[Senate Report 111-58]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


                                                       Calendar No. 125
111th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE
 1st Session                                                     111-58

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                       BLACK CARBON RESEARCH BILL

                                _______
                                

                 July 22, 2009.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

    Mrs. Boxer, from the Committee on Environment and Public Works, 
                        submitted the following



                              R E P O R T

                         [To accompany S. 849]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Environment and Public Works, to which was 
referred the bill (S. 849) to require the Administrator of the 
Environmental Protection Agency to conduct a study on black 
carbon emissions, reports favorably thereon without amendment, 
and recommends that the bill do pass.

                      PURPOSES OF THE LEGISLATION

    S. 849 would require the Administrator of the Environmental 
Protection Agency to conduct a study of black carbon emissions.

                    GENERAL STATEMENT AND BACKGROUND

    Scientists have found that black carbon, a key component of 
soot, likely plays a much larger role in global warming than 
previously estimated. Soot is also part of the mix of particles 
that contribute significantly to air pollution related illness 
and mortality.
    Black carbon is produced from the incomplete combustion of 
biomass, biofuels, and fossil fuels, particularly diesel. Black 
carbon absorbs solar radiation, warming the atmosphere. Because 
black carbon's atmospheric life span is short, only a matter of 
days or weeks, reducing black carbon emissions likely will have 
an immediate impact on reducing localized warming effects. 
Black carbon is of particular concern in the Arctic region 
because it settles on ice and snow, reducing its reflectivity 
and increasing the rate of melting. According to some 
estimates, black carbon may be responsible for up to 30 percent 
of the warming that is occurring in the Arctic. While 
significant emissions of black carbon are emitted from the 
developed world, the majority of emissions are from the 
developing world.
    Reducing black carbon emissions in the United States would 
also have the benefit of reducing global premature mortalities 
and other public health impacts. Because of the significant 
potential benefits of reducing black carbon emissions, it is 
imperative that the Administrator of the Environmental 
Protection Agency conduct a study of the sources and quantities 
of black carbon emission, climate and health related impacts, 
potential cost-effective control technologies, areas for 
international action, areas for additional research, and 
additional actions that the Federal Government should take to 
reduce black carbon emissions.

                      SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1. Findings

    Section 1 includes the following Congressional findings:
          (1) black carbon is a component of ambient 
        particulate matter, the mixture of which has been found 
        to harm public health by causing serious respiratory 
        and cardiovascular effects in developed and developing 
        countries;
          (2) black carbon plays a role in climate change by 
        (A) absorbing solar radiation; and (B) reducing the 
        reflectivity of snow and ice;
          (3) black carbon is emitted from incomplete 
        combustion of fossil fuels, biomass, and biofuels;
          (4) recent studies have shown that, in the United 
        States, old diesel engines are a major contributor of 
        black carbon;
          (5) the United States has made great progress in 
        reducing black carbon emissions through regulations on 
        new vehicles and engines and a voluntary national 
        diesel retrofit program; but there remain in the United 
        States more than 11,000,000 diesel engines lacking the 
        latest diesel emission control technology; and
          (6) the collection of information relating to, and 
        research regarding, black carbon would be useful to 
        identify cost-effective methods of reducing black 
        carbon emissions in ways and from sources that would 
        have beneficial effects on the public health and the 
        climate.

Section 2. Definitions

    Section 2 defines the following terms:
          (1) The Administrator as the Administrator of the 
        Environmental Protection Agency; and
          (2) black carbon as any light-absorbing graphitic 
        (such as elemental) particle produced by incomplete 
        combustion.

Section 3. Study by administrator of black carbon emissions

Subsection (a)--Study

    Subsection (a) requires the Administrator, in consultation 
with the Secretary of Energy, the Secretary of State, and the 
heads of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 
the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the United 
States Agency for International Development, the National 
Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention, and other relevant Federal departments and agencies 
and representatives of appropriate industry and environmental 
groups to study the impacts of black carbon and the cost-
effective ways to reduce black carbon emissions that would have 
beneficial effects on global public health and global warming. 
The study is in four phases: (1) develops a universal 
definition of black carbon; (2) identifies global black carbon 
sources and mitigation reduction technologies; (3) identifies 
current and possible international funding opportunities to 
mitigate black carbon emissions; and 4) identifies 
opportunities for future research and development. The study is 
due to Congress over the course of a year.

Subsection (b)--Report

    Subsection (b) requires the Administrator to submit three 
reports to Congress over the course of a year----
    (1) The first report must be delivered to Congress by no 
later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, 
describing the results of phases I and II of the study.
    (2) The second report must be delivered to Congress by no 
later than 270 days after the date of enactment of this Act, 
describing the results of phase III of the study.
    (3) The third report must be delivered to Congress by no 
later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, 
describing the recommendations developed for phase IV of the 
study.

Subsection (c)--Authorization of appropriations

    Subsection (c) authorizes the appropriation of such sums as 
are necessary to carry out this Act.

                          LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

    S. 849 was introduced by Senators Carper and Inhofe, Boxer, 
and Kerry. The bill was read twice and referred to the Senate 
Committee on Environment and Public Works. The Committee met on 
May 14, 2009, when S. 849 was ordered favorably without 
amendment reported by voice vote.

                                HEARINGS

    The Committee did not hold hearings on S. 849 during the 
111th Congress.

                             ROLLCALL VOTES

    There were no rollcall votes. The Committee on Environment 
and Public Works met to consider S. 849 on May 14, 2009. A 
quorum of the Committee being present, S. 849 was reported 
favorably without amendment by a voice vote.

                      REGULATORY IMPACT STATEMENT

    In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee states that there 
are not expected to be significant costs to private entities 
under this legislation.

                          MANDATES ASSESSMENT

    In compliance with the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 
(Public Law 104-4), the Committee finds that S. 849 would 
impose no Federal intergovernmental unfunded mandates on State, 
local or tribal governments.

               CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE COST ESTIMATE

    In compliance with paragraph 11(a) of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate and section 403 of the 
Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Committee provides the 
following estimate, prepared by the Congressional Budget 
Office:

                                                      May 19, 2009.
Hon. Barbara Boxer,
Chairman, Committee on Environment and Public Works,
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
    Dear Madam Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 849, a bill to 
require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection 
Agency to conduct a study on black carbon emissions.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Susanne S. 
Mehlman.
            Sincerely,
                                              Douglas W. Elmendorf.
    Enclosure.

S. 849--A bill to require the Administrator of the Environmental 
        Protection Agency to conduct a study on black carbon emissions

    S. 849 would require the Environmental Protection Agency 
(EPA) to conduct a study that identifies the major sources of 
black carbon emissions in the United States, their 
contributions to global warming, and the most effective 
technologies for removing or reducing such emissions. EPA would 
be required to complete the study not later than one year from 
the bill's enactment. Based on information from EPA, CBO 
estimates that implementing this legislation would cost about 
$2 million over the 2010-2011 period, assuming availability of 
appropriated funds. Enacting the bill would not affect direct 
spending or revenues.
    S. 849 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and 
would not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal 
governments.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Susanne S. 
Mehlman. This estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, Deputy 
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.

                        CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

    Section 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing Rules of the Senate 
requires the committee to publish changes in existing law made 
by the bill as reported. Passage of this bill will make no 
changes to existing law.

                                  
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