Click here to register for the TCC fly-in or here to download a general program.

For any members planning to participate in the conference who need assistance in scheduling meetings with Members of Congress, please contact your Association's government affairs representative.

If you are planning to attend, please RSVP by e-mail to Kerri Leininger, or alternatively, call 240-485-1159.

For assistance in scheduling, contact David Hubbard, Kerri Leininger, or Jerry Voigt.

European Union Sets Committee on Energy, Global Warming

The European Parliament on Wednesday approved the creation of a panel on climate change policy with a mandate to act as a liaison to the U.S. Congress' new Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming. 

Hailing reports from a delegation just back from Washington that American politicians are increasingly ready to discuss global warming issues, French lawmakers proposed an early invitation to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) to visit the European Parliament.

The new panel is empowered to produce policy proposals. In addition, the panel is mandated to:

• Monitor the latest evidence on climate change and assess the financial impact of new European Union initiatives;
• Analyze developments on climate change; and
• Coordinate Parliament's position regarding international negotiations on curbing greenhouse gas emissions following the 2012 expiration of the first stage of the United Nations' Kyoto Protocol.

The 60 members of the panel will be elected at a later time.

Contact Deidra Ciriello.

Canada Announces Climate Change, Air Emission Proposals

Environment Canada yesterday released a proposed framework for a national climate change and air emission reduction program. 

At the same time, they rejected the target established by the United Nations' Kyoto Protocol as unattainable without inflicting serious harm on the Canadian economy. 

Regarding climate change, the proposal would require industrial sectors like the cement industry to reduce greenhouse gas emission intensity by 18% by the year 2010 (6% for each of the next three years).  An additional 2% reduction per year would then be required. 

This objective is similar to the goal being pursued by the Bush Administration which seeks to reduce the greenhouse gas intensity of the U.S. economy by 18% by 2012. 

The objective of the Canadian plan is to reduce the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions in absolute terms by 20% by the year 2020.  This reduction is equivalent to approximately 150 million metric tons of CO2. 

As for air pollutants, the agency will establish national emission caps for nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxides and other pollutants.  Cap and trade programs and other mechanisms will be employed to reduce emissions.  The agency also will coordinate emission reduction efforts with the United States. 

Click here to read the Environment Canada press release, as well as to download copies of the climate change and air pollutant proposals. 

Contact Andy O'Hare.

Agency Reproposal Responds to Supreme Court Decision

In the wake of a recent Supreme Court decision, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has reproposed a rule clarifying how to identify emission increases for purposes of determining whether new source review (NSR) requirements have been triggered. 

In June 2005 the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a ruling in United States v. Duke Energy Corp., declaring that the proper test for emission increases was a comparison between hourly emission rates before and after a physical or operational change. 

In response to that decision, EPA proposed a rulemaking consistent with the Fourth Circuit’s opinion.  When the Supreme Court agreed to hear the Duke case, the rule was placed on hold.  Earlier this month the Supreme's overturned the Duke decision, stating that EPA had long used an annual emission test to identify emission increases. 

The majority and concurring opinions left open the question of whether EPA had the authority to change this approach through rulemaking.  As a demonstration of their opinion that they do indeed have that authority, the Agency this week re-proposed the rule. 

The new language requests comments on two options for identifying an increase.  The first looks at hourly rate increases but enables facilities that do increase hourly emissions to “net out” of NSR by demonstrating that total annual emissions at the entire facility—as opposed to an individual emission unit—did not increase substantially.  The second option also uses the hourly test but does not allow netting out.

Contact Tom Carter.

Association to Testify before House Science Subcommittee

The U.S. House Committee on Science and Technology, Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation, will be holding a hearing on May 10 to discuss “Green Transportation Infrastructure: Challenges to Access and Implementation.”  

The purpose of the hearing is to examine the types of environmentally friendly technologies available for transportation infrastructure construction and identify the physical and regulatory barriers to their use.

NRMCA’s Managing Director of National Resources, Dan Huffman, will appear as a witness. Huffman will describe the energy saving thermal properties of concrete and its ability to mitigate urban heat island effects. 

He also is slated to highlight the green benefits of pervious concrete as a leading edge solution to capturing stormwater runoff from paved roads and buildings. He will cite pervious concrete as the best available alternative for urban and suburban cities and towns to meet the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System's stormwater permit requirements under the Clean Air Act.

The hearing will be available by live webcast at  http://science.house.gov .

Contact Robert Sullivan.

Two bills to amend the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (the Act) were introduced in the Senate and in the House of Representatives on April 26. 

Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-Calif.) and Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) introduced the separate pieces of legislation.

HR 2049  and S. 1244 will expand coverage under the Act to include federal employees, will increase protections for whistleblowers, and will increase penalties for certain violations of mandatory safety and health standards. (Note that the Internet links above will lead to Thomas Register, which does not allow direct linking to legislation. To access the bills, type in key words or the House and Senate bill numbers shown above.)

Each bill has been referred to its respective committees in the House (Committee on Education and Labor) and Senate (Committee of Health, Education, Labor and Pensions).

Contact Tom Harman.

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