Good article in the El Dorado News Times today.
Ross: Industries could be hit hard if bill becomes law
By: John Worthen - El Dorado News Times
Rep. Mike Ross, D-Ark., on Thursday said that industries in El Dorado and Union County could be hit particularly hard if a proposed climate change bill aimed at reducing carbon emissions becomes law. In an e-mailed statement sent out to news media in the Fourth Congressional District, Ross said that although he agrees that carbon emissions must be reduced, he can’t support the bill in its present form because of its potential to devastate his district’s economy.
“El Dorado could be hit particularly hard if this bill passes, as it is home to Murphy Oil and Lion Oil,” Ross said in the release. “I was proud to welcome Steve Cousins, vice president of refining for Lion, to testify this week before Congress where he argued that if this bill passes in its current form, the El Dorado refinery would be forced to close its doors within a year and lay off 1,200 local workers.”
Highlights from the article:
- Under the cap-and-trade plan that is part of the bill, total carbon-dioxide emissions from large sources, such as power plants and factories, must be reduced by 17 percent from 2005 levels by 2020 and by 83 percent by 2050. American manufacturers must pay to emit carbon dioxide.
- Arkansas is among a group of states that stands to suffer a 1.5 percent decline in jobs by 2030 if the legislation becomes law.
- Ross voted against the bill in committee, despite lobbying efforts and phone calls he received from Speaker Pelosi and President Obama.
- While other states have an abundance of renewable energy in the forms of solar and wind, southern Arkansas does not. Instead, our area has vast amounts of biomass that under this bill’s current definition cannot be fully utilized. It also refuses to allow our state’s existing hydro and nuclear power to count toward the proposed federally-mandated renewable electricity standard.
- These limitations stand to increase the price we all pay for energy while limiting the ability of our foresters and farmers to have a leading role in producing American-made energy.
- We must be very careful in passing any climate change legislation to ensure that we do not enact policies that close our local facilities and ship our jobs and carbon dioxide emissions overseas.
- The reality is that between now and 2040, 97 percent of new carbon emissions will not be produced from the United States or Europe, but rather from places like China, India, and the Middle East.
This is too important to watch from the sideline - let your representatives know where you stand - www.Fuel-America.com
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