In a passionate announcement on Monday (it's worth
watching), President Barack Obama unveiled the United
States' plan for doing its part to combat climate change: the
Clean Power Plan (the "Plan"). The Plan sets out to reduce greenhouse
gas ("GHG") emissions from power stations, which comprise
the single largest source of emissions in the United States.
Describing climate change as "one of the key challenges of
our lifetimes," and the Plan as "the single most
important step that America has ever taken in the fight against
global climate change," Obama conveyed the urgency of the
problem, and the catastrophic consequences of inaction, while also
offering hope that climate change is a problem that, like acid rain
and extreme industrial pollution, is ultimately solvable. Perhaps
even more positively, Obama's announcement signalled the United
States' commitment to being a global leader on this
challenge.
