EPA Seeks to Regulate Greenhouse Emissions

Two years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court ordered the Environmental Protection Agency to consider whether greenhouse gas emissions should be regulated under the Clean Air Act.

Today the EPA announced its answer. The agency said in a statement it considers greenhouse gases, the pollutants that contribute to global warming, to be a serious problem needing regulation, according to the Washington Post. During the Bush administration, EPA officials had determined that the greenhouse gases endanger public safety, but that finding was suppressed, the New York Times reports.

A formal EPA finding of endangerment starts in motion a 60-day comment period followed by publication of proposed regulations, the Times says.

Congress could beat the EPA to the punch. Lawmakers are developing a climate change law that could pre-empt EPA action, the Times says.