BIOMASS HUB

Senator Kerry (D-MA) is scheduled to make the rounds in Washington this week to drum up support for a new climate bill.  According to Darren Samuelsohn of ClimateWire, Kerry is pushing to have “at least eight climate-related meetings with senators and other interest groups.” The bill is also supported by Graham (R-SC) and Lieberman (I-CT), who for their part, will speak with critical voices from both parties in the debate, including Senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Scott Brown (R-MA), Mary Landrieu (D-LA), Carl Levin (D-MI), and Judd Gregg (R-NH).

According to The Hill’s E2 blog, the trio of Senators are distancing themselves from cap-and-trade, a term that has become a political liability.  While the trio’s plan will differ radically from the sweeping “economy-wide” House cap-and-trade bill approved last year, it likely won’t abandon cap-and-trade entirely.

Sources on and off Capitol Hill believe the Senate plan – which remains under construction – will establish different types of controls for different parts of the economy. This includes a cap on power plant emissions, while addressing emissions from motor fuels with a tax or fee of some sort. That cap on utilities would probably allow at least some degree of emissions permit trading, albeit with a host of restrictions, according to various lobbyists and environmentalists and a Senate aide.