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Author Topic:   Expect Your Energy Costs To Skyrocket!
Randall
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posted June 20, 2013 12:19 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Randall     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
This Marxist President is bound and determined to destroy the middle class.
http://news.yahoo.com/u-climate-strategy-coming-within-weeks-obama-adviser-021812598. html

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Ami Anne
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posted June 20, 2013 07:54 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Ami Anne     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
YES, he wants to destroy us. He let it slip on one open mike that he did not want to destroy "all" business.

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juniperb
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posted June 20, 2013 08:42 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for juniperb     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
I read the article....

quote:
Zichal confirmed that an announcement is expected in weeks and highlighted moves that will shape Obama's agenda but not require new funding or legislation by Congress.

quote:
One item off the agenda is a tax on carbon emitters, she said, a move strenuously opposed by many Republicans in Congress.

Zichal added that climate change is often a less divisive subject at the state level, with some Republicans setting policies that address climate change and attempt to reduce emissions.


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Randall
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posted June 20, 2013 01:06 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Randall     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
By Valerie Volcovici

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama will target carbon emissions from power plants as part of a second-term climate change agenda expected to be rolled out in the next few weeks, his top energy and climate adviser said on Wednesday.

Obama will take several steps to make tackling climate change a "second-term priority" that builds on first-term policies, said Heather Zichal, deputy assistant to the president for energy and climate change.

"In the near term, we are very much focused on the power plant piece of the equation," she said at a forum sponsored by the New Republic magazine.

On Wednesday in Berlin, Obama said the United States understood it had to do more to fight climate change and he pledged that more action was coming.

"Our dangerous carbon emissions have come down, but we know we have to do more. And we will do more," he said in a speech.

The president is expected to announce new U.S. measures to fight global warming in the coming weeks.

Zichal confirmed that an announcement is expected in weeks and highlighted moves that will shape Obama's agenda but not require new funding or legislation by Congress.

She said the administration plans to expand energy efficiency standards for appliances, accelerate clean energy development on public lands and use the Clean Air Act to tackle greenhouse gas emissions in the power and energy sectors.

The Environmental Protection Agency is working to finish carbon emissions standards for new power plants. It is then expected to tackle regulations on existing power plants.

The New York Times on Wednesday quoted senior officials as saying Obama is preparing rules for existing plants.

Zichal said that part of the Democratic president's strategy will be to depoliticize the issue of climate policy, which led to bitter partisan fights during his first term.

One item off the agenda is a tax on carbon emitters, she said, a move strenuously opposed by many Republicans in Congress.

Zichal added that climate change is often a less divisive subject at the state level, with some Republicans setting policies that address climate change and attempt to reduce emissions.

"Washington needs to catch up to the rest of the nation on this issue," she said. "It's time to turn this issue from a red state-blue state issue into an American issue."

(Reporting by Valerie Volcovici,; Editing by Ros Krasny and Xavier Briand)

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juniperb
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posted June 20, 2013 04:40 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for juniperb     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
your second article said basically the same thing
quote:
Zichal confirmed that an announcement is expected in weeks and highlighted moves that will shape Obama's agenda but not require new funding or legislation by Congress.

She said the administration plans to expand energy efficiency standards for appliances, accelerate clean energy development on public lands and use the Clean Air Act to tackle greenhouse gas emissions in the power and energy sectors.


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Christian, Jew, Muslim, Shaman, Zoroastrian, stone, ground, mountain, river, each has a secret way of being with the Mystery, unique and not to be judged.
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AcousticGod
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posted June 20, 2013 05:50 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for AcousticGod     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Another post with another title that suggests something not suggested by the article posted? We don't need fearmongering.

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Randall
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posted June 20, 2013 06:44 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Randall     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
It was the first article. I just reproduced it. Who do you think the utility companies are going to pass on the costs of complying with these new regulations to? The consumer. The title fits the content.

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AcousticGod
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posted June 20, 2013 07:09 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for AcousticGod     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
That is an assumption, however, is it not?

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Randall
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posted June 20, 2013 09:29 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Randall     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
It's economics.

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AcousticGod
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posted June 21, 2013 03:23 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for AcousticGod     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
It's assumption. Nowhere in your article was any guarantee that power companies would be charged anything by the government. Nor are you addressing the possibility that power companies have seen this coming for some time, and already have their plans in the works. Most companies do anticipate the future including costs of upkeep and transition into new systems.

    One item off the agenda is a tax on carbon emitters, she said, a move strenuously opposed by many Republicans in Congress."

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Randall
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posted June 21, 2013 09:50 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Randall     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
I never said they would be charged by the government. You assumed that, didn't you? Compliance measures will be costly, and that cost will be passed on to the consumer, as it always is.

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AcousticGod
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posted June 22, 2013 01:49 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for AcousticGod     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Nor are you addressing the possibility that power companies have seen this coming for some time, and already have their plans in the works. Most companies do anticipate the future including costs of upkeep and transition into new systems.

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Ami Anne
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posted June 22, 2013 01:57 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Ami Anne     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
quote:
Originally posted by AcousticGod:
That is an assumption, however, is it not?

You need to apply for a new job. Press secretary to the Clown in Chief

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Randall
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posted June 22, 2013 02:24 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Randall     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
If I were part of the power companies' administrative structure, having seen the re-election of a Democrat, indeed, the smart thing would have been to anticipate such, as the left is intent on pushing the global warming conspiracy. Hopefully, a conservative President will reverse these nonsensical policies.

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Randall
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posted June 24, 2013 05:44 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Randall     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Actually, Obama has always said the rules would apply only to new plants. He has now only recently said they will be forced on existing ones. Read that in here:
http://news.yahoo.com/clock-ticking-obama-climate-change-push-191404381.html

But like the above article also said, Congress isn't interested in helping him, so he is running out of time. The effort will take him to the end of his term if he were to start right now.

quote:
Originally posted by AcousticGod:
Nor are you addressing the possibility that power companies have seen this coming for some time, and already have their plans in the works. Most companies do anticipate the future including costs of upkeep and transition into new systems.

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Ami Anne
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posted June 24, 2013 05:55 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Ami Anne     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
quote:
Originally posted by AcousticGod:
Another post with another title that suggests something not suggested by the article posted? We don't need fearmongering.


fearmongering

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Randall
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posted June 25, 2013 09:18 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Randall     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
WASHINGTON (AP) — Taking climate change efforts into his own hands, President Barack Obama is proposing sweeping steps to limit heat-trapping pollution from coal-fired power plants and to boost renewable energy production on federal property.

Obama, in a speech Tuesday at Georgetown University, was to announce he's issuing a presidential memorandum to launch the first-ever federal regulations on carbon dioxide emitted by existing power plants, moving to curb the gases blamed for global warming despite adamant opposition from Republicans and some energy producers.

The far-reaching plan marks Obama's most prominent effort yet to deliver on a major priority he laid out in his first presidential campaign and recommitted to at the start of his second term: to fight climate change in the U.S. and abroad and prepare American communities for its effects. Environmental activists have been irked that Obama's high-minded goals never materialized into a comprehensive plan.

By expanding permitting on public lands, Obama hopes to generate enough electricity from renewable energy projects such as wind and solar to power the equivalent of 6 million homes by 2020, effectively doubling the electric capacity federal lands now produce, senior administration officials said. He'll also set a goal to install 100 megawatts of energy-producing capacity at federal housing projects by the end of the decade.

Obama also was to announce $8 billion in federal loan guarantees to spur investment in technologies that can keep carbon dioxide produced by power plants from being released into the atmosphere.

"While no single step can reverse the effects of climate change, we have a moral obligation to act on behalf of future generations," the White House said in a statement, arguing that climate change is no longer a distant threat — the 12 hottest years on record all occurred in the past 15 years.

The linchpin of Obama's plan involves new and existing power plants. Forty percent of U.S. carbon dioxide emissions, and one-third of greenhouse gases overall, come from electric power plants, according to the federal Energy Information Administration. The Obama administration already has proposed controls on new plants, but those controls have been delayed and not yet finalized. Tuesday's announcement would be the first public confirmation that Obama plans to extend carbon controls to existing plants.

"The country is facing a threat; the president is facing facts," said Dan Lashof of the Natural Resources Defense Council, praising Obama for taking aim at power plants. "Reducing that pollution is the most important step we can take as a nation to stand up to climate change."

A spokesman for major power companies said the industry long has understood the importance of addressing climate change and has been working to reduce greenhouse gas emissions for two decades. The industry will consider whether new climate change policies and regulations "mesh" with its ongoing transition to a cleaner generating fleet and an enhanced electric grid, said Tom Kuhn, president of the Edison Electric Institute, a group that represents power companies.

Even before Obama spoke, reaction from Republicans was swift and dismissive, reflecting the opposition to climate legislation on Capitol Hill that prompted a frustrated Obama to sidestep lawmakers and take action himself. Don Stewart, a spokesman for Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said imposing carbon rules on power plants amounts to a national energy tax.

"Will the president explain the massive costs to American jobs? Will the president explain how low-income Americans would pay for their new, higher utility bills?" Stewart said.

Senior administration officials, who weren't authorized to comment by name and requested anonymity, said Obama will set a timeline for putting new power plant controls in place. But he won't issue detailed emission targets or specifics. Instead, the president will launch a process in which the Environmental Protection Agency will work with states to develop specific plans to rein in carbon emissions, with flexibility for each state's circumstances.

Obama also will announce more aggressive steps to increase efficiency for appliances such as refrigerators and lamps, the White House said, adding that stricter standards could reduce carbon pollution by more than 3 billion tons between now and 2030 — the equivalent of a half-year's worth of carbon pollution from power plants. Another component of Obama's proposal will involve ramping up hydropower production from existing dams.

Obama raised climate change as a key second-term issue in his inaugural address in January, but has offered few details since. In his February State of the Union, he issued an ultimatum to lawmakers: "If Congress won't act soon to protect future generations, I will."

"His view reflects reality," White House spokesman Jay Carney said Monday. "We've seen Congress attempt to deal with this issue, and fail to."

Framing Obama's efforts as part of a broader, global movement, the White House said the U.S. can play a leading role in persuading other nations to join in efforts to slow the warming of the planet.

Obama is calling for an end to U.S. support for public financing for new coal-fired plants overseas, officials said, but will exempt plants in the poorest nations as long as the cleanest technology available in those countries is being used. He's also pledging to work with major polluting countries like China and India to curb emissions, building on an agreement Obama struck recently with China's leader to phase out hydrofluorocarbons, potent greenhouse gases used in air conditions and refrigerators.

Another of Obama's goals — to prepare communities for the inevitable effects of climate change — appears to be more aspiration than concrete plan. Community leaders and environmental activists say that what cities and states need to prepare for flooding and higher temperatures is money — something Obama is hard-pressed to provide without Congress' go-ahead.

Sidestepping Congress by using executive action doesn't guarantee Obama smooth sailing. Lawmakers could introduce legislation to thwart Obama's efforts. And the rules for existing power plants will almost certainly face legal challenges in court.
http://news.yahoo.com/power-plant-limits-center-obama-climate-plan-100209230.html

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Randall
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posted June 25, 2013 09:21 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Randall     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
quote:
The Obama administration already has proposed controls on new plants, but those controls have been delayed and not yet finalized. Tuesday's announcement would be the first public confirmation that Obama plans to extend carbon controls to existing plants.

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Randall
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posted June 25, 2013 09:22 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Randall     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
quote:
"Will the president explain the massive costs to American jobs? Will the president explain how low-income Americans would pay for their new, higher utility bills?" Stewart said.

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Randall
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posted June 25, 2013 09:24 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Randall     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Plants have been working on limiting their emissions on their own for the past 20 years, but there is no way they can meet and maintain the standards that will be required of new plants without a significant expenditure.

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juniperb
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posted June 25, 2013 09:38 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for juniperb     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
My bill skyrocketed in 2012 and the monthly charge almost doubled.
The watt usage didn`t rise nor did the power recovery cost but the updating of the system had enormous $$ increases.

The monthly charge was 18.28 and went to $32.00 just to have the electric. Then I have the power recovery cost, actual energy usage, energy optimization cost and st sales tax.

Which creates a hefty bill.

Anyone else seen an increase of such a large %?

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Christian, Jew, Muslim, Shaman, Zoroastrian, stone, ground, mountain, river, each has a secret way of being with the Mystery, unique and not to be judged.
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Ami Anne
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posted June 25, 2013 10:10 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Ami Anne     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
quote:
Originally posted by Randall:

The Clown in Chief does not care one bit what happens to the peons. That is evidenced by his lavish vacations which are GARISH in the light of what regular Americans experience. He has no shame over it.
Putin is right. Obama is an embarrassment to the American people.

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Randall
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posted June 25, 2013 10:20 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Randall     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Yes, Juni! My bill more than doubled in five years with no increase in usage! It went from $120 a month (I use a lot of power) to over $250! They added remote meter readings, which we had to pay for. Then they are doing research on nuclear capabilities, which we also have to foot the bill on. Costs are always passed on to the consumer. I cringe at the thought of what this Marxist will do before his term is over.

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AcousticGod
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posted June 25, 2013 12:26 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for AcousticGod     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
    That said, what Obama is announcing today is not an immediate limit to how much carbon pollution coal-burning power plants can emit. During his State of the Union address, the president told Congress that if it didn't act to curb carbon emissions, he would do so. Which in a way was like a kid loudly announcing that he had decided to do his chores. You see, Obama is legally mandated to act on curbing carbon emissions, following a court's determination that carbon dioxide is a pollutant. The EPA has been expected to develop a new limit on emissions for years, but, so far, only a proposal to limit emissions from new coal plants had been proposed. A lawsuit hoping to force the agency to act was postponed last week once it became apparent that Obama planned to finally tackle the real problem: existing plants. http://news.yahoo.com/obamas-climate-change-speech-just-three-words-less-132037205.html

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Randall
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posted June 26, 2013 03:14 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Randall     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
By Gerard Wynn

(Reuters) - President Barack Obama's climate plan, unveiled this week, may boost regional schemes to cut greenhouse gas emissions, known as cap and trade, four years after the United States failed to pass legislation for a nationwide programme.

Unlike Europe, the United States has no national cap and trade scheme to combat carbon emissions. The U.S. Congress considered but ultimately failed to bring in a national scheme in a climate bill which stalled in the Senate in 2009.

After this failure, there is no hope of a repeated attempt any time soon. But Obama's new climate plan could enhance the regional cap and trade markets and cement their future.

Such schemes allocate a fixed quota of carbon emissions permits to industry and these can be traded between the participants.

The present U.S. schemes are the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) of nine northeast states, which caps power sector carbon emissions, and California's economy-wide programme.

Obama, facing Republican opposition, is by-passing Congress and turning instead to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to bring in carbon curbs on existing power plants.

He has directed the agency to finalise such emissions standards by June 2015 under the existing Clean Air Act (CAA).

If the agency can fend off litigation, a new EPA proposal could link and boost existing regional cap and trade schemes and possibly even expand these to neighbouring states.

But such a by-passing of Congress will face legal challenges, on the basis that the Clean Air Act was not originally intended to combat climate change.

There is little precedent, for example, to implement emissions trading through the Act.

DETAIL

It is too early to judge the cost or ambition of Obama's climate plan, given its low level of detail.

"What follows is a blueprint for steady, responsible national and international action to slow the effects of climate change so we leave a cleaner, more stable environment for future generations," Obama's "Climate Action Plan" stated.

The plan did include goals to cut cumulative carbon emissions from running appliances and government buildings and a target for federal agencies to source their energy from renewable sources.

But its most interesting aspect is the plan to curb carbon dioxide emissions from existing power plants, where it is clear that emissions markets will be one model for implementation.

Obama entitled the new carbon emissions standards, "Flexible Carbon Pollution Standards for Power Plants", in a memo directing the EPA administrator.

"You shall ensure, to the greatest extent possible, that you develop approaches that allow the use of market-based instruments, performance standards, and other regulatory flexibilities; (and) ensure that the standards enable continued reliance on a range of energy sources and technologies," he said in the memo.

In international climate policy, "flexible" and "market-based" are jargon for emissions trading.

NO CONSENSUS

The Clean Air Act has few precedents for enacting emissions trading. One is the sulphur dioxide (SO2) allowance trading system, intended to address the threat of acid rain.

That market was introduced through amendments to the Act in 1990, which passed both the House of Representatives (401-21) and the Senate (89-11) by wide margins.

No such political consensus exists now, ruling out new amendments to accommodate carbon.

Instead Obama is using direct action through existing clauses in the Act, in sections 111(b) and 111(d).

These make no direct mention of carbon or emissions trading.

Section 111(d) sets guidelines for state regulation of existing sources of pollutants, such as power plants, where in the past EPA has issued model plans for adoption by the states.

EPA has made one ill-fated attempt to interpret section 111(d) as allowing an emissions trading program, according to the Washington-based think-tank "Resources for the Future". ("Greenhouse gas regulation under the Clean Air Act", April 2010)

That unsuccessful regulation in 2005 would have established a trading program for mercury emissions from power plants.

"Although the D.C. Circuit rejected EPA's mercury rule, it did so on other grounds - the court gave no indication that emissions trading under the New Source Performance Standards program was itself problematic (though it is of course possible that the court simply did not reach the issue)," the report said.

CAP AND TRADE

Despite such legal hurdles, emissions trading and other market approaches may offer the most flexibility for states to interpret an emissions standard, and so minimise costs.

The U.S. environmental group the Natural Resources Defense Council gave an example of how it could work at the end of last year. ("Closing the Power Plant Carbon Pollution Loophole", December 2012)

EPA would set state-specific performance standards for power plants, based on the energy mix in each state.

"NRDC's proposal is designed to give power plant owners freedom to choose how they would achieve the required emission reductions, giving credit for increases in energy efficiency and electricity generation using renewable sources and allowing emission-rate averaging among fossil fuelfired power plants," it said.

The plan sounds much like Obama's memo to the EPA.

States could meet the emissions standards either through their own crediting schemes, which give utilities flexibility in how they reached a target across a number of power plants, or they could tap into existing cap and trade schemes.

If EPA introduced an average limit on carbon emissions in the power sector, utilities already operating within a regional cap and trade scheme could meet such limits by buying carbon allowances.

The effect would be to push up carbon prices and probably trading volumes and liquidity in such regional cap and trade schemes by increasing demand.

(Reporting by Gerard Wynn. Editing by Jane Merriman)
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/06/26/column-wynn-us-carbon-idUSL5N0F20VD20130626?feedType=RSS&feedName=rbssEnergyNews&rpc=43

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