

• Early Action. In addition to supporting the industry consultation process, EPA will continue to work with key energy intensive industries as they take actions to meet voluntary reduction targets. In 2000, EPA will expand its work with these industries.

Combined Heat and Power Initiative. A combined heat and power initiative will play a key role in achieving substantial carbon reductions in 2010. This initiative could reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40 MMTCE (146 million tons carbon dioxide equivalent) by 2010-the equivalent of eliminating 40 million cars from U.S. roadways - by doubling the capacity of U.S. combined heat and power systems employed by commercial, industrial, and institutional buildings, and in communities throughout the U.S. EPA, working with DOE, will identify and eliminate the regulatory and institutional barriers that are currently preventing more rapid dissemination of this technology.

Climate Wise. EPA's Climate Wise Program will use increased funding to expand work with individual partner companies to achieve reductions of nearly 50 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent and savings of $1.6 billion per year by the year 2010. Climate Wise Sector Compacts have already been successful in the Cement Industry; involving more than 60% of the cement industry in a comprehensive effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Climate Wise will expand this effort with a goal of comprising half of the pharmaceuticals, food processing and steel industries in the year 2000. Climate Wise will work with the private sector to develop and create a market for products whose emissions have been offset or neutralized through use of energy efficiency, use of renewable power, carbon sequestration, or energy efficient projects conducted at local schools or other municipal centers. Climate Wise is also working with key partners to make the purchase or generation of renewable power a key element of their Action Plans over the next five years.

• Stewardship Programs for the Reduction of Potent Greenhouse Gases. EPA will expand its programs to reduce the more potent greenhouse gases, including methane, HFCs, PFCs, and SF6, to deliver larger cost-effective greenhouse gas emissions. For example, EPA will further expand the partnership with the magnesium industry to reduce the emissions of SF. In 2000 EPA will bring the total number of partnerships with the magnesium industry up to 13 partners, representing all of U.S. primary production and about half of the U.S. diecasting industry. EPA will also secure SF6 emissions reductions in the electric power sector by adding 15 new partnerships in 2000 to the SF6 Electric Power System Voluntary Partnership launched in 1998. The Voluntary Aluminum Industrial Partnership (VAIP) will continue to deliver reductions and by the year 2000, VAIP participants will reduce the industry's emissions of PFCs by an estimated 45 percent.

The Transportation Sector

With increased funding, EPA will accelerate its efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector particularly in the Partnership For a New Generation of Vehicles (PNGV) and in applying modified versions of PNGV engine technology to trucks. This increase will enable EPA to greatly accelerate the PNGV and expand the process to trucks. EPA will accelerate its program to develop an optimized renewable alcohol-fueled engine that can simultaneously achieve high efficiency and low carbon, particulate, and NOx levels. EPA also will help initiate and participate in the development of a new generation of heavy truck production vehicles, to transfer PNGV engine technology from methanol to petroleum fuels, and to initiate work to design and build a low emission

diesel combustion engine.

Increased funding will allow EPA to expand its work with state and local decision-makers to develop and implement transportation improvements that reduce the growth in vehicle travel, emissions, and congestion. EPA's Transportation Partners Program will expand its existing network of more than 340 companies, community organizations, and local governments to implement VMT reduction strategies which will account for reducing 3.5 MMTCĚ (13 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent) annually in the year 2000.

The Transportation Partners network, including both local and national partners, will expand upon its existing efforts in reducing greenhouse emissions and congestion through promoting the restoration of communities, collaboration among neighboring communities, and expanded public involvement. Transportation Partners will work strategically to take advantage of new provisions in the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21), including the Transportation and Community and System Preservation Pilot Program, to further reduce emissions by encouraging better transportation decisions that help create more livable communities.

EPA's Transportation Partners Program will also work with the EPA's Climate Wise Program to implement Commuter Choice and fleet efficiency programs with corporations nationwide. Commuter Choice allows corporations to provide employees with new environmentally friendly options for commuting to work, thus reducing emissions in addition to saving energy.

Carbon Removal

Providing funding for carbon removal will allow EPA to develop incentives to increase carbon storage on agricultural and forest lands while improving soil quality, reducing soil erosion, and enhancing other environmental and conservation goals. EPA will continue efforts to fully account for carbon sequestration in the U.S. greenhouse gas inventory to enable these activities to be recognized internationally, and will accelerate efforts to promote the use of livestock-based fertilizer products and more efficient use of nutrients from all sources.

International Capacity Building

In 2000 and beyond, work on International Capacity Building will play a critical role in a successful climate protection strategy. EPA will expand cooperation to an additional six key developing countries, which had total CO2 emissions of approximately 6 billion metric tonnes in 1996. These countries' CO2 emissions are estimated to be 10 billion metric tonnes in 2010. EPA's goal is to promote actions that reduce projected greenhouse gas levels in these targeted countries by at least 5 percent by 2010- or 135 MMTCE avoided annually. General emphasis will be on: local environmental benefits of greenhouse gas mitigation and sequestration; financial benefits of participating in global greenhouse gas markets; economic opportunities in restructuring; improved access to clean technologies; and vulnerabilities to climate change. In addition, EPA will seek to improve international compliance systems and enforcement.

State and Local Governments

In 2000, EPA will provide additional support to states and localities to help conduct analyses of the co-benefits of greenhouse gas mitigation, state carbon sequestration opportunities, and climate change policy impacts on state economies. In addition EPA will support state and local efforts to implement and expand promising policy options identified by states in their greenhouse gas

mitigation plans; conduct regional assessments and state-level case studies of climate change impacts and adaptation options, and work with stakeholders to develop and implement adaptation measures to increase resilience to climate variability.

4.4 Program Authorities

EPA's climate change programs are designed to capitalize on opportunities to deploy technology more rapidly through the marketplace, technologies that will save consumers and organizations money on their energy bills. The primary statutory authorities for these programs are the following: Clean Air Act, 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq; Clean Water Act, 33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq; Solid Waste Disposal Act, 42 U.S.C. 6901 et seq; Pollution Prevention Act of 1990, 42 U.S.C. 13101 et seq; National Environmental Policy Act, 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq; Global Climate Protection Act of 1987, 15 U.S.C. 2901, and; Federal Technology Transfer Act, 15 U.S.C. 3710a.

These programs support and are consistent with on-going international commitments made by the United States under the Framework Convention on Climate Change (signed by President Bush and ratified by the United States Senate in 1992). The programs are entirely voluntary and involve no binding regulations. They are designed to speed up the deployment of energy efficient technologies in the marketplace, mainly by providing consumers and businesses with reliable information on how these technologies can save money while reducing greenhouse gas emissions and other forms of pollution.

The United States signed the Kyoto Protocol in November of 1998. For the U.S. to be subject to the commitments in the Protocol, the Constitution requires the United States Senate to give its advice and consent. The Kyoto Protocol has not entered into force, and has not been ratified by the Senate.

Most of the programs described in this report began prior to the Kyoto Protocol which was agreed to on December 10, 1997, some began as early as 1990, and have been consistently funded and supported by Congress since then. Other programs simply extend the successful models established by earlier programs to take advantage of additional energy saving, pollution prevention opportunities elsewhere in the economy. With the exception of certain refinements and improvements reflecting experience and the specific challenges of new economic sectors, all of the programs are consistent with the Administration's original 1993 Climate Change Action Plan (CCAP). EPA will continue to implement these extremely successful programs, saving consumers and businesses billions of dollars while reducing greenhouse gas emissions and other forms of pollution. EPA will not implement the Kyoto Protocol until and unless it has been ratified by the Senate.

5.0 PROGRAM BY PROGRAM DESCRIPTIONS

5.1 ENERGY STAR® PRODUCTS

energy

The ENERGY STAR® Products program is a voluntary, public-private partnership that helps bring high-efficiency consumer and office products into U.S. homes and offices. Administered by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Energy (DOE), the program allows manufacturers of key energyefficient products to promote their products with an 'ENERGY STAR® label, giving consumers and businesses the ability to easily identify products that save energy and money and help the environment. EPA estimates that in 1998, products bearing the ENERGY STAR label prevented emissions equal to 3.3 million metric tons of carbon equivalent (MMTCE) - the equivalent of more than 3 million automobiles - and saved consumers more than $1.4 billion. In 2010, the full program is expected to prevent emissions of 84 million metric tons of carbon dioxide and generate cost savings of $10 billion.

SING THE EARTH SAVING YOUR MONEY

Overcoming Market Barriers to Energy Efficiency

Energy use in homes and businesses accounts for 35% of all U.S. emissions of carbon dioxide and 38% of nitrogen oxides. Studies by DOE indicate that the United States could reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 20% by 2010 simply by investing in existing, proven, and cost-effective energy-efficiency technology.

However, both consumers and businesses often lack objective information on energy-efficient products or are dissuaded from buying them due to competing and confusing energy efficiency claims or their higher purchase price (despite the long-term savings they afford). ENERGY STAR® Products seeks to overcome these market barriers and provide consumers and businesses with the standardized, reliable information they need to invest in long-term energy cost savings. The program also works with lenders to provide financing packages that overcome the higher initial purchase price of energy-efficient products.

Wide and Growing Participation

More than 25 categories of ENERGY STAR® products are offered, ranging from computers to refrigerators to central air conditioning units. The number of ENERGY STAR-qualified models across these products has grown to 3,400. Recent additions to the partnership include TV and VCR manufacturers and window manufacturers. Products now bearing the ENERGY STAR® label include:

Appliances: Dishwashers, refrigerators, room air-conditioning units, clothes washers

Office Equipment: Computers, monitors, copiers, fax machines, printers, scanners

Residential Heating and Cooling Equipment: Boilers, central air-conditioning, fumaces, heat pumps, thermostats

•· Home Electronics: Televisions, VCRs, TV/VCR combination units

· Windows: Residential windows, doors, skylights

· Other Products: Exit signs, insulation, home lamps and lighting fixtures, transformers

20 utilities across the United States are now using the ENERGY STAR® label to promote energy-efficient products in their own service areas.