110 HR 5575 IH: Moratorium on Uncontrolled Power U.S. House of Representatives 2008-03-11 text/xml EN Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.

I 110th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 5575 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES March 11, 2008 Mr. Waxman (for himself and Mr. Markey) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce A BILL To require new coal-fired electric generating units to use state-of-the-art control technology to capture and permanently sequester carbon dioxide emissions, and for other purposes.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Moratorium on Uncontrolled Power Plants Act of 2008.

2.

Moratorium

(a)

CO2 sequestration required

Effective upon the date of enactment of this Act, no permitting authority shall issue a permit for a proposed new coal-fired electric generating unit under the Clean Air Act, unless the permit requires the unit to use state-of-the-art control technology to capture and permanently sequester carbon dioxide emissions from such unit. (b)

Duration of moratorium

This moratorium shall apply until such time as a comprehensive program to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases is in effect.

3.

Greenhouse gas emission allowances

(a)

Allowances

No new coal-fired electric generating unit that— (1)commences construction after the date of introduction of this Act; and (2)does not install and operate state-of-the-art control technology to control carbon dioxide emissions from such unit; shall receive greenhouse gas emission allowances free of charge or at any price less than the market price under any future program to address global warming adopted by Congress or the Environmental Protection Agency.(b)

Other sources

Nothing shall be implied from this section with respect to the potential allocation of allowances to any source not barred from receiving allowances by the previous sentence.

4.

Definitions

For the purposes of this Act: (1)

Administrator

The term Administrator means the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. (2)

Coal-fired electric generating unit

The term Coal-fired electric generating unit means an electric utility unit that uses coal, petroleum coke, coal refuse, or a synthetic gas derived from coal either exclusively, in any combination together, or in any combination with other fuels in any amount. (3)

Comprehensive program

The term Comprehensive program means a program adopted by Congress or the Environmental Protection Agency that requires immediate and significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions across the U.S. economy and increases the reductions over time to reduce U.S. greenhouse gas emissions to 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050. (4)

Greenhouse gas

The term greenhouse gas means— (A)carbon dioxide; (B)methane; (C)nitrous oxide; (D)hydrofluorocarbons; (E)perfluorocarbons; (F)sulfur hexafluoride; or (G)any other anthropogenically-emitted gas that the Administrator, after notice and comment, determines contributes to global warming to a non-negligible degree. (5)

State-of-the-art control technology

The term state-of-the-art control technology means technology that captures not less than 85 percent of the total carbon dioxide produced by the unit on an annual average basis and permanently sequesters that carbon dioxide in a geological formation approved by the Administrator in a manner that prevents its later release into the atmosphere.